In The News

Terrorist Networks Lure Young Moroccans to War in Far-Off Iraq

Craig Whitlock February 20, 2007
DNA tests show that some of the suicide bombers in Iraq came from other countries, willing to cross a continent to die for a cause. Journalist Craig Whitlock describes in the “Washington Post” how Al Qaeda recruits young males in Morocco, including college students and one young man who left a wife and infant. Recruiters for extremists target young men who are concerned about matters of “...

New PA Government Creates a Real Problem for Israel

Avi Issacharoff February 16, 2007
Two rival factions of the Palestinian Authority have reached agreement on forming a coalition government that was opposed by the US. Today, it was announced that, under Saudi mediation, feuding parties Hamas and Fatah agreed to share power in a carefully brokered yet uneasily constituted unity government. The new government as a whole does not recognize Israel, but is weighted with...

Across Arab World, a Widening Rift

Anthony Shadid February 14, 2007
In many Muslim nations, Sunni and Shiites live and work together as neighbors, and so the growing sectarian conflict in Iraq is unsettling for Muslim nations like Egypt. The divide between Sunnis and Shiites dates back to a disagreement in the 7th century about who should succeed the Prophet Mohammed. Shiites, long disenfranchised in Iraq and Bahrain where they make up a majority and many other...

A Desert Louvre?

Heiko Klaas February 13, 2007
When Dubai announced that it was building a series of islands representing “The World,” a real estate deal in which Rod Stewart is rumored to have purchased “Great Britain,” many commentators thought that the emirate had gone too, hilariously, far in its pursuit of luxury. But last month, the art world stood aghast at another announcement: The rulers of Abu Dhabi offered to buy a large share of...

How Not to Inflame Iraq

Javad Zarif February 12, 2007
Speaking to the UN Security Council in 2003, just prior to the US invasion of Iraq, Iranian Ambassador Javad Zarif warned the world that, “extremism stands to benefit enormously from an uncalculated adventure in Iraq.” As the US prepares to escalate troops in Iraq to confront an ever-growing insurgency, Zarif once again urges Washington to abandon shortsighted schemes, arguing that an “escalated...

Traffic Cop in an Unsettled Region

Bernhard Zand February 7, 2007
This month, Riyadh is seeing more diplomatic traffic than usual as high-level envoys from the US, Germany and other nations seek to gain the support of the Saudi government for various initiatives to promote peace in the region. As Bernhard Zand writes, the hidden backdrop for this flurry of activity is the ambiguity of Saudi intentions and the fact that the nation may represent the best...

Beyond Oil: Reappraising the Gulf States

Kito de Boer January 31, 2007
Nations without oil must conserve and seek energy alternatives. Likewise, nations with oil must create jobs that do not rely on the petroleum industry. Rapid population growth in the Gulf nations means less oil revenue spreading throughout the economy for citizens. The wealthy Gulf Cooperation Council nations have high rates of unemployment that could lead to unrest. Inconsistent education...