Month

Archives: May 2015

Why Rand Paul is right to Kill the So-Called PATRIOT Act: It was never about Terrorism

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has vowed to force the expiration of the so-called PATRIOT Act on Sunday. Paul is right that it is unconstitutional…

Nasty, New Neighbours: How Close Will Extremists Get To Baghdad?

By Mustafa Habib | (Niqash.org) | - The fall of Ramadi means that Baghdad, Karbala and Babel have unpleasant new neighbours in the Islamic State group. How long before the extremists are…

Finding: As Pacific warms with CO2 Emissions, Typhoons Intensify

With Global Warming, a future of Pacific Superstorms

By Wei Mei | (The Conversation) | - Every year, typhoons over the western North Pacific – the equivalent to hurricanes in the North Atlantic – cause considerable damage in East and…

Muhammad Cartoon Ad Blocked From DC Metro

Jo Ankier and Nik Zecevic | (The Lip TV) | (Video) |- "A Prophet Muhammad cartoon ad has been blocked by Washington DC’s transport authority who voted unanimously on Thursday to suspend…

Why ISIL’s Attacks on Shiites of Saudi Arabia Threaten World Economy

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Daesh (ISIL, ISIS) took responsibility for a terrorist attack Friday on the Shiite al-Husayn Mosque in Dammam, which left three victims dead. Saudi security…

Armed Bikers Protest at Arizona Mosque

AJ+ | - "Anti-Islam activists have planned a “peaceful” protest at an Arizona mosque. Protesters are encouraged to bring American flags and “to utilize their second-amendment right” ... just in case." AJ+:…

85,000 Refugees from Ramadi Restricted from Entering Baghdad, despite 110– Heat

85,000 Refugees from Ramadi Restricted from Entering Baghdad, despite 110°F Heat

Human Rights Watch | - (Beirut) – Iraqi authorities are preventing thousands of families fleeing the fighting in Ramadi from reaching safer parts of the country. The government of Iraq has primary…

Bahamas will lose 80% of Land in this Century to Climate Change, Builds Sea Walls

By Desmond Brown | - NASSAU (IPS) - Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have championed the phrase “1.5 to stay alive” in demanding that global temperature increases be kept as far below…

Kaplan’s Fantasies of Empire and the Myth of the Arab Strongman

By Ari Heistein | (Informed Comment) | - Robert Kaplan explains the current conflicts in the Middle East as the inevitable results of the withdrawal of colonial powers which led to a…

How Mainstream is Bernie Sanders?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Sen. Bernie Sanders, the presidential candidate for the Democratic nomination, has trouble being taken seriously by the corporate media, what with him being a…

As Elections approach, Turkey’s Political Wildcard is the Kurds

H. Akın Ünver | (Informed Comment) | - Regardless of the outcome of June 7 elections, Kurds have already grown into Turkey’s main corrective political camp with domestic and international implications. The…

Palestinians won’t back down on Expelling Israel from In’tl Soccer for Apartheid

Palestinians drop motion on Expelling Israel from In’tl Soccer for Apartheid

Update: Having made their point, Palestine dropped this motion at FIFA on Friday, likely because of behind the scenes assurances the harassment will stop. (note: title has changed.). By Camila Benson |…

Hawks think the US alone can Still Garrison the Planet: How’s that Working Out?

By Michael T. Klare | (Tomdispatch.com) | - Take a look around the world and it’s hard not to conclude that the United States is a superpower in decline. Whether in Europe,…

Why the so-called USA PATRIOT Act can’t actually Keep America Safe

by CHARLES KURZMAN for ISLAMiCommentary: Charles Kurzman With the “USA PATRIOT Act” set to expire at the end of the month, you might expect supporters of domestic surveillance to tout the take-down…

Iraq: Shiite Militias change Ramadi Campaign to “I’m Here, O Iraq”, capture southern reaches

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - After an outcry and Pentagon criticism, the Shiite militias in Iraq have changed their name for their current campaign to take Ramadi from Daesh…

Kaplan: An Impish Desire for Imperial Déjà Vu

Daniel Martin Varisco | (MENA Tidningen) | - A recent online commentary by Robert Kaplan for Foreign Policy displays the provocative title: "It's time to bring imperialism back to the Middle East".…

Turkish Voters worried about Integrity of Elections, Deterioration of Democracy

By Deniz Erkmen | (Informed Comment) | -- As Turkey approaches a pivotal parliamentary election on June 7, there is growing doubt about just how “free and fair” this election is…

