Tag: obama

Egyptians: ‘Obama Talks Democracy, Endorses Dictatorship’

CAIRO, Jun 5 (IPS) — Egyptian officials are lining up to praise U.S. President Barack Obama’s address to the Islamic world delivered in Cairo Thursday. But local campaigners for political reform say the speech was disappointingly light on the issues of democracy and human rights. "Obama spoke very briefly and in very general terms on … Continue reading “Egyptians: ‘Obama Talks Democracy, Endorses Dictatorship’”

Obama’s Cairo Speech Widely Hailed at Home

U.S. President Barack Obama’s historic speech in Cairo Thursday elicited broad approval from around the U.S., with the notable exception of the neoconservative right. Obama’s speech itself was largely uncontroversial. Broad in scope and thin on policy specifics, Obama frankly acknowledged a troubled history that has manifested itself in today’s anti-Western Muslim extremism. But rather … Continue reading “Obama’s Cairo Speech Widely Hailed at Home”

Obama Appeals to Muslim World for ‘New Beginning’

In what was perhaps the most widely anticipated speech delivered by a U.S. president abroad in recent memory, Barack Obama Thursday extended a hand to the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims, receiving repeated applause and a standing ovation from the audience at Cairo University in the Egyptian capital. Directed at all Muslims across the globe, the … Continue reading “Obama Appeals to Muslim World for ‘New Beginning’”

Obama Turns the Screws on Israel

JERUSALEM — Air raid sirens wailed out on Tuesday morning and Israelis were asked to go down into bomb shelters as the country engaged in its largest-ever civil defense drill. Israelis remain deeply worried by what they perceive as an existential threat of a possible future all-out missile attack from Iran and its proxies. But … Continue reading “Obama Turns the Screws on Israel”