Month

Archives: October 2014

Halloween Poetry: W. B. Yeats, “All Souls’ Night”

All Souls' Night By W.B. Yeats Midnight has come and the great Christ Church bell And many a lesser bell sound through the room; And it is All Souls' Night. And two…

Unprecedented Damage to Gaza & its People can’t be repaired with Just more Aid

By Sara Roy, Harvard University In the near three decades that I have been involved with Gaza and her people, I have never seen the kind of physical and psychological destruction that…

“Pilot Program” of Segregated Buses banning Palestinians in Israel

AJ+ "The defense minister [Moshe Ya'alon] ... hasn’t issued a blanket ban but believes integrated buses are "a recipe for a terror attack.” So he’s launched a pilot program of segregated buses…

Afghanistan’s Women: After 13 Years of War, the Rule of Men, Not Law

By Ann Jones via Tomdispatch.com On September 29th, power in Afghanistan changed hands for the first time in 13 years. At the Arg, the presidential palace in Kabul, Ashraf Ghani was sworn in as…

Far Right Extremist Avigdor Lieberman says Swedish Recognition of Palestine will Strengthen Extremists

By Juan Cole There was a time when people like Avigdor Lieberman were not welcome in Israeli politics, or, indeed, in Jewish circles in the United States. Dogged by accusations of corruption…

This day in History: Madrid Arab-Israeli Peace Conference (a Process that Netanyahu later Boasted of Derailing)

The Madrid peace conference convened October 30, 1991, hosted by President George H. W. Bush and Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev, aimed at initiating a peace settlement between Israel and the Arabs. Bush…

Jerusalem tensions over al-Aqsa Mosque turn bloody as Far Right-winger is Shot

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Right-wing Jewish activist Yehuda Glick was shot and injured at a rally in Jerusalem on Wednesday evening, Israeli police and medical sources said. Glick was reportedly shot in his…

GOP Voter Suppression: Comedian Louis Black says F#%! it!

ACLU "At a photo shoot with ACLU’s Voting Rights Project Director Dale Ho, ACLU voting rights ambassador Lewis Black gets so f#%!in’ tired of politicians trying to deny people the right to…

The Kurdish 3rd Way: Democracy is “Radical” in Northern Syria

By Karlos Zurutuza (Inter Press Service) Garbage collection is among the many duties of the Democratic Self-Management in force in the three mainly Kurdish enclaves of northern Syria. Credit: Karlos Zurutuza/IPS AMUDA,…

BDS Success: Israeli Firm Sodastream Leaves Palestinian West Bank after Boycott

By Juan Cole AJ+ SodaStream Leaving West Bank After Boycotts AJ+ : "Facing an intensive boycott campaign, the controversial Israeli company that makes home soda machines is leaving the West Bank. Bye,…

Centenary of the Ottoman Empire’s Entry into World War I

100 years ago, the Ottoman Empire bombarded two Russian ports, entering the war on the side of Germany and Austria. Below is rare footage of Ottoman forces operating during the war. The…

Concentrated Solar Plant in Tunisian Sahara aims to sell Clean Electricity to Europe

Reuters: "The TuNur project aims to generate clean energy from a giant solar plant in the Tunisian Sahara from where it will be connected to the European electricity grid via a dedicated…

Iran Pressures Media over coverage of Acid Attacks on Women

By Golnaz Esfandiari via RFE/RL Iranian officials are moving to muzzle media coverage of a string of recent acid attacks targeting young women in the central city of Isfahan. The attacks have…

Turkey allows Kurdish Peshmerga to Cross to Kobane

By Juan Cole The Turkish press is reporting that Turkish intelligence is facilitating the crossing of a couple hundred paramilitary troops (Peshmerga) from Iraqi Kurdistan to the Turkish town of Suruç, 16…

Only 1/2 of 1% of “Patriot” Act Secret Warrants Used against Terrorism

By Mark Jaycox via Electronic Frontier Foundation The Patriot Act continues to wreak its havoc on civil liberties. Section 213 was included in the Patriot Act over the protests of privacy advocates…

Nobel Peace Laureates to Obama: Bring use of torture into the light of day, Never to return

By Jon Queally via Commondreams.org Twelve Nobel Peace Prize laureates have written to President Barack Obama asking the US to close the dark chapter on torture once and for all.Twelve fellow Nobel…

Artificial Billionaires: Regimes’ Crony Capitalism Stifling Middle East

World Bank Across the Middle East and North Africa, countries are being forced to face up to a harsh reality—that, left as they are now, their economies won’t create anything like enough…

Egypt’s War on NGOs: 23 Youth sentenced to 3 Years Hard Labor for Peaceful Protests

Human Rights Watch (Beirut) – A Cairo court of minor offenses handed down three-year sentences to 23 people for breaking an anti-protest law that allows Egyptian authorities broad powers to ban or…

Iraq: Is the Sunni-Shiite Slaughter at Jurf al-Sakhr really a US Victory?

