In The News

New Violence, Old Problem

Neil MacFarquhar June 6, 2004
The last two terrorist attacks on Saudi Arabian soil left over two dozen people dead, including 25 foreigners. In both attacks, the corpse of a Westerner was dragged behind a car in apparent celebration. As gruesome as this sounds, writes Neil MacFarquhar, it is only a symptom of the times in Saudi Arabia. The ruling House of Saud, he says, officially maintains that the terrorists responsible...

June to November

Khaled Dawoud June 4, 2004
As the June 30 deadline for transfer of sovereignty approaches, it is increasingly clear that the triangular relationship between the US White House, the Iraqi Governing Council, and the United Nations is a bit lopsided. The UN envoy to Iraq, Lakhdar Brahimi, was supposed to be in charge of selecting Iraqis to fill key posts in a new interim government. But right up until the announcement of...

Iran Still Making Nuclear Materials, U.N. Agency Says

Willliam J. Broad June 2, 2004
Iranian claims to have discontinued research and development related to its nuclear program has been called into question by the International Atomic Energy Agency, an affiliate of the United Nations. The agency’s latest report suggests that Iran persists in making parts and materials that could eventually be used in the creation of nuclear weapons. Iran insists that the evidence found is related...

Islam and West: Time for Enlightened Moderation

Pervez Musharraf June 2, 2004
The events of the recent past have brought the Muslim world to a state of emergency, writes Pervez Musharraf, president of Pakistan. The world perception of Muslims as violent extremists has placed the moderate and peaceful faithful – the “innocent multitudes” – at odds with the world. The proliferation of suicide bombers and the events of 9/11 have bred a deep fear in the West of Islam and its...

US Nation-Building Abroad – Part III

Ahmed Rashid June 1, 2004
After over 30 months of active engagement in Afghanistan, the US military is still not able to guarantee peace and security within the country's borders. Osama bin Laden, whose presence in Afghanistan occasioned the US intervention in the first place, still remains elusive. In the final installment of a multi-author series on America's nation-building efforts, journalist and author...

Looking After Number One

Abbas Ali May 28, 2004
The American occupation in Iraq has the Iranian government torn in two different directions: their obvious interest in guiding the shape of the neighboring government is at odds with not wanting to cooperate with the United States. Iran’s ties to Iraq are ancient and critical. Holy sites and burial grounds that are among the most sacred to Iranian Muslims are located in Iraq, and studies of the...

US Nation-Building Abroad – Part II

Fawaz A. Gerges May 28, 2004
The Abu Ghraib prison, once the stage for atrocities committed by Saddam Hussein, has been turned into a symbol of brutal occupation by a foreign force. The story of abuse by American soldiers broke at the worst possible time for the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, writes Middle East specialist Fawaz A. Gerges, in the second installment of a multi-authored, three-part series on US...