In The News

BBC: UN Tussles Over Syria Ceasefire

February 23, 2018
Russian-backed Syrian forces are pounding the rebel-held city of Ghouta with airstrikes that have left hundreds of people dead. About 400,000 people are reported to be trapped. The UN Security Council is considering a 30-day truce to allow aid and evacuations, but Russia called for changes in the draft proposal that will be voted on today. The Syrian government claims to be targeting terrorists....

Al Jazeera: Regional Powers Brace for a Showdown in Syria

Farah Najjar February 13, 2018
Multiple nations intevene in the Syrian civil war and this could expand the fighting. “A surge in Israeli-Syrian cross-border incidents has turned into the ‘biggest’ confrontation between the two countries in decades and confronted Russia with a new dilemma: how to preserve its ties with both sides,” reports Farah Najjar for Al Jazeera. “Israel and Syria have been at the brink of war ever since...

Reuters: Turkey Expects Swift Campaign Against US-Backed Kurds in Syria

Mert Ozkan January 22, 2018
Turkey is attacking US-backed Kurdish fighters in the Afrin region of Syria. Reports suggest that Turkey notified the US and Russia. The Kurdish YPG fighters have been influential in containing the Islamic State extremists in Syria. “The three-day-old campaign has opened a new front in Syria’s multi-sided civil war, realigning a battlefield where outside powers are supporting local combatants,”...

USA Today: Pressure on Pakistan Is Test of New US Strategy to End War in Afghanistan

Jim Michaels January 5, 2018
The war in Afghanistan has been fought for more than 16 years by three US presidential administrations. The Trump administration is trying a new strategy that involves less reliance on neighboring Pakistan, and the United States has announced suspension of security assistance and military aid to that country. The administration also added Pakistan to a watch list of countries that violate...

Huffington Post: Saudi Arabia’s Leader Spent $450 Million on a Painting; Here’s What That Could Do for War Victims in Yemen

Akbar Shahid Ahmed December 22, 2017
Reports suggest that Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman spent $450.3 million on a Leonardo da Vinci painting, “Salvator Mundi,” for the Louvre Abu Dhabi. As Akbar Shahid Ahmed reports for the Huffington, the purchase is the highest for an art auction and damages claims by the prince “that he will impose more transparency on the money accumulated by various members of the sprawling...

The Korea Times: North Korea Threatens China, Too, Notes South Korea’s Moon

Kim Rahn December 15, 2017
North Korea’s government continues to develop and test ballistic missiles – 15 this year alone – along with nuclear tests despite a flailing economy. The international community recognizes that the rogue regime is not above extortion and could nuclear weapons to coerce any country. “North Korea's nuclear and missile provocations are threats to the peace of not only South Korea but also China...

The Atlantic: Saleh's Death in Yemen Sends a Message to Other Dictators

Krishnadev Calamur December 5, 2017
Allegiances change swiftly in the Middle East as a brutal proxy fight escalates between Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The death of Yemen’s former President Ali Abdullah Saleh “at the hands of Houthi rebels who were his allies just a few days ago, shows not only the perils of that balancing act, but also the political shifts in a country wracked by civil war since 2015,” reports Krishnadev Calamur for...