Amnesty: Hamas Killings, Torture during Gaza Assault were War Crimes

By: Charlie Hoyle | (Ma'an News Agency) -- BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The extra-judicial executions of at least 23 Palestinians in Gaza during Israel's military offensive last summer could amount to war crimes,…

If Iran Nuclear talks fail, Sanctions on Tehran Could Unravel

By Jasmin Ramsey | (Inter Press Service) | -- WASHINGTON (IPS) - Internationally supported sanctions against Iran could begin to crumble if talks over Iran’s nuclear programme fail to produce a final…

Shiite Militias announce “Here I am, O Husayn” Campaign for Sunni Ramadi

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Shiite militias in Iraq, joined by some Sunni tribal levies, on Tuesday reached a university campus just to the southwest of Ramadi in what…

Why do Poor Nations care more about Climate Change than the Rich?

Alex Lo | (The Conversation) | - Alex Lo, University of Hong Kong Do rich countries care more about the environment that poorer ones? In a recent study I found that’s not…

Egypt: Executing Muslim Brotherhood leader Morsi for “Terrorism” will Fuel… Terrorism

By Ebrahim Deen | (Informed Comment) | -- ‘In contemporary Egypt, due process is often not granted, evidence is often not considered, and impartiality and independence are often not maintained.’ The…

After the Cold War, did We all Get the worst of both Capitalist & Communist Worlds?

By John Feffer | (Tomdispatch.com) | - Imagine an alternative universe in which the two major Cold War superpowers evolved into the United Soviet Socialist States. The conjoined entity, linked perhaps by…

Iranian-Americans demand apology from Lindsey Graham for “Liar” Racism

NIAC | -- NIAC Condemns Senator Graham’s Racist Statement, Demands Apology Washington, DC – The National Iranian American Council, the largest Iranian-American grassroots organization in the United States, strongly condemns Senator Lindsey…

Is it the US that isn’t stepping up to fight Daesh/ ISIL?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) -- Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter's blunt remarks on Sunday about the Iraqi army not having the will to fight have ruffled feathers in Baghdad and…

‘Climate Change Deniers Are Like Alcoholics’ | Ed Begley, Jr.

Dave Rubin | (Rubin Report Video) - "Ed Begley Jr sits down with Dave Rubin for an interview about everything from environmental activism and climate change, to the California drought and the…

Yemen conflict fans food insecurity

By Peter Salisbury and Louise Redvers | (IRIN) - AMMAN / DUBAI (IRIN) - The conflict in Yemen is worsening the country's food insecurity, according to a new report, which predicts that…

Israel Confiscates 202 Acres of Palestinian land for Squatter Settlement Garbage Dump

By Saed Bannoura | (IMEMC) - The Israeli Authorities have decided to confiscate around 820 Dunams (202 acres) of privately owned Palestinian lands to establish new dumping grounds for its illegal colonies,…

Western Teen Who traveled to join ISIL wants to go back & live in Parents’ Basement

TomoNews | (Video) "Bridgeman, who was captain of his rugby team, graduated from high school in November 2014. He then traveled to Indonesia for humanitarian work, according to the teenager’s Facebook page…

More Bad Climate News: Once-Stable Antarctic Region Suddenly Melting

By Bert Wouters | (The Conversation) Antarctica’s glaciers have been making headlines during the past year, and not in a good way. Whether it’s a massive ice shelf facing imminent risk of…

Did the US DIA see ISIL as a strategic Ally against al-Assad in 2012?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment)- The answer, in a word, is "no." Fabius Maximus is right that this is just a clickbait story or an unfounded conspiracy theory. The Defense Intelligence…

The End of Dirty Coal? Britain CO2 Falls 10% on Coal Plant Closings

The Tree | -- The UK could soon see coal use fall back to levels last seen during the industrial revolution as yet another uneconomical coal plant shuts its doors. On Wednesday,…

Israel, fearing EU Sanctions over Apartheid, backpedals on Segregated Buses for Palestinians

By Mel Frykberg | -- RAMALLAH, West Bank, May 24 2015 (IPS) - A decision by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) to segregate buses in the occupied West Bank has backfired after…

US Kneejerk support for Israeli Nukes Torpedoes UN Disarmament Talks

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) - After four weeks of negotiations, a revised UN treaty on nuclear disarmament has been torpedoed by the United States, leaving the issue of global disarmament…

Iraq Can’t Get Ramadi back without an Inclusive Policy toward Sunnis

By David Alpher | (The Conversation) - Last Friday, the city of Ramadi – provincial capital of Iraq’s Anbar Province, and symbolic seat of its Sunni population – fell to an ISIS…