By Juan Cole Apparent good news was announced on Sunday in the fight against the extremist ISIL organization: The Iraqi army, backed by fundamentalist Shiite militias, managed to take the village of…

Israeli restrictions on movement strangle Palestinian life

By Daoud Kuttab "My homeland is not a suitcase and I am not a traveler," wrote Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish. But for many Palestinians living in the besieged homeland, the right to…

Burned: Valerie Plame Wilson’s new Roman a Clef on Dick Cheney’s Great Betrayal

Bloomberg "Valerie Plame Wilson, author and former CIA officer, discusses her new book entitled "Burned" and national security in the 21st century with Bloomberg's Pimm Fox on "Taking Stock." (Source: Bloomberg)" Channel…

Does Fox “News” cultivate Closed Minded “Right Wing Authoritarians”?

TheLipTV "Is Fox News creating content that appeals to closed minded people of a "right wing authoritarian" mind state? That is the case being argued by a University of Alabama Psychologist, Dr.…

‘Thanks for your Service’ = Silencing the Vets

By Rory Fanning via Tomdispatch.com Last week, in a quiet indie bookstore on the north side of Chicago, I saw the latest issue of Rolling Stone resting on a chrome-colored plastic table…

The Tunisian Achievement

By Juan Cole Fears that the historic vote on Sunday in Tunisia might be marred by violence committed by the country's tiny lunatic fringe were not borne out. The interim government of…

Protests after Israeli Troops kill American Teenager near Ramallah

RAMALLAH (Ma'an) -- Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian teenager late Friday during clashes in Silwad village near Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, medical officials said. Orwa Abd al-Wahhab Hammad,…

The Ultra Orthodox vs. The Israeli Army: Israel’s Other Religious War (VICE)

VICE News: "Since Israel's inception, the Haredi — ultra-Orthodox adherents of Judaism —have been exempt from the country's military conscription laws. But their growing population, coupled with their high unemployment rate and…

For GOP who Question why Iraq didn’t Want US Forces to Stay: “Blackwater Guards Guilty In 2007 Iraq Massacre”

Cenk Uygur, The Young Turks: "Four former Blackwater security guards were convicted Wednesday in the 2007 shootings of more than 30 Iraqis in Baghdad, an incident that inflamed anti-American sentiment around the…

Top 5 Things More Americans will die of than Ebola this Year, including Guns

By Juan Cole The odd hysteria about ebola is being driven more by a media frenzy than the actual public health risks. Ebola is not the sort of disease that is likely…

WWI: Remembering how Europe Blockaded Lebanese Civilians & Killed 200,000 with Famine

BBC "Unknown to many, a third of the Lebanese population [then West Syria] died of famine and disease during World War One. BBC Arabic’s Carine Torbey recounts the horrifying story of the…

Are US Drone Strikes in Pakistan War Crimes? Only 12% of those Killed are Known Militants

By Rozina Ali Drone Strikes: The numbers don't lie, except when they do By: Rozina Ali At a time when President Barack Obama has likened his new military strategy in Iraq and…

US Negotiator: All the Components of an Enrichment Deal with Iran are on the Table

By Golnaz Esfandiari The top U.S. negotiator in nuclear talks with Iran says Washington will not allow Tehran to obtain nuclear arms. Speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)…

Is Egypt’s Sinai going the Way of Syria? 30 Troops Killed by Militants

By Juan Cole The Arabic newspaper Ilaf reports that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has declared a state of emergency for 3 months in parts of the province of North Sinai after…

You’ll be Surprised which Congressmen get Most Campaign Money from War Industry

AJ+ "War is a big industry in the United States, but who profits from it? AJ+ breaks down how much money was contributed by defense contractors to members of Congress in 2014…

Iraq: Are Senior ISIL Commanders already Defecting in Mosul & Tikrit?

