Category: Uncategorized

Most of the deaths were in the Turkey-P.K.K. conflict.

Israel is getting ready to annex the occupied Palestinian West Bank. The annexation will be a major step backward on the road to Palestinian freedom and will likely serve as a catalyst for a new Palestinian uprising. Though annexation has been on the Israeli agenda for years, this time around a ‘great opportunity’ – in … Continue reading “Israel to Annex the West Bank – Why Now? And What are the Likely Scenarios?”

“He sees you when you’re sleeping He knows when you’re awake He knows when you’ve been bad or good So be good for goodness’ sake!” ~ “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” You’d better watch out – you’d better not pout – you’d better not cry – ‘cos I’m telling you why: this Christmas, it’s … Continue reading “You’d Better Watch Out: The Surveillance State Is Making a List, and You’re on It”

There has been a flurry of “What next for Syria?” articles in the wake of dictator Bashar al-Assad’s hurried exit from Syria and the takeover of much of the country by al-Qaeda’s rebranded local forces. Western governments and media have been quick to celebrate the success of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), even though the group … Continue reading “Israel, Not the ‘Liberators’ of Damascus, Will Decide Syria’s Fate”

Officials in the Biden administration are taking credit for creating conditions in Syria that enabled opposition forces to overthrow the Syrian government. Now that opposition forces have ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, administration officials are insisting that longstanding U.S. policies, including actions taken by the Biden administration against Assad’s supporters, made the overthrow of the … Continue reading “US Officials Take Credit for Regime Change in Syria”

If there was ever a moment that laid bare the utter stupidity and futility of Washington’s Empire First policy it surely is the smoking ruins of Syria that emerged last week. The latter was the desultory culmination of Washington’s 13-years-long effort to destroy the legitimate government of Syria on the grounds that Assad was a … Continue reading “A Case of the ‘Empire First’ Folly In Spades”

The Russian Armed Forces are pushing west through the Donbas region of Ukraine. Their advance has consistently been called slow, but this is no longer true. In October and November, Russia captured over 1,500 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory. The pace has continued in December, and Russia is advancing on as many as eight sections … Continue reading “Sometimes It Is Hard To Understand Volodymyr Zelensky”

Gaza, Haiti, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Russia, Syria, Ukraine, and Venezuela: President-elect Donald Trump will face no shortage of foreign-policy challenges when he assumes office in January. None, however, comes close to China in scope, scale, or complexity. No other country has the capacity to resist his predictable antagonism with the same degree of strength and … Continue reading “Can Trump Trump China (or Vice Versa)?”

The collapse of Bashar Al-Assad’s Syrian government in late November and early December 2024 occurred with stunning speed. There was little question that Joe Biden’s administration and several U.S. allies, especially Turkey, were pleased with the outcome. Washington had worked diligently to force Assad from power since 2011, even though the effort triggered a civil … Continue reading “Washington’s Long Flirtation with Syria’s Extreme Islamists”

Here is a very strange thing. For years, western media outlets and politicians have been recklessly indifferent to the fact that Hamas is not a jihadist movement, like al-Qaeda or Islamic State, but a specifically *Palestinian* national resistance movement – if one underpinned by an Islamist ideology that distinguishes it from secular Palestinian national movements … Continue reading “The Day the Media Decided Militant Jihadism Was Respectable”