Venezuela to Boost Palestine to Full Embassy Status

By Ben Tavener - IMEMC/PNN - Venezuela will boost its diplomatic representation in Palestine to full embassy status, according to the Venezuelan minister for foreign affairs. "Following instructions from President Nicolás Maduro,…

Conservative, Catholic Ireland 1st Country to vote in Gay Marriage

Channel 4 News | (Video) - "Support for gay marriage in Ireland reaches 65 per cent with just the final votes to be counted - a resounding yes which forces the hugely…

Snowden’s Revenge: USA “Freedom” [Surveillance] Act Fails in Senate

By Nadia Prupis, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) -- "The failure of these bills to pass shows just how dramatically the politics of surveillance changed once the extent of the government’s surveillance programs…

Daesh/ ISIL blows up Shiite Mosque in Saudi Arabia, seeking Sectarian Civil War

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - A suicide bomber with a concealed weapon detonated his payload during Friday prayers at the Ali b. Abi Talib Mosque in Qadif, a suburb…

Richest Countries Bomb among World’s Poorest: Yemen already a Forgotten War

VICE News | (Video) | - "For more than six weeks, nine countries led by Saudi Arabia have been carrying out airstrikes on Yemen, the Arab world's poorest nation. Whole neighborhoods have…

Now Jeb Bush thinks Scientists are Arrogant for Discovering Climate Change

John Iadarola and Ben Mankiewicz | (The Young Turks) | (Video) - "A few weeks back we gave Jeb Bush credit for admitting that climate change is actually a fact. Well today…

Obama Prosecutes another Whistleblower to Senate for “Espionage”

By John Kiriakou | (Foreign Policy in Focus) Jeffrey Sterling learned the hard way that the feds will throw the book at anyone who embarrasses them. Jeffrey Sterling recently stood before a…

World Bank Warns of Total Collapse of Economy in Gaza

IMEMC | -- The World Bank will be presenting a report to the bi-annual Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) meeting on May 27, 2015 in Brussels that highlights the Gaza Strip's economic…

ISIL beheaded Dozens in Palmyra, but how Strategic is the City?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Nearly 500 people died in the campaign by Daesh (ISIL, ISIS) to take the Syrian city of Palmyra, including 49 who were executed before…

TPP and Fast Track Harm Web Creativity and Users’ Rights: Tech Companies to Congress

By Maira Sutton | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) | - In a In a joint letter to Congress released this week, more than 250 technology companies and user rights organizations say that the…

Obama: Climate change deniers endanger national security

WTNH News8 | (Video) - "President Barack Obama says climate change deniers are endangering national security." WTNH News8 "Obama: Climate change deniers endanger national security"

As Palmyra Falls, Who Supports Bashar al-Assad in Syria? (Charles Glass)

VICE News | (Video) "VICE News and the New York Review of Books have partnered to create Talking Heads, a series about the big issues of the day as seen by the…

Digital Militarism: Israel’s Occupation in the Social Media Age

by JULIE POUCHER HARBIN, EDITOR, ISLAMiCommentary — Q & A with REBECCA STEIN: Digital Militarism: Israel’s Occupation in the Social Media Age (Stanford University Press, April 2015), by scholars Adi Kunstman and…

Washington asks, “Who lost Ramadi?” But Washington never had Ramadi

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | -- The inside-the-Beltway debate set off by the fall of the Iraqi city of Ramadi to Daesh (ISIS, ISIL) on Sunday is, as usual, Dadaistic…

Israel: Court Permits Discriminatory Evictions of Palestinian-Israeli Villagers

Human Rights Watch | - Arab Villages in Israel, West Bank Face New Displacement (Jerusalem) – Separate Israeli Supreme Court decisions issued on May 5, 2015, open the way for state authorities…

Solar, Wind don’t do this: 21,000 Gallons of Oil Stain Santa Barbara, CA Coastline

By Nicholas Sirianno | (Mountain Weekly News) -- About 25 miles north of Santa Barbara, CA Refugio State Beach, a quiet white-sand surf and popular family beach, turned black this morning from…

Syrian Opposition, Caught between Assad & Extremists, Despair at World’s Neglect

By Haroro J. Ingram with L. T. Anthony | (The Conversation) | - Syrian civilians are trapped in the middle of a holocaust: prizes in a ruthless contest for popular support and…

Epilectic Girl moved to Denver for Medical Pot, Dramatically Improves

Epileptic Girl moved to Denver for Medical Pot, Dramatically Improves

WCPO Denver | (9 on Your Side Video) | - "Adam and Heather Benton uprooted their lives to move across the country this April to provide their daughter, Addyson, with medical marijuana…

