Turkey threatens to cut ties with Israel
JERUSALEM — Israel will never say sorry for defending itself, a senior government official said on Monday after Turkey demanded an apology for a deadly commando raid on an aid convoy to Gaza. "Israel will never apologize for defending its citizens," the official said. "Of course, we regret the loss of life but it was not the...Iran admits sanctions could bite
Ali Akbar SalehiA senior Iranian official has acknowledged for the first time that sanctions against the country could slow down its nuclear program. Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran's atomic energy agency, told the ISNA news agency on Wednesday that the sanctions could have some impact. "Maybe they will slow down the work...Poland orders Israeli Mossad extradition
An Israeli man suspected of involvement in the slaying of a Hamas operative in a Dubai hotel in January will be extradited to Germany on suspicion of forgery, a Polish court has ruled. Uri Brodsky, a suspected Mossad agent, is accused by Germany of spying and of helping to falsely obtain a German passport allegedly used in...
Obama and Netanyahu all smiles
July 8th, 20100 WASHINGTON (IPS) — Insisting that the bond between their two nations was "unbreakable," U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu emerged all smiles from their long-awaited White House meeting here Tuesday. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meet in the Oval...BP in the Gulf — the Persian Gulf: A long, infamous history
To frustrated Americans who have begun boycotting BP: Welcome to the club. It's great not to be the only member any more! Does boycotting BP really make sense? Perhaps not. After all, many BP filling stations are actually owned by local people, not the corporation itself. Besides, when you're filling up at a...As Canada’s democracy trembles, a new global architecture emerges
TORONTO (IPS) — Nearly 600 people were arrested as global leaders and elites met behind a fortified perimeter during the G8 and G20 Summits in Huntsville and Toronto this weekend. The tension was palpable on the subway as the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) announced that under a "police directive" all routes in and out of the...Switch to Petraeus betrays Afghan policy crisis
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Despite President Barack Obama's denial that his decision to fire Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal as commander in Afghanistan and replace him with Gen. David Petraeus signified any differences with McChrystal over war strategy, the decision obviously reflects a desire by Obama to find a way out of a deepening policy...
Africa united for World Cup but will it last?
June 25th, 20100 JOHANNESBURG — Perhaps Africa's World Cup began in earnest on Jun. 16, when a despondent green and gold-clad crowd began leaving the Loftus Versfeld stadium even before the end of South Africa's heavy defeat to Uruguay. Migrant African fans felt the first touch of cold post-tournament reality. In their final game on Jun. 22, Bafana...
Israeli flotilla attack may violate international, maritime laws
June 23rd, 20100 A photograph supplied by the Israeli Forces shows Israeli sailors in the navy base in Haifa as they prepare to set sail into the Mediterranean Sea on May 29, 2010 in order to track and intercept the Free Gaza Movement flotilla. Photo: EPAUNITED NATIONS (IPS) — When two widely-divergent investigative panels launch their probes on the...Where the bikini meets the hijab
BEIRUT — Hijab or bikini? That is a question that Lebanon seems to be forever balancing. Both extremes make up the social fabric of the country, and the recent "Miss USA" pageant, which saw the election of Rima Fakih, a Muslim Shi'aa of Lebanese origin, has once again spotlighted the diversity and often paradoxical image of women...
IN PICTURES: Worldwide protests against Gaza blockade, flotilla attack
June 6th, 20100 CHILE A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator shouts slogans during rally outside the Israeli embassy in Santiago June 1, 2010. REUTERS/Luis Hidalgo BOSNIA Palestinians, Syrians, Turkish students and Muslim citizens protest in Sarajevo June 3, 2010. REUTERS/Danilo Krstanovic CHINA A protester from a student group demonstrates outside the Israeli...Protests erupt after Israeli flotilla raid
NEW YORK (IPS) — Protests are being staged in cities around the world following Israel's widely condemned raid on a flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian aid bound for Gaza. BELGIUM Demonstrators hold Palestinians flags and placards during a protest in front of the European Union Council in Brussels June 2, 2010. ...