By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | via Niqash.org Senior members of the Sunni Muslim extremist group, the Islamic State, have disappeared from Mosul and Tikrit. Sources suggest they defected for a number…

Double-Edged Sword: Can US overcome its Feelings of Exceptionalism?

By David Bromwich via Tomdispatch.com The origins of the phrase “American exceptionalism” are not especially obscure. The French sociologist Alexis de Tocqueville, observing this country in the 1830s, said that Americans seemed…

Why Can Europe have Climate Targets but not the US? Corruption

By Juan Cole The European Union climate summit has agreed to cut emissions by 40% by 2030, after hard bargaining by Poland and the UK failed to derail an agreement. The 28…

Renewables & the Future of India: IT Center Bangalore goes Solar to avoid Brownouts, High Electricity Bills

News9 "The city [of Bangalore] is struggling with frequent power cuts. Those who were smart enough to invest in solar energy are the only ones coping with it. We take you through…

Climate Treaty Follies: How Inaction is Endangering the World

By Tom Giesen "To be quite candid the idea of a 2°C target is largely out of the window." Sir Robert Watson, former IPCC Chair. 2012 Since the late 1990s, the stated…

Could ISIL be Put on Trial? Challenge for International Law

DUBAI (IRIN) - The international outcry to the openly advertised atrocities committed in Iraq by the jihadist group calling itself Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS or ISIL) has led to calls for…

Understanding Islam: Kecia Ali on ‘The Lives of Muhammad’

Column » ‘By the Book’ with Joseph Preville by JOSEPH RICHARD PREVILLE and JULIE POUCHER HARBIN for ISLAMiCommentary The life of Prophet Muhammad has inspired the development of a vast body of…

The end of National Sovereignty in the Middle East? Iraqi Kurdistan sends troops into Syria

By Juan Cole: Al-Manar reports that the legislature of the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government (a super-province of Iraq) has voted to send Kurdistan forces to the Syrian Kurdish city of Kobane to…

Top 4 Things we can learn from War on Terror in “War on Ebola”

By Karen J. Greenberg via Tomdispatch.com These days, two “wars” are in the headlines: one against the marauding Islamic State and its new caliphate of terror carved out of parts of Iraq…

The momentum to recognize a Palestinian State is unstoppable

By Farhang Jahanpour Once again, the British Parliament has led the way with an epoch-making decision. On Monday 13 October 2014, British lawmakers voted overwhelmingly in favour of recognizing Palestine as a…

America didn’t learn the Lessons of Tribes & Counter-Insurgency in Vietnam, Leading to the Iraq Quagmire

By David Moore The rise of ISIL, as well as the resurgence of the Taliban, has brought numerous “experts” out to offer analyses on the best way to combat these developments. The…

Iran Proposes Axis against ISIL to Iraqi PM Abadi as alternative to US Coalition

By Juan Cole al-Zaman [The Times of Baghdad] reports that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has proposed to visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi an anti-ISIL axis including Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq that…

Israeli Squatters Sabotage Palestinian Wells in Jordan Valley

JERICHO (Ma'an) -- Dozens of Israeli settlers damaged wells belonging to Palestinians in the Khirbet Samra area of the Jordan Valley, a local official said Wednesday. Aref Daraghma, the head of a…

Iraqi Sunnis to ISIL, US Coalition: A Pox on Both your Houses

Sunni Muslim Militias Decide They Won't Fight With IS - or The US Alliance By Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | via Niqash.org It is clear to both the current Iraqi government, to…

“Don’t Send these Climate Denying Poll-Cats back to Congress: Send them back to Science Class” – Jesse Ventura

Jesse Ventura "Off The Grid" "Don't send these Poll-cats back to Congress. Send them back to science class!" Today, Jesse Ventura runs down three of the top Washington republicans, who are screwing…

Top 5 Good News Solar Energy Stories Today

If Baghdad & the Kurds are allied against ISIL, why is Baghdad Starving Kurdistan of Money?

From a blogger in the region: Following international media reporting, it is easy to think about war only in terms of uniforms, boots and steel. But the war against the Islamic state…

Edward Snowden and the Golden Age of Spying: Interview with Laura Poitras

By Tom Engelhardt and Laura Poitras via Tomdispatch.com Here’s a Ripley’s Believe It or Not! stat from our new age of national security. How many Americans have security clearances? The answer: 5.1…

Dear USA: Liberian-Americans don’t Have Ebola

By Philippa Garson (Follow @PhilippaGarson ) NEW YORK, 17 October 2014 (IRIN) - Africans living in the US from the three Ebola-affected countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, are under enormous…

Defying Turkey, US airdrops arms to Kobane Kurds

By Juan Cole In a step that over-ruled America's Turkish NATO ally, US jets dropped food, first aid and weaponry into the besieged Syrian Kurdish town of Kobane on Monday morning. Turkey's…

The Kobane Crisis: Where are Turkey, the PKK and the Kurds Going?