Iraq: 25,000 Shiite Militiamen gather for Battle of Ramadi

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | -- Al-Zaman (The Times of Baghdad) reports that Iraqi Prime Minister Haydar al-Abadi met Tuesday with leaders of the Shiite militias to plan the retaking…

Unlike Congress, Majority of Americans Oppose NSA Spying

By Nadia Prupis, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) | - Survey commissioned by ACLU shows "how disconnected members of Congress are from the feelings of a lot of the public." A new survey…

The National Security State gets Real: 9 Ways the US is becoming Bizarro World

By Tomd Engledhardt | (Tomdispatch.com) | - It’s commonplace to speak of “the fog of war,” of what can’t be known in the midst of battle, of the inability of both generals…

Hip-Hop Hijabis: Spitting Rhymes About Being Muslim And Female

AJ+ | - "Hip-hop is a male-dominated arena. In California, a hip-hop collective of Muslim women are challenging stereotypes about being Muslim, and women, through their lyrics." AJ+: "Hip-Hop Hijabis: Spitting Rhymes…

Vatican recognition of saints symbolic victory for Palestinians

By: Charlie Hoyle BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- The grounds of the Carmel Convent in Bethlehem, home to blue-shuttered stone buildings on a hilltop facing the Nativity Church, are adorned with the image of…

2007: Progress Continues in Ramadi, Mullen Notes During Visit

Just to show Iraq's ups and downs, here is a celebratory article from the US Department of Defense about the apparent rollback in Ramadi of al-Qaeda in Mesopotamia (the parent organization of…

Why does the Iraqi Army Keep Running Away from ISIL?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Commen) | -- Baghdad was shaken by the news that the Iraq army and police in Ramadi ran away from the advancing forces of Daesh (ISIL, ISIS).…

Jeb Bush & Schiavo Affair: Islamization of GOP?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment)| - Michael Schiavo is speaking out about Jeb Bush's determined, sustained and energetic intervention, as Florida governor, in the private medical decision of the Schiavo family…

Does Sen. Lindsey Graham want to Drone Americans for Thought Crimes?

John Iadarola & Jimmy Dore | (The Young Turks) | - ""Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., is ready to join the crowded 2016 presidential race — and he's having a blast in doing…

After fall of Ramadi to ISIL, does Iraq have a future?

By Brian M Downing | (Informed Comment) | - Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, has fallen to forces of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. ISIL has now reversed…

Israel Pushes Negev Bedouin Palestinians into a Corner

By Ari Heistein | (Informed Comment) | - Israel’s latest move to demolish a Bedouin village and replace it with homes for Jewish citizens is no surprise to anyone familiar with…

Who does Jerusalem belong To?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Far right Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu commemorated Israel's "Jerusalem Day" with a speech in which he said, "Jerusalem was always the capital of…

Seattle Activists, Native Americans Kayak to Protest Shell Arctic Drilling

By Deirdre Fulton, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) | -- Kayaks began lining up on the shores of Seattle's Elliot Bay early Saturday morning in preparation for the sHell No! "flotilla rally," organized…

Sharia Law Comes To Walmart, According To Allen West

Cenk Uygur | (The Young Turks) | - ""Fox News contributor Allen West went to Walmart and thought he was the victim of "Sharia law" because a checkout clerk under the age…

As ISIL takes Ramadi: America’s Hydra Problem in the Middle East

By Inge Fryklund | (Foreign Policy in Focus) | -- In the Greek myth, Heracles battles the Hydra — a multi-headed reptilian monster that was terrorizing the Greek countryside. However, every time…

Illegal Israel Squatters uproot hundreds of Palestinian olive trees near Hebron

Illegal Israeli Squatters uproot hundreds of Palestinian olive trees near Hebron

HEBRON (Ma'an) - Israeli settlers destroyed and uprooted hundreds of olive saplings in the Palestinian town of al-Shuyoukh northeast of Hebron in the southern West Bank. Local activist Ahmad al-Halayqa told Ma'an…

Death Sentence for Morsi: Egypt’s Junta takes another step toward being N. Korea

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - That the only freely elected president Egypt has ever known has been sentenced to death is only to be expected from the current military…

Floatting Graveyard: 6000 Migrants, incl. Rohingya Muslims, Marooned in SE Asia Seas

Floating Graveyard: 6000 Migrants, incl. Rohingya Muslims, Marooned in SE Asia Seas

By Kanya D'Almeida | -- UNITED NATIONS (IPS) - On Thursday, May 14, a group of journalists rented a boat from Ko Lipe, a small island in Thailand’s southwest Satun Province, and…

