I left Beirut around 9 in the morning. At 10 am Ali Abou Hassan, head of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine [PFLP] political office promised to wait for me at the entrance of Ain el Hilwe camp in Saida. Ain el Hilwe is famous for being the most dangerous Palestinian camp. It […]
Sunnis, Shi’a, secular and sectarian citizens alike, Iraqis have been debating the issues that come with US military occupation for years now. But one week ago, the Iraqi Parliament came together, despite their different beliefs, and passed the Status of Forces Agreement by a vote of 149-35. There were dissenters, of course; most were Sadr […]
Our soon-to-be Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for the Iraqi PM to be replaced in 2007. We’ll see how she navigates a relationship with him, and his successor in 2009.
Raghida Dergham weighs in today on the question I posed yesterday: is it helpful to understand the political issues of the Middle East as interconnected? Here is her soundbite from the New York Times: Raghida Dergham, who writes a column in Al Hayat, the London-based pan-Arab daily, wrote that it was a matter of when, […]
For a week starting today General Michel Aoun meets with Syrian officials. This is one of the most controversial visits since President Suleiman took the Presidency. Worth keeping an eye on it. Three years after his return from a 15-year exile, Maronite opposition leader Michel Aoun shakes hands with the son of the man who […]
Martin Indyk, of the Brookings Institute and numerous other institutions of repute, and the equally credentialed Gary Samore of the Council on Foreign Relations co-directed a research initiative called Restoring the Balance: A Middle East Strategy for the Next President. You can read summaries of their work from Brookings here and from CFR here, or […]
A recent online poll by Egyptian opposition paper Al-Dustour revealed that 84% of Egyptians polled (3708 respondents) believe that Barack Obama will not change American policy towards Arabs and Muslims. 16% of those polled (706 respondents) believe that he “will work towards changing the American policy which his predecessor has followed." The commentary on the […]
December 2 is the UAE's national day. Says UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed: My brothers and sisters in nationality, the march of our federation through the last 37 years has made numerous achievements, fulfilled enormous ambitions and encompassed several avenues of our lives, taking our nation, the society and the individual into the 21st […]
Saudi citizens concerned about human rights in the Kingdom staged a hunger strike November 6-7; I posted about it here. Apparently their efforts were noted by the government; here is an update from the detained activists’ defense team: Saudi Authorities Intensified Campaigns Aimed at Suppressing Freedom of Expressions, Blocking Media Outlets, and Stymieing Civic Movements […]
"On the basis of the progress so far reported … it is envisaged that the Special Tribunal will commence functioning on 1 March 2009," Ban wrote in a report to the UN Security Council.” [NOW Lebanon]
The LA Times has an interesting Q and A up today with Farhad Khosrokohavar on his work interviewing inmates in a French prison who were detained for terrorism.
Columbia University, in partnership with the Department of State and some other organizations, including Google and AT&T, is convening a conference from 12/3-12/5 called “the Alliance of Youth Movement” to discuss the ways that Facebook and other social networking websites can provide a launching pad of sorts for nonviolent political resistance. DoS invited 17 organizations […]
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