By Mustafa Gurbuz For many Kurds, Ankara’s spectator role in Kobane is a systematic policy to weaken PKK to get more leverage in the peace talks. The radical ISIL group is besieging…

Top 1% ‘own half global wealth’

BBC News: "The richest 1% of people own nearly half the world's wealth, according to a report out this week. With total global wealth more than doubling this century, total household wealth…

Give Democracy a Chance in the Middle East, include the Muslim Religious Parties

By Neil Thompson When many Westerners think of the Middle East today they tend to see a region gripped by religious and sectarian violence. What all the many conflicts have in common…

Kobane Kurds fight off ISIL Assault, as Shells land in Turkey

By Juan Cole Kurdish forces at Kobane (Ayn al-Arab) on Saturday fought off an assault by ISIL that sought to cut the city off from Turkey and completely surround it, according to…

Armed Israeli Squatters attack Jerusalem Home of Returning Pilgrim

JERUSALEM (Ma'an) -- Armed Jewish settlers on Thursday attacked a Palestinian home in the al-Suwanna neighborhood on the Mount of Olives east of the Old City of Jerusalem, removing banners celebrating the…

Laura Poitras’ movie CITIZENFOUR captures the man at the centre of today’s Watergate moment – Edward Snowden – in a compelling story of whistleblowing and NSA snooping

Exclusive: Laura Poitras on the Edward Snowden documentary

Channel 4 News Channel 4 News: "Laura Poitras' movie CITIZENFOUR captures the man at the centre of today's Watergate moment - Edward Snowden - in a compelling story of whistleblowing and NSA…

Rosewater: Jon Stewart and Maziar Bahari talk about their Film

BBC News "Jon Stewart and Maziar Bahari talk to the BBC's Andrew Marr about their film 'Rosewater'. The film is based on Bahari's memoir 'Then They Came for Me'." BBC News: "Jon…

Why is this Man Smiling? Iranian Officials say Confidant of US Deal on Nuclear

By Juan Cole Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's nuclear energy agency, expressed confidence that the few remaining issues between the UN Security Council and Iran will be settled. Earlier this…

Can Marijuana save your Life in a Car Collision?

TheLipTV "Marijuana users’ brains survive traumatic brain injury at higher rates, according to a study conducted on 446 participants, which showed that those with THC in their systems at the time of…

Daily Struggle of 100,000 Kurdish Refugees from Kobane in Turkey

Vice News "When Islamic State jihadists launched a major offensive on the majority Kurdish town of Kobane in September, more than 180,000 people fled across the border into Turkey. Local authorities struggled…

Top 7 Ways US Intervention in Iraq/Syria could turn Catastrophic

By Peter Van Buren via Tomdispatch.com What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Seven Worst-Case Scenarios in the Battle with the Islamic State By Peter Van Buren You know the joke? You describe something…

Ebola & Immigrants and Muslims, Oh My! Operating the Fear Machine

by Rebecca Gordon Like many people around the world, four-star Marine General John Kelley is really worried about Ebola. But he’s not worried about the more than 4,000 people who have died…

Will Ireland Recognize Palestine?

By Juan Cole After Sweden recognized Palestine, the Irish government began considering doing so. On Thursday, the Irish parliament asked Irish Foreign Minister, Eamon Gilmore, questions regarding this plan. Gilmore affirmed that…

Surprising Map of Which Countries Recognize Palestine

AJ+ "Sweden became the first European Union country to recognize the State of Palestine on Oct. 3, and the United Kingdom parliament voted 274-12 in favor of recognizing the State of Palestine.…

Humanitarian Crisis: Health Care and Jordan’s 600,000 Syrian Refugees

By Katy Montoya I was scrambling to take notes when the First Lieutenant of the Jordanian Security Forces joined my conversation with security personnel in one of the small offices of Ruba’a…

The New McCarthyism on Israel: Naming and Shaming . . . Hillel

By Alice Rothchild Jewish communal and religious organizations have become increasingly donor driven and sclerotic when it comes to discourse on Israel/Palestine. This is clearly in evidence when it comes to the…