A Journalist Journeys to the Heart of the Quran (Muslim Scripture)

By JOSEPH RICHARD PREVILLE and JULIE POUCHER HARBIN for ISLAMiCommentary : Carla Power Great journalists invite us to be companions with them on their journeys to extraordinary places. Carla Power offers such…

Palestinian Christians, under Pressure, Honored by Pres. Abbas as they welcome New Saints

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- In the run up to Pope Francis' canonization of two Palestinian nuns, President Mahmoud Abbas praises Palestinian Christians for the "distinctive dimension" their community and history gives to the…

Syria: Roman Palmyra Monuments in danger as ISIL Fighters Near

BBC News | Video | - "Islamic State militants move to within a few miles of one of the world's oldest and most important archaeological cities, Palmyra, in the latest stage of…

Iraq: Ramadi falls to ISIL as Shiite Gov’t refuses to Arm Sunni Tribal Levies

Cole: Iraq’s Ramadi falls to ISIL as Shiite Gov’t refuses to Arm Sunni Tribes

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) The Times of Baghdad (al-Zaman) reports that fighters of the Daesh (ISIL, ISIS) terrorist group raised their black flags over the central government building in Ramadi…

Was that a White House- Gulf Arab Summit or an Arms Bazaar?

By Thalif Deen | (Inter Press Service) | - U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry chats with Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal of Saudi Arabia on Mar. 5, 2015, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,…

Palestinian Catastrophe Day: Injuries as Israeli Soldiers Attack Peaceful Nil’in Protest

By Saed Bannoura | (IMEMC News) | - More than 1,200 Palestinians, accompanied by Israeli and international peace activists, marched in the weekly protest in Ni’lin village on Friday, near the central…

Obama: No Mideast NATO, but US committed to Security of Arab Gulf States

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council came to meet President Barack Obama at Camp David in search of a renewed, formalized US commitment…

Why Obama is bucking Saudis, Israel on Iran: Deal would much Strengthen US Security

By Brian M Downing | (Informed Comment) | - The dialog between the US and Iran moves ahead, albeit haltingly. Opposition comes from important groups in both Tehran and Washington – as…

Iraq’s Shiite Militias turn on their Shiite Prime Minister

By Mustafa Habib | (Niqash.org) | - (Baghdad) - Iraq's relatively new Prime Minister, Haider al-Abadi, has been performing a tricky balancing act for the past few months, carefully keeping the various…

Too Big not to Fail: The US Military’s Missions Unaccomplished

By William J. Astore | (Tomdispatch.com) It’s 1990. I’m a young captain in the U.S. Air Force. I’ve just witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall, something I never thought I’d see,…

United Nations: “No confidence vote” on America’s Post-9/11 Human Rights Record

By Gustavo Capdevila | (Inter Press Service) | - GENEVA (IPS) - Without the emperor’s clothes, like in the Hans Christian Andersen story, the United States was forced to submit its human…

BB King R.I.P.: “When the Saints go Marching In”

BB King | "When the Saints go Marching In" R.I.P.

Palestinians welcome Pope’s Recognition of their State

By Juan Cole The Arabic press widely and favorably reported the news that the Vatican has recognized Palestine as a state in a new treaty with it, despite a strong protest from…

Over 40 Ismaili Shiites shot down by Sunni Extremists in Pakistan

BBC | - "Dozens of people are thought to have died after an attack by gunmen on a bus in Karachi. They surrounded the bus, which was carrying Ismaili Shia Muslims, and…

Obama greenlights Shell’s Arctic drilling plans, badly tarnishing his climate legacy

Obama greenlights Shell’s Arctic drilling, tarnishing his climate legacy

The Tree | -- President Barack Obama’s reputation as a climate leader took a hit on Monday when his administration gave its blessing for Shell to begin drilling exploratory oil wells in…

How Europe’s Post-Revolution Abandonment of Libya led to Mediterranean Crisis

By Ioannis Chapsos | (The Conversation) | - Libya has been in a state of chaos ever since the fall of its former dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, and the situation scarcely seems to…

Obama: Palestinians deserve end to indignity of occupation

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- President Barack Obama says the United States is "taking a hard look" at its approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, telling an Arabic language news source Wednesday that Palestinians "deserve…

Did Jeb Bush just commit a War Crime in Justifying the Iraq War?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | -- Jeb Bush's people are trying to walk back his disastrous interview with Megyn Kelly in which he said that even if he knew then…

Farkhunda is Our Sister: A “Martyr” to women and the Making of a New Afghanistan?

