Month

Archives: Syria

Syria: Russians alarmed, Washington Befuddled, by White House threats

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The unusual statement from the "White House" on Monday saying that there were indications that the Syrian regime was preparing to use poison…

Can Iran, Turkey and Egypt Cooperate to deliver Mideast from Chaos?

Farhang Jahanpour | ( Tehran Times | - - TEHRAN - Professor Farhang Jahanpour, part-time tutor on the Middle East in the Department of Continuing Education at the University of Oxford, tells…

Trump’s Escalations of War in Syria—Sleepwalking into a Global Confrontation

By Reese Erlich | (The Progressive) | - - Syrian President Bashar al Assad claims to have won the war and that he is merely mopping up remaining rebel groups. With its…

Trump accuses Syrian of Planning Gas attack as Haley attacks Russia, Iran

Trump accuses Syria of Planning Gas attack as Haley attacks Russia, Iran

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The Trump administration is making noise about striking Syria, on the grounds that Damascus is planning to use poison gas again. Trump's Neoconservative…

Tense Eid 1.2 mn Syrian Refugees in Lebanon

Tense Eid for 1.2 mn Syrian Refugees in Lebanon

By Billie Jeanne Brownlee | (The Conversation) | - - For Syrian refugees in Lebanon marking the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, it has been a struggle to find enough food to…

1/2 of World’s Civilian War Deaths were in Syria, Iraq & Yemen during past Half-Decade

By IPS World Desk | (Inter Press Service) | - - ROME/GENEVA (IPS) - Between 2010 and 2015, nearly half of all civilian war deaths worldwide occurred in Syria, Iraq and Yemen,…

Russo-US dog fights over Syria?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Yara Bayoumi at Reuters reports on the complicated minuet being danced by Russia, the Syrian Air Force, and the United States. The Syrian…

Putin’s End Game in Syria

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The Syrian press is watching Oliver Stone's interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin and likes what it sees. Syria's al-Watan (The Nation) reports…

Have Syria’s Kurds invented a Democratic Neo-Socialism?

Dmitry Petrov | (OpenDemocracy.net) | - - In an effort to get through to the Syrian Kurdish autonomous region, I met kindred spirits and found out more about the political and cultural…

Aerospace Campaign in Syria: Did Putin kill ISIL’s so-called ‘caliph’?

TeleSur | - - The statement came a day after Russia said it killed several senior leaders, 30 field commanders and up to 300 of their personal guards in an airstrike last…

Obama’s last Victory: Syrian Democratic Forces hold Parts of ISIL Capital

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends Not with…

Trump’s Ally: Saudi Arabia’s drive for Aristocratic Hegemony in the Middle East

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Saudi Arabia is making a drive to become a regional hegemon. It has long used its oil wealth to achieve a great deal…

Erdogan & Trump: Can the Confict over Syria be Resolved?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Two really big egos met Tuesday at the White House, as Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan consulted with Donald Trump. The two countries are…

Why the Weaponization of Health Care in the Syrian War threatens Us All

By Xavier Symons | (The Conversation) | - - Few events in Syria have attracted as much attention as the alleged chemical weapon attack on the town of Khan Shaykhun. The callous…

Russians Troll Trump, release Photos of Meeting

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - CNN says White House officials were furious on Wednesday when the Russian press (the only journalists invited to the meeting of Trump with…

What will new French President Macron do about Syria & ISIL?

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Now that Emmanuel Macron is president of France, it is worthwhile asking what sort of foreign policy he would be likely to pursue.…

Syria: Rebels denounce De-escalation Zones ok’d by Russia, Iran, Turkey

TeleSur | - - Signatories to the agreement say that there should be a cessation of hostilities in safe zones designated by the three powers by Friday. Russia, Turkey and Iran on…

Trump sends US Troops to Patrol Turkish-Syrian Border as Ankara Threatens US Allies

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Only one fighting force in Syria is practically speaking taking on Daesh (ISIS, ISIL) on the ground, and that is the Syrian Democratic…

Syria’s forgotten pluralism and why it matters today

By Andrea Williams | (The Conversation) | - - The Syrian Civil War has been raging for six years. It has killed nearly half a million people and left over 12 million,…

Was US Airstrike on Syrian Mosque a War Crime?

Human Rights Watch | - - (Washington, DC) – United States forces appear to have failed to take necessary precautions to avoid civilian casualties in a March 16, 2017 strike that killed…