Turkey bargaining with base for US, wants no-fly zone in Syria

By Juan Cole Earlier this week Turkish officials met American ones on the issue of combating ISIL. The US wants to use Incirlik Air Force Base for the purpose, but Turkey has…

Real Estate Agents to the Terrorists: ISIL Steals Mosul Refugee Property to Raise Money

By Nawzat Shamdeen via Niqash.org The Sunni Muslim extremist group that has taken over the northern city of Mosul has a new source of income: real estate. The Islamic State group has…

Reza Aslan, religion Ph.D. vs. Sam Harris

The Young Turks: Cenk Uygur, host of The Young Turks and Professor Reza Aslan discuss Sam Harris. Cenk asks Reza how he feels about Harris' comments about him and islam. Reza explains…

Is the Center for Jewish Life stifling free speech at Princeton University?

By Max Weiss via The Princetonian I have never met Slav Leibin. Nonetheless, it recently came to my attention that he vetoed, with the approval of the Center for Jewish Life, my…

America’s Colonial Armies: Absentee Soldiers, Corrupt Officers and Collapse

By William J. Astore via Tomdispatch.com In June, tens of thousands of Iraqi Security Forces in Nineveh province north of Baghdad collapsed in the face of attacks from the militants of the…

Is Baghdad next? ISIL takes Hit Base in Iraq, loots it for Weapons

By Juan Cole According to Aljazeera sources, ISIL has completed the taking of Hit district in the al-Anbar Province of Iraq. At a time when, supposedly, a range of coalition partners is…

Iraqi Kurds to Turkey: Let Volunteers Through To Defend Failing Kobani

By Charles Recknagel via RFE/RL A top official of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region is calling on Turkey to let volunteer fighters through to the besieged Syrian city of Kobani, where Syrian Kurds…

French Planes bomb Damascus to put Down Syrian Revolt, 1925 (Video: This Day in History)

"Title reads: "Defence of Damascus. French troops - barricades - and armed posts - now circle the town of view of threatened attack by Rebels". Having invaded and occupied Syria, French troops…

The Tunisian Exception

By L. Carl Brown What has made Tunisia's transition from authoritarian government, for all its ups and downs, more successful than those of its Arab neighbors? It will soon be four years…

In Symbolic Vote, UK Parliament urges Recognition of Palestine

By Juan Cole There are 650 members of the British parliament, so the vote on Monday by 271 of them to recognize Palestine is hardly an overwhelming victory for supporters of this…

Columbus Day: How is it Still a Thing? (John Oliver)

John Oliver, "Last Week Tonight" "Christopher Columbus did a lot of stuff that was way more terrible than "sailing the ocean blue," but we don't learn about that. Columbus Day: How is…

Top Five Worst Disease Epidemics (Historical Footage)

Top 5 Worst Disease Epidemics - British Pathé

Cold as Hell: North Dakota Burns up the World with Fracked Oil

By Laura Gottesdiener via Tomdispatch At 9 p.m. on that August night, when I arrived for my first shift as a cocktail waitress at Whispers, one of the two strip clubs in…

Hundreds of Israeli public figures urge British Parliament to recognize the State of Palestine

Hundreds of Israeli public figures urge British Parliament to recognize the State of Palestine Gush Shalom, Israel. Press Release, October 13, 2014 363 Israeli public figures have signed a letter to the…

Top 5 Ways Lower oil Prices Could Change the World

By Juan Cole Brent Crude has fallen to $90 a barrel as China's and Asia's slowing economic growth has reduced oil demand and production remains high. All this despite the subtraction of…

First-rate care on your doorstep when Cleveland Clinic opens in Abu Dhabi

The Cleveland Clinic’s reputation for excellence in health care has been hard won and deserved. For the first time, the company is taking its brand beyond the US and Canada to provide…

Israeli firm looks to keep solar power generators running at night

Reuters Plus: "Israeli firm Brenmiller Energy aims to solve the conundrum of producing solar power at night with a new energy storage system that it says is an alternative to other solar…

Why do Politicians spend $9 billion a year to Jail the Mentally Ill?

