Israel, White House condemn Trump for remarks about Hamas attack, “smart” Hezbollah
October 13th, 20230 On Thursday Israel and the White House condemned remarks by Donald Trump in which he praised the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over an attack by Palestinian Hamas militants that killed more than 1,300 people in Israel. Trump, a former Republican president who is the front...
At least 100 killed in drone attack on Syrian military academy
October 12th, 20230 At least 100 people were killed on Thursday in an attack on a military academy in Syria, a war monitor and an official said, with weaponized drones bombing the site minutes after Syria's defense minister left a graduation ceremony there. It was one of the bloodiest attacks ever against a Syrian army installation, and unprecedented in...
A day to remember: How the “Al-Quds Flood” altered the relationship between Palestine and Israel forever
October 11th, 20231 Regardless of the precise strategy of the Palestinian group Hamas, or any other Palestinian movement for that matter, the daring Palestinian military campaign, deep inside Israel, on Saturday, October 7, was only possible because Palestinians are simply fed up. 17 years ago, Israel imposed a hermetic siege on the Gaza Strip. The...
The Gaza war is lost: But will Netanyahu concede?
October 11th, 20232 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had often boasted about the readiness of his army to deal with, and to eliminate all threats to Israel's “security.” The Israeli military, too, has contributed to the Israeli hasbara that Tel Aviv would be able to face several threats at all fronts, from Gaza, to the West Bank, to Lebanon...
U.N. warns an Israeli total blockade on the Gaza Strip is equivalent to a war crime
October 10th, 20230 The human rights chief of the United Nations warned that a total blockade on the Gaza Strip by the Israeli government would violate international law and amount to a war crime. In a statement on Tuesday, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, said that a total blockade would “seriously” risk an already dire...
“Greatest nation” debates aren’t helpful
September 27th, 20230 Is the United States the greatest nation in the world? It’s a natural question to ask, given our penchant for displays of patriotism and our debates about American exceptionalism. But I don’t much like the question. Talking about how American greatness isn’t a very helpful exercise. It doesn’t do anything to make our country...
Peace talks with Yemen demonstrates Saudi intentions to step away from the U.S.
September 19th, 20230 The Biden administration is seeking trilateral meetings with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as soon as this week to discuss any differences between the Gulf countries that could “upend” the peace talks currently happening between the Saudis and Yemen. According to U.S. officials speaking with the Financial Times, Tim...
Ansarallah delegation visits Riyadh to continue peace talks
September 15th, 20230 On Wednesday, September 14, Yemen’s Ansarallah resistance movement announced that a delegation had left Sanaa to pursue Omani-mediated peace talks in Riyadh. A member of Ansarallah’s political bureau, Ali al-Qahoum, announced through social media that the delegation had left the Yemeni capital “on board an Omani plane to the...
Yemen suffering from one of the world’s highest rates of contamination with deadly explosives and landmines
September 13th, 20230 According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Yemen has one of the highest contamination rates with deadly explosives and landmines worldwide. “When it comes to weapon containment, Yemen, Iraq and Afghanistan are the three countries most affected by this,” Fabrizio Carboni, the Near and Middle East regional...
Al-Jazeera investigation exposes Israeli government’s influence on Facebook
September 12th, 20230 An Al-Jazeera investigative program has exposed the Israeli government’s influence and persuasion over Facebook censorship policies concerning the illegal occupation of Palestine and the treatment and crimes against Palestinians. Facebook deleted the personal account of Tamer Almisshal, a Palestinian journalist and the presenter...
Syria wants the U.N. to hold Washington accountable
September 11th, 20230 On Sunday, September 10, the Syrian government called on the United Nations and the international community to hold the United States government “accountable” for the continuing theft of Syrian oil and other natural resources from northeast Syria. In a letter addressed to the U.N. secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, the Syrian...
When the torturer is the “savior”: Can BRICS, Global South help us escape the West’s hegemony, contradictions?
September 8th, 20230 By Ramzy Baroud and Romana Rubeo At the zenith of the mass protests in Egypt on January 25, 2011, Twitter, Facebook and other Western-based social media platforms appeared to be the most essential tools for the Egyptian Revolution. Though some observers later contested the use of the terms "Twitter Revolution" or "Social Media...
