In The News

War and Politics: Islamists Gain Votes as U.S. Acts

Neil MacFarquhar November 6, 2002
Democratic elections, like the ones recently held in Bahrain and Turkey reflect a turn away from American influence and towards religious leadership. The public interpretation of the US war against terrorism as a war against Islam and Arab culture has been exploited by religiously-oriented political parties to bring about recent victories in the Middle East. Some observers argue that voters in...

Unmanned Weapon Makes Its Mark in Yemen

Mark Huband November 5, 2002
From caves in Afghanistan to deserts in Yemen, the US-led War against Terrorism has eliminated yet another al-Qaeda member. In the deserts of Yemen, an American unmanned air vehicle, the Predator, launched a Hellfire missile that killed Ali Qaed Sunian al-Harithi, who was believed to have been involved in the attack on the USS Cole in 2000. The 10,000 to 15,000 ft altitude range at which the...

U.S. Is Reported to Kill Al Qaeda Leader in Yemen

James Risen November 5, 2002
American officials claim that they have killed Qaed Salim Sinan al-Harethi, a senior Al Qaeda member who may have had ties to the 2000 bombing of the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen. The American attack was carried out in the Yemeni desert with an unmanned Predator airplane. The attack was also done without the explicit support of the Yemeni government. U.S. officials seem to want to signal to the...

Iran's President Presses for Dialogue in Spain

Camelia Entekhabi-Fard November 5, 2002
Iran's President Khatami recently became the first Iranian leader to visit Spain since the 1979 revolution. The mere fact of his visit was made even more significant by productive dialogue between President Khatami and Spanish leaders on issues of trade, security, Islam, and democracy. Iran is eager to win the respect of European Union countries, especially after President Bush made it...

Al Jazeera to Take on CNN, BBC in English

November 3, 2002
Though details are not yet cemented, the Al Jazeera satellite television network hopes to offer an English-language channel in late 2003 that will compete with top international news such as CNN and BBC. Already a leading force in Arab-language television, Al Jazeera is globalizing its audience by entering the English language market and publicizing the pro-Arab and pro-Muslim perspective that...

Controlling Iraq’s Oil: Not So Easy

Serge Schmemann November 3, 2002
Though the countries opposing the war in Iraq may have valid moral or ideological reasons behind their position, they also have trade ties to the country that might be threatened by a war. The US, on the other hand, may have economic interests driving it to push for an invasion of Iraq. America's motivations certainly may include security concerns, but the prospect of gaining a private gas...

Arab Perspective: The Chechen Issue That Cries for Solution

Huda Fawzi November 1, 2002
This collection of editorial comments from Arab media argues that although the perpetrators of the Moscow theater hostage crisis identify themselves with Muslim groups, their actions are contrary to Islamic teachings and are utterly unacceptable to humanity. The inability to distinguish individual contention towards a government from one towards a people prevents terrorists from realizing that...