Brave New Films "Instead of helping the mentally ill, police often put them behind bars. Watch how one police department is making a positive difference. It’s simple. Diversion programs work better than…

Israeli Squatters beat up woman picking olives in Palestinian West Bank (400 Attacks a Year)

SALFIT (Ma'an) -- A large group of Israeli settlers on Saturday morning violently beat a young Palestinian woman while she was picking olives from trees in an orchard in the village of…

The Wider Appeal of ISIL and Sunni Grievances

By Juan Cole al-Quds al-`Arabi [Arab Jerusalem] reports on the appeal of ISIL to Salafi hard line Sunni Muslims. In a worrisome development, radicals throughout the region are rallying to the so-called…

Iraq’s Sole Yazidi Lawmaker Says 25,000 Girls Abducted By ISIL To Be Raped, Sold

By Freshta Jalalzai and Luke Johnson via RFE/RL Iraq's only ethnic Yazidi member of parliament says that the human rights situation in her country is "deteriorating," with Islamic State (IS) militants kidnapping, raping,…

Will Egypt Intervene in Libya as part of Generals’ War on Political Islam?

CCTV Africa: "Pressure is growing on Egypt's government to intervene in Libya. That's after the emergence this week of an Islamic State-style caliphate - close to the Egyptian border. Many in Cairo…

Islamophobia: Is Sam Harris As Dangerous As Sarah Palin? (The Young Turks)

The Young Turks: ""Whether you think him a truth-teller or a bigot, Bill Maher deserves credit for launching one of the most robust public cultural/intellectual debates in recent memory. Two weeks ago…

Walmart Plots to derail Rooftop Solar Energy Revolution

By Deirdre Fulton via Commondreams.org The Walton family—who, as heirs to the Walmart fortune, have more wealth than 42 percent of American families combined—are impeding the nation's transition to a clean energy…

Listening to Nobelist Malala Yusufzai instead of just Honoring Her

Listening to Nobelist Malala Yousafzai instead of just Honoring Her

By Juan Cole Malala Yousafzai has become the youngest winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in history, sharing it this year with India’s Kailash Satyarthi, a children's rights activist. Ms. Yousafzai, from…

Gaza, its Power Plant hit by Israel, Waits in the Dark … and Waits

By Sam Bahour (Ma'an News Agency) When I asked my colleague in Gaza about her biggest dream, her answer made an impression on me: "I dream of what life would be like…

Divestment and Popular Politics: Big Oil and Israeli Occupation

By Jen Marlowe On September 21 (one day before world leaders converged on New York for the United Nations Climate Summit, and one day after up to 400,000 people took to the…

America’s Oil Wars on ISIL, Iran & Russia

By Michael T. Klare via Tomdispatch.com It was heinous. It was underhanded. It was beyond the bounds of international morality. It was an attack on the American way of life. It was…

ISIL takes one third of strategic Kobane in Syria, loses Tuz Khurmato in Iraq

By Juan Cole al-Khalij [The Gulf] (Sharjah, UAE) reports that the Syrian Human Rights Observatory says ISIL fighters are now in one third of the Syrian Kurdish city of Kobane (`Ayn al-`Arab).…

Remembering the Muslim Heritage of Tolerance and Hybrid Civilization

By Tareq Ramadan Because the brutal behavior exhibited by members of IS have drearily captivated audiences around the world, Muslims in the West fear that their faith will be increasingly stereotyped and…

Is the new US airbase in Iraqi Kurdistan all about Iran?

By Hiwa Barznjy | Erbil | via Niqash.org NIQASH interviewed Safeen Dizayee, the spokesperson for the government of semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan. During a candid and wide ranging conversation, Dizayee spoke about why…

First 1300 Years of Islamic History in 3 Minutes

Lost Islamic History: "1300 Years of Islamic History in 3 Minutes "

Does the Houthi Takeover of Yemen’s Sanaa Endanger World Trade?

By Juan Cole The fall of the Yemeni government to radical Zaidi tribesmen from Saadah in the north has gone relatively unremarked in the US mass media. Yemen is admittedly a relatively…

Israel Squatters Chop Down Dozens of Palestinian Olive Trees Near Nablus (800,000 since 1967)

NABLUS (Ma'an) -- Israeli settlers on Monday chopped down dozens of olive trees on Palestinian agricultural lands in the Nablus district, an official said. Ghassan Daghlas, a Palestinian official who monitors settlement…

Is Obama worse than Nixon on Harassing Journalists? Committee to Protect Journalists Petition

Electronic Frontier Foundation p>A free press has always been an essential part of any democracy. That’s why repressive governments insist on state control over media. That’s why the very first addition to…

The Terrorists have our Number, and do a Number on Washington

By Tom Engelhardt, Tomdispatch.com [Note for TomDispatch Readers: I want to offer special thanks to those of you who made $100 donations to this website in return for signed, personalized copies of my…

The Last Days of Kobani Loom as ISIL Closes in on Syrian Kurds with Murder on its Mind

By Juan Cole ISIL fighters have advanced into the Kurdish Syrian city of Kobane (`Ayn al-`Arab), with fighting in the streets as Kurds resist, according to the pan-Arab daily, al-Hayat [Life]. Kobane,…

7Emirates Run to benefit Al Jalila Foundation

The goal is to raise Dh777,000 to support disabled children in the UAE whose family cannot afford treatment.

