Month: January 2009

The Obama administration is reluctant to turn over too many rocks in the Bush administration’s conduct in the War on Terror.  Obama has pledged to reach a post-partisan nirvana, and Republicans could condemn any investigation of Bush administration abuse of the republic as a partisan witch-hunt.  Also, the Obama administration has a conflict of interest … Continue reading “Prosecute George W. Bush for Illegal Acts”

"Obama is going to have continuous pressure from Israel to attack Iran and, in some way, their nuclear facilities, and this is going to be tied up with Gaza and Lebanon," according to Robert Baer, a former top Central Intelligence Agency operative and the author of The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian … Continue reading “‘US and Iran Share an Equal Monopoly on Violence’”

GAZA CITY – Traffic on Sea Street, a major thoroughfare alongside Gaza’s coastline, includes horses, donkeys pulling carts, cyclists, pedestrians, trucks and cars, mostly older models. Overhead, in stark contrast to the street below, Israel’s ultra modern unmanned surveillance planes criss-cross the skies.  F16s and helicopters can also be heard.  Remnants of their deliveries, the … Continue reading “Gaza: Worse Than an Earthquake”

Check it out! According to the Obama-Biden Foreign Policy Agenda just posted at the White House web-site, "President Obama and Vice President Biden will renew America’s security and standing in the world through a new era of American leadership." How? "The Obama-Biden foreign policy will end the war in Iraq responsibly, finish the fight against … Continue reading “New Era of America Leadership?”

Finally! 2569 days after the prison at Guantánamo opened – but just two days into the new presidency – Barack Obama signed three executive orders and a presidential memorandum that mark a decisive break with the "War on Terror" policies of the Bush administration. As he signed the orders, he reiterated a comment that he … Continue reading “For Detainees, Obama Off to Good Start”

At least 11 people were killed and three were wounded in the latest attacks. A U.S. soldier also died, in a vehicle accident south of Baghdad yesterday. Meanwhile, U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker warned that a hasty withdrawal of U.S. forces could unravel hard-earned security gains as top military officials met with U.S. President Obama to … Continue reading “Friday: 1 US Soldier, 11 Iraqis Killed; 3 Iraqis Wounded”

In the 1967 movie classic the Battle of Algiers, which recreated Algeria’s war of independence against France, a handcuffed and shackled insurgent leader, Ben M’Hidi, is brought before a group of highly-partisan French journalists for intense interrogation. One of the journalists asks M’Hidi: "Don’t you think it is a bit cowardly to use women’s handbags … Continue reading “Hamas Fights on Uneven Battlefield”

In his first major diplomatic moves since his inauguration, U.S. President Barack Obama Thursday named two accomplished negotiators, former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell and Amb. Richard Holbrooke, as special envoys to deal with the Israel-Arab conflict and "the deteriorating situation" in Afghanistan and Pakistan, respectively. At a mid-afternoon briefing hosted by his just-confirmed Secretary … Continue reading “Obama Picks Israel-Arab, Afghanistan-Pakistan Negotiators”

ROME – The war of words continues in Gaza, in spite of the ceasefire. Nancy Snow, propaganda expert, talks to IPS about information spin strategies and whether we, the public, have learned any lessons from Iraq. Snow is a writer and a Huffington Post blogger. Her latest book is Persuader-in-Chief, about public diplomacy and persuasion … Continue reading “‘A Lot of the Gaza Story Is Being Left Out’”

GAZA CITY – Eighteen-year-old Mona al-Ashkar says she did not immediately know the first explosion at the United Nations (UN) school in Beit Lahiya had blown her left leg off. There was smoke, then chaos, then the pain and disbelief set in once she realized it was gone – completely severed by the weapon that … Continue reading “In Gaza, Alarm Spreads Over Use of Lethal New Weapons”