Category: Blogs

Top News: Obama Requests $500m to Train ‘Appropriately Vetted’ Rebels

By MENASource

President Obama requested $500 million from Congress on Thursday to train and equip what the White House is calling “appropriately vetted” members of the Syrian opposition.

Solving the ISIS Crisis

The situation in Iraq has become more dire by the day. Ever since the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) crossed from Syria into Iraq, the group’s march through the country’s north has not only facilitated the acquisition of weapons and resources, but also bolstered its standing among disenfrachised and frustrated men on both […]

Russia Stokes Fresh Debate Among the Nordics about NATO Membership

By Charlemagne, Economist

Sweden and Finland stopped being neutral years ago.

Egypt’s Parliamentary Elections Law: A Setback for Democracy

By Khaled Dawoud

Former Egyptian Interim President Adly Mansour had already delivered an emotional farewell speech on June 4, ending nearly one year in office in which he played a largely ceremonial role as he prepared to hand power to the newly elected, former defense minister, President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi on June 8. However, the next day, Mansour issued […]

Most Germans Oppose Permanent NATO Base in Poland and Baltics: Poll

By Stephen Brown; Reuters

Nearly three quarters of Germans would oppose NATO having permanent NATO military bases in eastern Europe as requested by Poland and the Baltic states because of a perceived threat from Russia, according to a new poll released on Wednesday.

Top News: Libyan Rights Activist Killed in Benghazi

By MENASource

Late Wednesday, five gunmen murdered Libyan human rights activist and lawyer Salwa Bugaighis, who played an active part in country’s 2011 uprising, after they broke into her home in the Benghazi’s Hawari district.

Will Hezbollah Expand Operations to Iraq?

By Karen Leigh

Lebanese security forces stormed the third-floor room of a suicide bomber at the Duroy Hotel in the upscale Beirut neighborhood of Raouche on June 25. They said it was a preventative measure, that the bomber—who blew himself up when police arrived—would have done it elsewhere, later.

Call it Terrorism: The Unacknowledged Tactic of the Russian-Led Insurgency in Ukraine’s East

By John E. Herbst

Once the Kremlin  seized and “annexed” Crimea in late March, it began a campaign designed at a minimum to destabilize Eastern Ukraine.  While we cannot know for sure what Mr. Putin’s maximalist goal is, it includes, at least, establishing an autonomous southeastern Ukraine sensitive to Moscow’s interests. The Kremlin, however, badly miscalculated.  It acted as […]