Why is Kobani Important? ISIS advances against Syrian Kurds despite US Airstrikes

AJ+ "The Islamic State Group (aka ISIS or ISIL) is knocking on the doors of Kobani, a Syrian town on the border of Turkey. Desperate Kurdish fighters have been battling them for…

You’ll Never Believe what ISIL has done to Iraq’s al-Anbar Population

BAGHDAD/DUBAI, 6 October 2014 (IRIN) - Nine months of shelling, airstrikes and street battles have taken a heavy toll on Iraq's "forgotten" province of Anbar, the first to be overrun by militants…

Apple and Google Take on U.S. Government Over Encryption

" Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- While the newest Apple and Google smartphones will automatically encrypt data stored on them, that won’t keep U.S. law enforcement and intelligence agencies from obtaining evidence linked…

Ben Affleck on Bill Maher’s Muslim Problem

By Juan Cole Bravo to Ben Affleck and Nicholas Kristoff for telling Bill Maher off about his chronic case of Muslim-hating bigotry. (He would say he doesn't hate Muslims, only their religion,…

NASA Photo of Sahara: Richat Structure, Mauritania

NASA Richat Structure, Mauritania, Western Sahara Desert "Richat Structure, Mauritania This prominent circular feature in the Sahara desert of Mauritania has attracted attention since the earliest space missions because it forms a…

Incivility: On not Bringing up Occupied Palestinians in Polite Company

By Heike Schotten (Ma'an News Agency) In the US, and especially within the US Palestine solidarity movement, the biggest Israel-Palestine news since Gaza Genocide 3.0 (which, with Palestinians dying daily, whether from…

Rep. Louie Gohmert’s Ebola Theory Is Dumber Than He Is

The Young Turks "Louie Gohmert (R-TX) this week blasted President Barack Obama for sending troops to Africa to help fight an Ebola outbreak, and predicted that they would bring the disease back…

Does Bear + Dragon Trump Eagle? How Russia & China may block the US in Asia

By Pepe Escobar via Tomdispatch.com A specter haunts the fast-aging “New American Century”: the possibility of a future Beijing-Moscow-Berlin strategic trade and commercial alliance. Let’s call it the BMB. Its likelihood is…

The Yasukuni Shuffle: China and Japan duke it out via T.V. Serials on the Wrongs of WW II

By Philip J Cunningham Everyday hundreds, if not thousands of Chinese and Japanese kill one another on Chinese television. Hundreds of Anti-Japan war dramas were churned out last year and the genre…

Pan-Mideast War: ISIL and al-Qaeda attack Hizbullah outposts Near Lebanese Border

By Juan Cole ISIL and al-Qaeda have, according to Hizbullah, launched attacks in Syria's Qalamoun district (abutting the Lebanese border near Baalbek) on Hizbullah military outposts on the Syrian side. Hizbullah is…

Anti-Science Congress cut $600 mn. from Agency Leading Ebola Response

News365 "WASHINGTON -- The lead agency tasked with responding to the threat of Ebola both within the United States and abroad has seen its budget drop dramatically in the past four years.…

Kurdish Forces Under-equipped, Need ground troop Allies: Peshmerga General

RFE/RL In an interview with Samira Ali Mandee of RFE/RL's Radio Free Iraq, General Jabbar Yawar, secretary-general of the Peshmerga Ministry of Iraq's Kurdish region, discusses the ongoing fight against Islamic State…

Beyond Antarctica: 3-Feet Sea Level Rise from Melting Alaskan, Other Glaciers Alone

Beyond Antarctica: 3-Foot Sea Level Rise from Melting Alaskan, Other Glaciers Alone

NSF: "Tighten your seat belt! This runway is made of ice. Welcome to the Ruth Glacier, deep inside Alaska's Denali National Park. Many of the visitors are here for backcountry skiing, but…

ISIL Still Taking Towns in Iraq’s Al-Anbar as Coalition Airstrikes are Delayed

By Juan Cole The pan-Arab London daily Al-Hayat [Life] reports today that ISIL is still expanding its sway in towns in Iraq's western al-Anbar Province, having just taken Kubaisah in the district…

Defying US, Sweden to Recognize Palestine (First in Europe)

Defying US, Sweden to Recognize Palestine (First in Western Europe)

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The prime minister of the Kingdom of Sweden on Friday said that the country would recognize the State of Palestine, becoming the first major Western European state to do…

How Stupid Can CNN Hosts Get about Muslims with Reza Aslan? THIS STUPID.

