Jim Lobe

A U.S. federal court judge has ruled that military tribunals initiated by the Pentagon to determine the status of terrorist suspects held at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, are unconstitutional because they do not satisfy minimal due process requirements. The long-awaited decision [.pdf] by veteran judge Joyce Hens Green deals a new setback … Continue reading “Judge Vindicates Gitmo Criticisms”

The departure by mid-2005 of the number-three man at the Defense Department, announced by the Pentagon Wednesday, marks the latest hint that President George W. Bush is moving foreign policy in a more centrist direction. Combined with several other personnel shifts, as well as a concerted effort to reassure the public and U.S. allies abroad … Continue reading “Losing Feith”

The importance of this week’s recognition by the United Nations of the Nazi Holocaust lies as much in its relevance to today’s international realities as it does to the historical significance of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp by Soviet forces 60 years ago Thursday. As noted by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan and other … Continue reading “From Holocaust to Hyperpower”

Riding over opposition from its Democratic members, the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday voted 10-8 to send the nomination of Attorney General-designate Alberto Gonzales to the full Senate for confirmation, possibly as early as next week. In another widely anticipated victory for President George W. Bush, his former national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, easily won confirmation … Continue reading “Rights Groups Take Rare Step of Repudiating Nominee”

As Israeli and Palestinian leaders move to increase security cooperation in Gaza, a major U.S. human rights organization is urging the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to reject proposals to build an anti-smuggling trench along the Gaza-Egyptian border that could destroy up to 3,000 Palestinian homes. Citing recent press reports, New York-based Human Rights … Continue reading “Israeli Trench Could Destroy 3,000 Palestinian Homes”

President George W. Bush faces a difficult challenge in rallying U.S. public opinion behind his clarion call for spreading freedom and democracy abroad, according to a number of surveys published over the last two years. Those polls show that the general public is, if anything, less inclined to engage in a global crusade on behalf … Continue reading “Bush’s Democracy Crusade Defies Public Opinion”

Two very different messages about the future of U.S. foreign policy were broadcast to the world on Inaugural Day Thursday, and listeners everywhere could be forgiven for feeling confused about their import. On the one hand, George W. Bush’s lofty rhetoric about his administration’s commitment to bring democracy, liberty and freedom to every country where … Continue reading “Bush, Cheney Team Up to Soften Americans for War on Iran”

Kicking off his second four-year term, President George W. Bush Thursday delivered an inaugural address filled with the righteous resolve and soaring rhetoric that are music to his core constituency but will almost certainly grate on the nerves of almost everybody else, both here and abroad. The speech, which was studded with religious references, was … Continue reading “Bush: The Crusade Must Go On”

As George W. Bush prepares to be sworn in for his second term as U.S. president, a strong majority of the world’s people are concerned his tenure is likely to produce more setbacks to the cause of world peace and security, according to a major international poll released Wednesday. The survey of nearly 22,000 people … Continue reading “Survey: Benevolent Hegemony Not Appreciated”

Almost exactly 40 years after Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., received the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway, in recognition of his nonviolent struggle for civil rights in the United States, another Nobel Peace laureate, Shirin Ebadi, said she was ready to be arrested for refusing to appear before Iran’s Revolutionary Court. Ebadi, who won … Continue reading “Iranian Nobel Laureate in Showdown With Conservatives”