By Ann Jones | (Tomdispatch.com) | -- I went to Kabul, Afghanistan, in March to see old friends. By chance, I arrived the day after a woman had been beaten to death…

Are the Houthis in Yemen really Iranian “Proxies”? What does that even Mean?

By Ari Heistein | (Informed Comment) -- A 2014 al-Monitor headline declared “Yemen’s Houthis Proxy, not Ally for Iran” but then neglected to explain the difference. It is certainly unlikely that the…

Yemen: Fierce fighting in Lead-up to Saudi Ceasefire, Children at risk of Starvation

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Heavy fighting continued in Yemen on Monday and Tuesday, despite the agreement reached between Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia that a five-day ceasefire would…

Now Yemen’s Houthi Rebels are forcing Children Into Battle

Human Rights Watch | - (Beirut) – The Houthi armed group in Yemen has intensified its recruitment, training, and deployment of children in violation of international law. Since September 2014, when the…

Just how Illegal has the NSA’s Domestic Spying Been?

By Andrew Crocker | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) | - We now have the first decision from a court of appeals on the NSA’s mass surveillance program involving bulk collection of telephone records…

Israel plans forced evacuation of Bedouin families east of Jerusalem

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) – Dozens of Palestinian families living in the Bedouin Abu Nuwwar village to the east of Jerusalem will be forced from their land in less than a month, locals told…

Hanan Ashrawi: New Extremist Israeli Gov’t generates a Culture of Hate

By IMEMC | - PLO Executive Committee member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi stated: “Such a coalition betrays the true nature of the Israeli political system and promotes an anti-peace agenda and the language…

What makes one Palestinian Village School one of the Best in the Middle East?

World Bank | - "Amid widespread dissatisfaction with public services in the Arab world, a new report identifies local success stories that could point the way to solutions." World Bank: " What…

Do Republicans favor Coal Plants over Americans’ Health?

Cenk Uygur | (The Young Turks) | - '"The Obama administration’s proposed curbs on coal-burning power plants could prevent thousands of deaths each year from heart attack and respiratory disease, scientists said…

Saudi Arabia as the Incredible Hulk: King Salman snubs Obama’s Gulf Summit

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) -- Watching Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia nowadays, is like Kremlin-watching in the old days of the Cold War. It is not as if most…

38 Million displaced and homeless in their own Countries

AFP | -- "Conflicts and violence in places like Syria and Ukraine have displaced a record 38 million people inside their own countries, equivalent to the total populations of New York, London…

Lurch to Far Right keeps Netanyahu in power, but for how long?

By Luisa Gandolfo | (The Conversation) | - Only weeks after Israel’s snap Knesset elections, the Likud party was bluntly reminded that winning the most seats does not guarantee an easy ride.…

Egypt: Mubarak, Sons, given 3-year Wrist Slap for Massive Corruption

Reuters | -- "Hosni Mubarak and his two sons are sentenced to three years in jail without parole in the retrial of a corruption case. Nathan Frandino reports." Reuters: "Egyptian court sentences…

Hawaii goes Green and other Big Renewables Stories

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - The Hawaii legislature has just passed a bill by an overwhelming margin that sets a goal of 100% renewable energy in the state by…

Is Sen. Tom Cotton right that ISIL is Winning?

John Iadarola, Jimmy Dore, Ana Kasparian | (The Young Turks) --- "Senator Tom Cotton has a lot of faith in the military prowess of ISIS, and its fighters, unfortunately though he doesn't…

Palestinians: “”The face of a new form of racist, discriminatory Israel has been revealed”

By IMEMC Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new right-wing religious "government of war" is a blow to an already stagnating peace process, PLO officials said Thursday, vowing to fight it on the…

Why won’t US, Israel Ratify Nuclear Test Ban Treaty but seek Iran Sanctions?

By Kanya D'Almeida UNITED NATIONS (IPS) - With the four-week-long review conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) underway at the United Nations, hopes and frustrations are running equally high, as a…

Hizbullah, Syrian Army push back al-Qaeda in Qalamoun as Christian militia mobilizes

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Smarting from a string of losses, the proregime coalition of Hizbullah and the Syrian Arab Army is looking for some victories against the al-Qaeda-linked…

Syria: What if Turkey and Saudi Arabia install al-Qaeda in Damascus?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - Journalists such as the intrepid Liz Sly covering the Syrian Civil War were struck with the victories of the Army of Conquest coalition in…

Iraqi Shiite cleric al-Sadr threatens USA as GOP Draft Seen aiming at Partition

Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) | -- Fighters loyal to cleric Muqtada al-Sadr staged a military parade after al-Sadr protested the US' draft law. A recent piece of proposed legislation sponsored…

