In The News

A New Tool to Fight Genocide

John Prendergast and Brad Brooks-Rubin December 29, 2016
Traditional methods for combatting crimes against community include United Nations peacekeeping efforts, the International Criminal Court and humanitarian aid. Ongoing prevalence of civil war and genocide in central and eastern Africa, however, indicates that the world must seek new and more effective solutions. Restrictions on money laundering may be the best way to “address the root causes of...

Russia Pivots to Asia

Taehwa Hong December 20, 2016
US President Barack Obama has emphasized that Russia is a weaker country than the United States. US military spending is 12 times more than Russia’s, and the Russian economy, under sanction for interventions in Ukraine, has been crowded out of the top 10 economies in recent years. Still, Russia confounds rivals and neighbors by regarding the globe as a chessboard, weighing priorities, using...

“Dear World … Why Are You Silent?”: Aleppo Residents Make Social Plea for Help

Tu Thanh Ha December 15, 2016
Ordinary people describe the dangers, fear and long waits in Aleppo’s warzone over social media. Arranging ceasefires and agreements is a challenge because of multiple factions on either side. Buses ready to deliver civilians to safety were blocked by pro-government forces. “Citing rebel and United Nations sources, the Reuters news agency said the ceasefire unravelled after Iran, one of Syrian...

Blame Game Starts as Aleppo's Rebels Fall

Jeremy Bowen December 14, 2016
Civilians and rebel fighters are trapped in a small section of eastern Aleppo, after that part of the city was pounded for months by Russian airstrikes, Syrian ground forces and Iranian militias. The war began in 2011. Europe, the United States, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and a few other nations selectively supported rebel fighters. Russia then intervened in September 2015. Reports describe hospitals...

Fall of Eastern Aleppo Marks Turning Point for Syrian Civil War

Dilip Hiro December 13, 2016
Defeat is imminent for the Syrian rebels in eastern Aleppo as government forces, supported by Russian airstrikes and Iranian militias, take control. The UN Security Council had been advised by a UN envoy that the city, once Syria’s largest, was at risk of becoming a “giant graveyard.” Rebels and civilians are trapped, and eastern Aleppo lacks food, water and other basic services. “Civil wars are...

Syrian Rebels in Secret Talks With Moscow to End Aleppo Fighting

Erika Solomon and Geoff Dyer December 2, 2016
The Financial Times reports that Turkey has arranged secret talks between Syrian rebels and Russia to stop the fighting in Aleppo. The rebel-held portion of Aleppo is surrounded, and occupants are desperate for food, water and other supplies. The US, which has “provided limited training and weaponry for the rebels but had been hesitant to give forceful backing,” was not included in the talks, the...

Divisions Within Afghanistan’s Government Reach New Crisis Point

Pamela Constable December 1, 2016
Impeachment of seven Afghan cabinet ministers demonstrates the fragility of Afghanistan’s new democratic institutions. President Ashraf Ghani confronts public criticism, and lawmakers accuse each other of abusing power and accomplishing little. Afghanistan’s ethnic divisions complicate the debate over governance. This instability follows more than a decade of US involvement in the country, and 10...