Israeli Navy Storms Humanitarian Flotilla
May 31st, 20100 RAMALLAH (IPS) - Israeli naval commandos killed at least nine people and wounded dozens Monday as they attacked an unarmed humanitarian and civilian flotilla - in international waters - trying to bring desperately needed aid to Gaza. The death toll was expected to rise. Israeli soldiers ride aboard a naval vessel in the...
Elvis Costello cancels forthcoming concerts in Israel
May 23rd, 20100 Elvis Costello has canceled two concerts he was scheduled to play in Israel in protest of its treatment of Palestinians. Elvis CostelloCostello, one of the most gifted British songwriters of his generation, was due to play on June 30 and July 1 but says his conscience dictated that he pull out of the performances.He joins a list of...
Former commander: Israeli troops torture children
May 23rd, 20100 (BBC) — A former Israeli military commander has told the BBC that Palestinian youngsters are routinely ill-treated by Israeli soldiers while in custody, reports the BBC' s Katya Adler from Jerusalem and the West Bank. A Palestinian throws a stone towards Israeli troops during a protest against the construction of the controversial......
Court rules government can’t shut down charities without a warrant
NEW YORK (IPS) — In a major decision overturning a George W. Bush-era policy that has been continued by the administration of President Barack Obama, a federal court ruled that the U.S. Treasury Department cannot freeze a charity's assets without a warrant, and must also give access to any classified evidence before effectively...Young Lebanese demonstrate for secularism in Beirut
BEIRUT — "Sectarianism kills" and "We are for civil marriage, not civil war" read the colorful banners at a protest in the center of Beirut.Hundreds of young Lebanese gathered to march for secularism in a country that lives under a deeply divisive sectarian system.Being Lebanese in Lebanon comes second to being a Christian or a Muslim,......
France to ban full Islamic veil from public spaces
WASHINGTON - The Lebanese group Hizbullah has most likely acquired Scud missiles and improved its rocket-firing technology, a top U.S. senator warned Tuesday. Senate Intelligence Committee chair Dianne Feinstein"I believe there is a likelihood that there are Scuds that Hizbullah has in Lebanon. A high likelihood," Senate Intelligence...Yemen refuses to hunt Al-Awlaki for U.S.
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Last weekend, authorities in Yemen said they would not participate in the extrajudicial killing of U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was recently targeted by military and intelligence agencies in Washington. Anwar al-Awlaki"Anwar al-Awlaki has always been looked at as a preacher rather than a terrorist and...Israel finds itself in nuclear isolation
JERUSALEM (IPS) - As the world grapples with controlling the spread of nuclear weapons, it's a time of complex choices in a Middle East edging between possible confrontation with Iran and possible movement towards Israeli-Palestinian peace.It's also a time of troubled relations between the United States and Israel. And yet at this...U.S. and Russia sign nuclear pact
President Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev, his Russian counterpart, have signed a landmark nuclear disarmament treaty in Prague, Czech Republic. U.S. President Barack Obama (L) and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev sign the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START II) at Prague Castle in Prague April 8,......
Obama said to mull Israel-Palestinian peace plan
WASHINGTON (IPS) — Amid still-unresolved tensions over Jewish settlement expansion in East Jerusalem, two major publications reported Wednesday that President Barack Obama is seriously considering proposing later this year a U.S. peace plan to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.Both the Washington Post and The New York Times...Israel recognizing Obama means business
JERUSALEM (IPS) - Against all expectations, it's becoming the forerunner of a peace plan. Indeed, it might in the end even surprise the world as Israelis and Palestinians are forced into a peace. Even if, for now, it's shaping up as anything but peaceful. It's a battle royale. A Palestinian youth carries a box filled with......
U.S. poll reveals sharp partisan divide
WASHINGTON - Eighty-one percent of U.S. citizens say the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has hurt their country's interests, according to a new poll, although a sharp partisan divide increasingly frames the issues. An Israeli border police officer removes a Palestinian flag placed by a demonstrator at the controversial Israeli...The Arab Jewish tradition and peace
The modern state of Israel is composed of Sephardic Jews, or Jews from Arab-Islamic lands, and Ashkenazic Jews, Jews who hail from Christian Europe. Occidental Jews have taken on many of the traits of Western culture, while the Oriental Jews, many of whom continued to speak Arabic and partake of a common Middle Eastern culture until......