In The News

In Afghan Christian, Story of a Larger Conflict

Roger Cohen March 28, 2006
The public demand in Afghanistan for a death sentence on Abdul Rahman, an Afghan man who converted to Christianity 15 years ago, has excited outrage on the part of the West. Germany, in particular, with more than 2000 troops in Afghanistan and a fervent regard for religious choice, has expressed discontent. The US has weighed in as well, upset about the “flouting of universal democratic values.”...

This Is Why the Islamists Are Winning

Rami G. Khouri March 16, 2006
Conservative Islamist candidates have met with success in Palestine, Iraq, Egypt and other countries, leaving Western analysts to speculate about Islamist motives and platforms. Author Rami G. Khouri analyzes the Islamist political success and suggests that Western pundits are confused by the integration of factors such as religion, national identity, good governance, and resistance to foreign...

What a Shame

Mohamed Hakki March 9, 2006
Neoconservatives support using the unrivaled power of the US to spread democratic values and prevent conflicts before they start. As the Iraq war drags on to its third year, such politicians have become less influential in the US. But one neoconservative disciple, Paul Wolfowitz, president of the World Bank since 2005, has been arguing for greater accountability. As the former US deputy...

Iraq Through the Prism of Vietnam

William E. Odom March 8, 2006
Viewing the Vietnam War as consisting of three phases provides insight into the Iraq War, which is repeating the errors that marked each successive phase. The first phase of the Vietnam War commenced with a miscalculation of US strategic interests. What became the US imperative in Vietnam of “containing China,” preventing the Soviet Bloc from expanding in the region, had no solid basis....

Saudi Oil Facilities: Al Qaeda’s Next Target?

John C.K. Daly March 7, 2006
Osama bin Laden’s January promise of more attacks on the US was soon followed by a failed suicide attack on a refinery in Saudi Arabia. Any attack on Saudi oil facilities would bring immediate harm to the US and the rest of the world. Iraq already provides a powerful example of the deleterious effects of strikes against oil facilities. Since June 2003, Iraq facilities have been hit 298 times,...

Will Fight for Oil

Ted Koppel March 1, 2006
The Bush administration has been sensitive to charges that oil was a central determinant of Iraq war policy. Maintaining that oil was unrelated to US action in Iraq is odd, suggests veteran television journalist Ted Koppel, considering that protecting the flow of Persian Gulf oil has been central to US foreign policy since the mid-20th century. And he also suggests that oil is the reason why...

Un-American

Mansoor Ijaz February 24, 2006
US lawmakers’ rejection of the Dubai ports deal stems from prejudice more than concerns about national security. Such attitudes are dangerous at a time when US needs all the friends in the Muslim world that it can get. Instead of rejecting the Dubai deal, the US could embrace the opportunity to work with a company run by educated and talented Muslim professionals who strive to overturn...