HUGE WIN FOR PRIVACY! Court Rules NSA Spying Is Illegal

John Iadarola, Jimmy Dore, Ana Kasparian | (The Young Turks) | - "The second circuit court of appeals has ruled that the bulk collection and storage of Americans phone records is ILLEGAL,…

The Wall Street Connection: The Clintons and their Banker Friends

By Nomi Prins | (Tomdispatch.com) | - The past, especially the political past, doesn’t just provide clues to the present. In the realm of the presidency and Wall Street, it provides an…

Overwhelming US Public Approval of Iran Talks gives Momentum to Peace Deal

By Carlyn Meyer | (Informed Comment) -- For years, AIPAC and the Netanyahu government in Israel have tried to mark the Iran nuclear talks as a “Jewish” or ‘Israeli’ concern distinct from…

Israel’s Government Ratchets even Further Right: Great Moments in Colonialism

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) - Binyamin Netanyahu has succeeded in putting together a shaky coalition of parties that would give him 61 seats in the 120-member Israeli parliament. In such…

‘Too Big to Exist’: Sanders Introduces Bill to Break Up Big Banks

by Nadia Prupis, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) | - If passed, bill would give Treasury Secretary a year to break up institutions bailed out in financial crisis. Sen. Bernie Sanders, who is…

Israel Slammed Over Treatment of Palestinian Children in Detention

By Mel Frykberg | - RAMALLAH, West Bank (IPS) - Palestine’s ambassador to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, has sent a letter to the U.N. Security Council demanding that action be taken…

Holy War Hotel: 5-star resort opens for ISIS supporters in Iraq

RT | - "It may look like any other top resort in Iraq, but the Ninawa International Hotel in Mosul has one major difference. It is the first 5-star hotel for Islamic…

“Killing Me Softly” in Palestine: Lauryn Hill Cancels Israel Appearance under BDS Pressure

“Killing Me Softly” in Palestine: Lauryn Hill Cancels Israel Concert under BDS Pressure

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - In another sign that Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu's far-right nationalism is turning Israel into a pariah state, pop star Lauryn Hill has cancelled…

Iranian Police Arrest Leading Human Rights Activist Again

By Golnaz Esfandiari | (RFE/RL) | - Narges Mohammadi, the deputy head of the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC) co-founded by Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi, was arrested on…

We’re all Iraqis now: How Bush’s Wars Militarized Baltimore & Ferguson Police

By Michael Gould-Wartofsky | (Tomdispatch.com) | - Last week, as Baltimore braced for renewed protests over the death of Freddie Gray, the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) prepared for battle. With state-of-the-art surveillance…

Afghanistan’s Endless War: Between the US, Taliban and ISIL

By Brian M. Downing | (Informed Comment) | - War is largely a seasonal activity in Afghanistan. Winters are harsh and fighters need to work fields and tend herds. With spring, another…

Young Muslim-Americans Draw Their Own Muhammad

AJ+ | - "Muslims condemned the attack at a Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas. But some of them started drawing cartoons of their own." AJ+: "Muslim Americans Draw Their Own Muhammad"

How Muslim-Americans can avoid being Trolled by the Israel-Firsters: Look again and the Prophet’s example

How Muslim-Americans can avoid being Trolled by Israel-Firsters: Look again at the Prophet’s example

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) - In the period from roughly 610 to 622 CE ("AD"), Muhammad ibn Abdallah of the noble Quraysh tribe in the western Arabian city of Mecca…

Cunning Stunts in Iraq: ISIL Sleeper Cells Are Secret Weapon in Ramadi

Mustafa Habib | Baghdad | (Niqash.org) - Refugees from Ramadi trying to escape the city and extremists. Last week's small extremist victories in Ramadi were fuelled by the work of sleeper cells,…

Video Shows Ethiopian-Israeli Soldier Beaten By Police – Violent Clashes In Tel Aviv

AJ+ | -- "Clashes on the streets of Tel Aviv. Thousands of Israelis of Ethiopian origin have taken to the streets after a video appeared online. It appeared to show an Ethiopian-Israeli…

Rohingya Muslim Minority Migrants targeted by Buddhists found in Mass Grave

Wochit News / IRIN | - "Dozens of police and volunteers exhumed six more bodies on Saturday in the second day of digging out a mass grave near a suspected human trafficking…

Israeli soldier testimonies reveal ‘shoot to kill’ policy in Gaza war

BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- Testimonies from over 60 Israeli soldiers and officers who fought during last summer's war in the Gaza Strip were released to the public Monday, raising serious concerns over whether…

