In The News

AP: Children Killed as Airstrikes Hit Bus in Yemen

Ahmed al-Haj August 10, 2018
Rebels in Yemen claim that a Saudi-led airstrike hit a market and schoolbus carrying children on a field trip. More than 50 people were killed and 75 were wounded. Associated Press reports: “U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the coalition air strike and called on all parties to spare civilians and ‘to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law, in particular...

Washington Post: Trump Tweets Warning to Iran’s Rouhani

Carol Morello August 9, 2018
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has not backed down in the face of threatening tweets by President Donald Trump in capital letters. The tweet was in response to a comment by the Iranian president. According to the Islamic Republic News Agency, Rouhani told a meeting of Iranian diplomats that “America should know that peace with Iran is the mother of all peace, and war with Iran is the mother of...

Globe and Mail: Saudi Arabia Breaks Ties With Canada

Steven Chase August 7, 2018
Canadian officials called for the release of civil-rights and women’s rights activists being held in Saudi Arabia and expressed concern about a crackdown on dissidents. “In response, Saudi Arabia expelled Canada's ambassador Sunday, recalled their ambassador and frozen new trade dealings with Canada, decrying what they called foreign interference in their domestic affairs,” reports Steven...

The Hill: US Sanctions on Iran Bound to Fail

George A. Lopez August 6, 2018
The United States withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal in May. US companies must show they are ending economic exchanges with Iran in a range of industries before the end of the year. The US president has also announced secondary sanctions that impose the “same restrictions on all economic entities outside the United States that continue economic engagement with Iran in prohibited trade or finance...

Financial Times: Trump’s Deal and Palestinian Rights

Kofi Annan July 31, 2018
US presidents repeatedly try and fail to secure peace in the Middle East, and the United States remains “arguably the one country with decisive influence on both the Israelis and Palestinians,” writes Kofi Annan, former secretary-general for the United Nations. He reiterates a comment made by the US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley that peace and security require attention to human rights, that...

Al Jazeera: Russia's Endgame in Syria

Marwan Kabalan July 31, 2018
Analysts can only conjecture what is in store for Syria, Ukraine and other parts of the world where Russia and the United States have an interest. The US and Russian presidents held a private summit and only the translators know what was really said. Syria was discussed. Both countries battled the Islamic State extremists, with Russia and Iran backing the Bashar al Assad regime and the United...

The Guardian: UN Calls for Access to Stranded Syrians

Kareem Shaheen July 25, 2018
The United Nations has requested access to nearly 250,000 stranded Syrians who fled rebel-controlled sectors of Deraa in the midst of an incursion by Syrian military forces. As Kareem Shaheen reports for the Guardian, “government forces are expected to turn to Idlib in the north, where Islamist militias and al-Qaida-linked militants control territory hosting more than two million internally...