Sam Seder "Watch as Reza Aslan schools CNN anchors and Bill Maher on their Islamophobia..." Sam Seder: "How Stupid Can CNN Hosts Get? THIS STUPID"

Expansion of Morocco’s Largest Solar Complex to Provide 1.1 Million Moroccans with Clean Energy

World Bank WASHINGTON, September 30, 2014 – The World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors approved today a US$519 million project to support Morocco’s ongoing efforts to reduce its dependency on fossil…

The Alamo of the Kurds: Kobane Near Falling to ISIL

By Juan Cole Ismat Sheikh, commander of the Kurdish forces at the border town of Kobane (Ain al-Arab) that is besieged by ISIL tanks and artillery, says that he expects massacres of…

35,000 Walruses Can’t be Wrong about Climate Change: Crowd beach b/c “extreme retreat of sea ice”

ODN/ ITN "Photographed on Saturday, images were taken of at least 35,000 walruses who beached themselves on a remote Alaskan coastline. The huge gathering was spotted during the National Oceanic and Atmospheric…

In Iraqi Classrooms, Sunni Muslim Extremists Ban Evolution, Patriotism And Literature

By Ahmad Mohammed | Kirkuk | via Niqash.org In areas under the control of Sunni Muslim extremists, teachers have been issued a special set of instructions. Among other things they say that…

As the Globe Warms, So Does the Climate Movement

By Todd Gitlin via Tomdispatch.com Less than two weeks have passed and yet it isn’t too early to say it: the People’s Climate March changed the social map -- many maps, in…

7 Surprising Reasons Turkey is entering war on ISIL

By Juan Cole The Turkish parliament voted by a large margin Thursday to allow Turkish troops to make incursions into neighboring countries if necessary to defeat the so-called Islamic State of Iraq…

Lessons from French Morocco: “Fanaticism Anxiety” about Muslims has been with us since the Colonial Era

By Edmund Burke III Today we hear a great deal about the question of what went wrong in Middle Eastern societies. For an historian of the early twentieth century world, it’s déjà…

Statement by Professors of Jewish Studies in North America Regarding the AMCHA Initiative

Received by email attachment) Statement by Professors of Jewish Studies in North America Regarding the AMCHA Initiative We the undersigned are professors of Jewish studies at North American universities. Several of us…

Denying ISIL Legitimacy and the problem of Radical Returnees

By Akil N. Awan via The National Interest Last week, President Barack Obama chaired a special meeting of the UN Security Council in which member states passed a resolution establishing an international…

Palestine goes to UN Security Council to Demand Israeli Withdrawal by 2016

By Juan Cole AP reports that Palestine is presenting a resolution to the United Nations Security Council (through its "Arab Group") calling for a complete Israeli withdrawal from the West Bank, including…

Netanyahu’s Nuclear Hypocrisy on Iran; In fact, Everyone in the ME needs to Disarm

By Farhad Malekafzali With negotiations to limit Iran’s enrichment in return for easing of economic sanctions on the verge of failure, hopes for a step-by-step diplomacy to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program are…

Failure Is Success: How American Intelligence Works in the Twenty-First Century

By Tom Engelhardt [Note for TomDispatch Readers: My new book, Shadow Government: Surveillance, Secret Wars, and a Global Security State in a Single-Superpower World (with an introduction by Glenn Greenwald), is now…

Drone Strikes as much an Obama Legacy as Health Care: John Oliver

John Oliver "The United States has launched a huge number of drone strikes under President Obama. It’s widely accepted and extremely terrifying" Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Drones (HBO)

$22 Billion to Fight ISIL in same Year Congress cut $8.7 bn in Food Stamps

By Juan Cole It was all the way back in February, so the memory of this headline has faded: " Congress passes $8.7 billion food stamp cut By Ned Resnikoff It’s official:…