Warren Buffett betting big on Wind Energy to Nebraska & other Planet-Saving News

Warren Buffett betting big on Wind Energy in Nebraska, & other Planet-Saving News

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) - Wind power is on a roll in the US despite a fickle Congress and the machinations of Big Coal and Big Gas to keep all…

Black Lives Matter in Israel too: Protest against police violence

By Lauren McCauley, staff writer | (Commondreams.org) | -- Several thousand people, mostly hailing from Israel's large Ethiopian population, took to the streets of Tel Aviv on Sunday to protest racism and…

Daesh in Mosul seeks Child Soldiers, Child Suicide-Bombers

By Khales Joumah | Mosul | (Niqash.org) - One of the latest inventions by the Islamic State in Mosul is the mobile pulpit. Most recently a caravan for propaganda appeared in a…

“Bug Splat”: Body Counts, Drones, and “Collateral Damage”

Tom Englehardt | (Tomdispatch.com) | - The Obama administration has adamantly refused to count. Not a body. In fact, for a long time, American officials associated with Washington’s drone assassination campaigns and…

One in six species faces extinction as a result of climate change

By James Dyke | (The Conversation) | - The Earth is on course to lose up to one in six of all its species, if carbon emissions continue as they currently are.…

US Airstrike in Syria kills 53 Civilians, 6 Children

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) As Mariam Karouny reports for Reuters, the US air strike on Friday that inadvertently hit a village of non-combatants, killing members of six families, raises new…

Pakistan – Court jails 10 for life over attack on Malala and on Women’s Education

France24 English | - An anti-terror court in Pakistan has sentenced 10 men for their roles in the 2012 attack on Malala Yousafzai. France24 English: "PAKISTAN - Court jails 10 for life…

The China-Pakistan trade corridor and its implications for regional security

By Brian M. Downing | (Informed Comment) | - China and Pakistan announced, with considerable fanfare in Islamabad, a $46 billion dollar investment program to build a transportation corridor from the western…

Tom Cotton’s ‘Chickenhawk’ Taunt at Iran FM Demeans Jeb Bush, GOP Field

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - So freshman senator Tom Cotton (R-AK) got into a Twitter slamming match with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif this week. Zarif spoke at…

10,000 Turkish Police Repress Mayday Labor Protests

Aljazeera Top Stories | - Aljazeera Top Stories: "TURKEY MAYDAY PROTEST" See also: AJ+: "May Day Protest In Turkey Goes Ahead Despite Ban" For more see Turkey marks tense May Day as…

Tesla batteries: just the beginning of how technology will transform the electric grid

By Michael McElfresh | (The Conversation) | - Tesla Motors already makes batteries for its electric cars. On Thursday, it’s expected to introduce battery systems for homes, businesses and electric utilities. The…

Could the New USA Freedom Act stop NSA Bulk Collection of Americans’ Telephone Records?

By Mark Jaycox and Rainey Reitman | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) A bipartisan group of congressional leaders has reintroduced the USA Freedom Act. The bill is an attempt to rein in the intelligence…

Palestinian-Israelis: Hundreds pray outside closed mosque in Beersheba

BEERSHEBA (Ma'an) -- Some 250 Palestinians performed Friday prayers outside a mosque in Beersheba in southern Israel that Israeli authorities have kept closed since 1948. The prayers came amid heavy Israeli police…

Fatal Triangle: Saudi, Iran, US Tensions spike over continued Yemen Airstrikes

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - The attention span of US television news is so short that it is difficult for it to cover ongoing wars in which there isn't…

Israeli PM Begins Forming Pro-Settlement Coaltion

By IMEMC | - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed coalition deals with two parties on Wednesday, in his first steps toward constructing a new government, one week before the deadline to…

The One-State Conundrum: The Everyday Politics of Confinement in Palestine

By Sandy Tolan | (Tomdispatch) | - The SUV slows as it approaches a military kiosk at a break in a dull gray wall. Inside, Ramzi Aburedwan, a Palestinian musician, prepares his…

Global Connections: World History as Social History – a New Synthesis

I and colleagues have just brought out a world history. Because of the fine and exciting writing of my co-authors, it is more than just a textbook. My readers often ask me…

“We had to destroy Tikrit to save it from ISIL”: Recovered Iraqi City a Ghost Town

By Mustafa Habib | Tikrit | (Niqash.org) - It's been almost a month since the Islamic State group was expelled from Tikrit. NIQASH went there and found a graffiti-covered ghost town ruled…