Jordan and Lebanon no longer safe havens for refugees fleeing Syria
September 8th, 20230 On September 7, Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi announced that the Hashemite kingdom could no longer accept Syrian refugees. He stressed that the future of displaced Syrians lies within their own country. During a joint press conference in Amman with Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin, Safadi said, “Jordan will not be...U.N. warns Israeli government that a mass deportation of Eritrean migrants contravenes international law
The United Nations is urging the Israeli government to refrain from the mass deportation of Eritreans after clashes over the weekend involving refugees. The U.N. warned the response would “contravene international law.” On Tuesday, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees spokesman, William Spindler, told reporters in Geneva,...
According to reports, Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh met with Mossad chief last year to discuss Libyan-Israeli normalization in Amman
September 4th, 20230 The Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar has obtained a classified diplomatic cable confirming that Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh met David Barnea, the head of the Israeli Mossad, to discuss “practical steps to normalize relations” between the two countries last year in Amman, Jordan. The meeting specifically focused on “the......
Arab American activists urge DHS to declare temporary protected status for Lebanese nationals in the U.S.
September 2nd, 20231 Arab American community activists are urging the Department of Homeland Security to declare Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Lebanese nationals in the U.S.. It would grant temporary immigration status for people to live and work in the U.S. due to challenges in their home country. Adam Beddawi, policy manager for the National...
Palestinian American journalist says she was discriminated against by employees of Israel’s airline, stripped half naked
September 2nd, 20230 A Palestinian American journalist who was barred from boarding her flight from Newark to Tel Aviv in July says that she was humiliated and discriminated against by employees of Israel's flagship carrier. Now, the U.S. Department of Transportation has opened an investigation into the incident, it confirmed to Insider by email. The......
U.S. officials plead with Yemeni leaders to start negotiations with the current Saudi-appointed government
August 29th, 20230 Washington is urging Yemen’s National Salvation Government, the NCG, to start negotiations with the Saudi-appointed parallel government currently controlling Yemen’s southern regions to “resolve” the 9-year war. “We urge Ansarallah to seize this unprecedented opportunity and sit with the government to draw a prosperous...
U.S. General Mark Milley: U.S. military forces in Syria depends on ISIS threat
August 29th, 20230 The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, told Jordanian TV on August 24 that U.S. military forces would remain stationed in northeast Syria to “fight ISIS” for the foreseeable future. “The ideology is not dead yet, and there are some ISIS terrorists that are still roaming the deserts of Syria and...
Friend or foe? Russia’s West Jerusalem consulate is very worrying
August 23rd, 20230 Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, a global cold war has also kicked in. As a strong ally of Washington and the home of a massive constituency of Russian, Ukrainian and East European Jews, it was only natural that Tel Aviv would be at the heart of the global conflict. When the war began, Israel was then ruled by an odd...
Syria’s U.N. representative claims U.S. is providing Syrian armed groups with chemical weapons
August 18th, 20231 Syria’s representative to the United Nations said that the U.S. has provided armed groups in western Syria with chemical weapons, training the groups to use the weapons to launch a possible false flag attack during a U.N. Security Council session on Wednesday, August 9. “U.S. occupation forces provided terrorists in Al-Tanf with......
Forensic audit into Lebanon’s central bank reveals misconduct and “illegitimate” commissions
August 18th, 20230 BEIRUT — A forensic audit into Lebanon’s central bank by a New York-based company has revealed years long misconduct by the bank’s former governor and $111 million in “illegitimate commissions,” according to a report by the company. It’s the latest chapter in the saga of Lebanon’s embattled former central bank governor...
Opinion: Faith in democracy is vital
August 18th, 20230 Americans are pessimistic about our democracy, according to a recent poll. It’s a worrisome finding. Of course, it’s easy to watch the news and conclude our government isn’t working. But we must not get to the point where we think we can’t solve our problems in a democratic fashion. That’s a danger line. The poll, by The......
Israel-Hezbollah tensions elevate risks of conflict
August 18th, 20230 An escalating war of words between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon echoes heightened tension at the border, with each vowing to return the other to the "stone age" and preparing for a possible conflict even as they deny seeking one. Israel and Hezbollah have avoided war across the Lebanese-Israeli frontier since their last major clash...
Saudi Arabia, Iran relations “on the right track,” Iranian minister says after Riyadh visits
August 18th, 20230 Saudi Arabia and Iran are making progress on mending ties, Iran's foreign minister said after meeting with his counterpart in Riyadh on Thursday, as two regional heavyweights seek to overcome past hostility and boost cooperation. "Relations between Tehran and Saudi are on the right track and we are witnessing progress," Hossein......
