In The News

Iraq War Fuels Global Jihad

Fawaz A. Gerges December 21, 2006
Muslims initially condemned Al Qaeda’s 2001 attacks on the US. But then the US invaded Iraq, triggering chaos that could overwhelm more than one country throughout the Middle East. As a result, even more moderate Muslims support anyone who defends Muslim lands and values against occupiers, particularly in Palestine and Iraq. Jihadists emerged during the early 1980s, opposed to Egypt and Israel...

Yet Another Problem in the Middle East

December 20, 2006
Arab society as a whole suffers because of the marginalized status of its women. A series of Arab Human Development Reports, from the United Nations Development Programme, explore the many challenges facing Arab societies. Half the women in Arab society are illiterate along with one third of the men. Concern emerges in Arab societies that Western values draw women away from family roles, and yet...

White House, Joint Chiefs At Odds on Adding Troops

Robin Wright December 19, 2006
With violence and civil war escalating in Baghdad, the US Joint Chiefs of staff do not agree with a White House plan to send more troops into Iraq. Since the US invaded and overthrew tyrant Saddam Hussein in March 2003, Iraqi public services, political control and law enforcement have steadily deteriorated. Dedicated military troops can overthrow dictators, deliver bombs to pinpoint targets and...

Theologians Battle Female Circumcision

Amira El Ahl December 19, 2006
The World Health Organization estimates that up to 140 million women worldwide are circumcised, most living in Africa, with some also in Asia and the Middle East. Some cultures – mostly in Africa, but also in Asia – have embraced female circumcision for thousands of years, expecting it to decrease sexual desire in women. The practice is common in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia, but not in Iraq,...

Washington’s Iraq Dilemma: Dialogue with Syria Could Serve Bigger Purpose

Matthew Lee December 14, 2006
The Iraq Study Group report recommends diplomatic initiative to resolve the war in Iraq. If the US administration heeds the advice of the Iraq Study Group, by seeking containment of the Iraqi conflict through dialogue with regional powers, one promising candidate would be Damascus. In the second of this two-part series, Matthew Lee explores how, for a brief moment, the interests of the US and the...

US Rout Is Iran's Condition to Talk to Washington

David Ignatius December 7, 2006

The Fears of a Regional War

Yakov Katz December 7, 2006
The Iraq Study Group Report, a unanimous and unflinching assessment of the war, offers 79 recommendations to the Bush administration for bringing the war to an end. Nations as diverse as Iran, Israel and the UK, which all have an interest in the conflict, do agree on one point: Few options exist for delivering stability to Iraq. So far, the US has refused to talk to Iraqi neighbors Syria or...