Middle East

The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration last year published a series of photos over past decades showing expansion of farming in Saudi Arabia’s Syrian Desert, using underground aquifers as a water source. This fossil water is a non-renewable resource and will be gone, at this rate in 50 years. NASA writes: “In this series […]

Israel/ Palestine

Israel-Palestine at the Oscars: Amy Goodman’s interviews on 5 Broken Cameras and the Gatekeepers

Juan Cole

Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now! has been interviewing the makers and subjects of Oscar nominees for best documentary, including the Palestinian film “5 Broken Cameras” and the Israeli one, “The Gatekeepers.” They are in remarkable agreement that the Likud government’s dedication to colonizing the Palestinian West Bank is a disaster for all concerned, including Israel. The […]

Syria

Syrian Revolution Darkens Further, with Damascus Bombings and Hizbullah Involvement

Juan Cole

The Syrian regime bombed its own people again on Thursday, this time sending fighter jets to bombard the old district of Deraa in the south. The bombings killed 18 persons. It wasn’t the first time the regime has deployed aerial bombardment against civilian cities, but it was the first such strike at Deraa (the place […]

Tunisia

Tunisian Democracy Challenged as Prime Minister Resigns

Juan Cole

The resignation of Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali in Tunisia has created a political crisis that the elected government will have to deal with. Jebali is a politician of the Muslim religious right, from the Ennahda Party, and had led an Ennahda-dominated cabinet in coalition with two smaller secular parties, Moncef Marzouki’s social democratic Congress for […]

Iran

WaPo says Gasoline Price Increase Mysterious, Ignores US blockade of Iran Oil!

Juan Cole

The Washington Post is surprised by the ‘mysterious’ high cost of gasoline in the US but does not mention in this article that the US government, at the insistence of the Israel lobbies, reduced Iran’s petroleum exports by 40% in 2012 by strong-arming countries to leave it in the ground and not import it on […]

Iran

Surprise! Talking to Iran just Might Work this Time (Jahanpour)

Juan Cole

Farhang Jahanpour* writes at the Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research Room for optimism in Iran and the P5-plus-1 talks Iran and the P5-plus-1, which includes the United States, will meet again on 26 February in Kazakhstan. This is the first time that the two sides will meet in an atmosphere of continuing mutual […]

Israel/ Palestine

Palestinian child in the Cross-hairs (Israeli soldier photo on Instagram)

Juan Cole

An Israeli soldier posted on Instagram a picture of a Palestinian child in the crosshairs. The soldier said that he found the picture on the internet. Palestinians said it exemplified the brutality of the occupation regime. Given right wing Israeli discourse, as with Avigdor Lieberman, of the ‘demographic threat’ of Palestinians to Israel’s continuance as […]

Egypt

Christian woman in Egypt Shoe-whacks Salafi Fundamentalist for Calling her a Harlot (Photo)

Juan Cole

Last December at a protest against Egyptian president Muhammad Morsi in Egypt, it is alleged that an unveiled Christian woman was standing with other demonstrators when a hard-line Salafi fundamentalist came up to her and said “Cover your face you harlot!” She immediately reached down, took off her shoe, and slapped him across the face […]

Iran

Iran Leader: Having Nukes is ‘Crime Against Humanity’ – US Sanctions Actually Target Fuel Enrichment

Juan Cole

The USG Open Source Center translated the entirety of Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s speech in Tehran to Tabrizis on Saturday. In it, Khamenei for the nth time called nuclear weapons a ‘crime against humanity’ and affirmed that Iran does not want them. Although this speech was covered by US media such as the New […]