In The News

Why the US needs the UN in Iraq

Paul Reynolds August 28, 2003
The chief US administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, claims that Iraq is "not a country is chaos and Baghdad is not a city in chaos," yet Washington is edging ever closer to asking for multilateral assistance from the UN. This article from BBC News says that Washington's stance is changing because of both domestic politics and the growing complexity of the situation in Iraq. At home...

To Tackle Global Terrorism, Target the Local Roots

Janadas Deyan August 27, 2003
Bombs are going off around the world – in Mumbai, Jakarta, Jerusalem, and Baghdad – yet the stock markets are rising and the US has declared that it is winning the war on terrorism. According to this commentary in The Straits Times, the reason for this paradox is that none of these attacks compare with September 11. Washington, the author notes, is primarily interested in preventing a...

Tough New US Rules a Challenge

August 22, 2003
Seaports have traditionally been very vulnerable entry points to the United States. And, as focus on homeland security has increased since September 11, American officials have sought to impose new security measures to better monitor the goods that are constantly entering US ports. To ensure that biological, chemical, or other weapons are not concealed in incoming cargo, US officials initiated...

Sharon is Now a Danger to US Troops and Hopes in Iraq

Martin Woollacott August 22, 2003
Complicated and tenuous as America's hold on Iraq is, the more urgent crisis is in Israel and Palestine, this opinion piece in The Guardian contends. The cease-fire America has worked so hard to produce and which had created a period of tentative peace between Palestinian factions and the Israeli government, is now in danger of collapse. And, although a settlement in the Holy Land will not...

Here's All the News on TV that Fits the Muslim Stereotype

Gwynne Dyer August 21, 2003
News channels – even the most reputable ones – are disproportionately covering stories about violent Muslims, London journalist Gwynne Dyer maintains. On any given night, the international news is likely to be dominated by stories about Iraqi guerrillas, Islamic terrorists in Indonesia, rioting between Muslim sects in Pakistan, and Europeans taken hostage by Muslim guerillas in Mali. Covering...

Ending the Middle East's Cycle of Terror Requires Some Serious Soul-Searching

August 21, 2003
The international community vocally condemned the bombing of the UN headquarters in Iraq and reaffirmed its commitment to the pursuit of peace. However, though this reaction was thoroughly appropriate, it was also insufficient, the editorial in a Lebanese daily maintains. "The imperative before us all today is not only to reaffirm our iron-clad abhorrence of terror and our principled...

Search for Bodies Continues at UN Headquarters

August 20, 2003
As the international community condemned the bombing, UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, said that his staff would remain in Iraq and continue their humanitarian mission. Countries around the world echoed Mr Annan's resolve, though responses varied from country to country. While Thailand reiterated its commitment to sending troops, the European Commission announced that it would be scaling...