The Lebanese government is on the verge of collapse, as Hezbollah pulled out of the Hariri-led coalition and is poised to become a faction in the ruling party, potentially putting Israel at risk for increased terror activity in the north. However, in Tunisia-inspired protests, the Egyptian people are now up in arms against President Hosni […]
By Emad Mekay Thousands of Egyptians are demonstrating across the country as I write this in what increasingly looks like an unprecedented unrest in size and ferocity. The protests saw factory workers, university professors, political activists and even women and teenage girls braving riots police and taking to the streets across the country. Many were […]
I had written quite critically on the charges that Grameen Bank founder Dr. Md. Yunus had engaged in accounting impropriety with development aid funds. Grameen Bank recently faced down allegations and was cleared of any wrong-doing. At the time I had written that this mishap provided an opportunity for stakeholders in the micro-finance industry to […]
According to a recent article by Charles Wallace, posted on the Daily Finance (Currency Wars: How Ben Bernanke Outsmarted China), the U.S. has already taken the first ‘shot’ of the U.S.-China – often proclaimed, never materializing – trade war. Mr. Wallace reported that Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s program of quantitative easing is targeting the Chinese […]
Though he might well trot about in handmade footwear, President Karzai has been flip-flopping, first moving away from his backers and back into the fold when promises to coddle his administration recently fell to strong remonstrations and anger within the diplomatic circles in Kabul. First, citing charges of election fraud, he promised that he won’t […]
The following piece was written by MICHAEL ADLER in Istanbul and published by Tehran Bureau on 23 JAN 2011 Why did talks between Iran and the world’s six major powers in Istanbul January 21-22 fail to produce any agreement or significant movement toward a compromise? The talks deadlocked after Iran imposed two preconditions on any […]
Last week Adam Hochschild reminded us that one of the great “what ifs” in post-World War II history is what might have happened had Patrice Lumumba lived to lead the newly independent Belgian Congo. Instead, he was killed by his rivals who took control, and were eventually supplanted in another coup four years later and […]
People in South Sudan continue to celebrate the recent vote that apparently is running 99-1 for secession. But the vote and the concomitant celebrations should be seen as a beginning point and not an endpoint. Nothing from here on out will be quite so morally or politically simple as the act of going to the […]
A few links to share before lights out (it is currently 2:44 am Damascus time) In a follow-up to my earlier post on Lebanon, Beirut saw demonstrations in support of Saad Hariri break out Monday evening and An-Nahar is reporting that the protests have spread across Lebanon. The An-Nahar story also quotes US officials as […]
My colleagues over at the Global Food Security blog write today about a new African Union initiative known as the “African Food Basket” that aims to make African countries food secure five years from now. The author of the post points out that achieving food security has been difficult in recent years, with drought and economic […]
Could someone please tell me how THIS GUY has become the “decider” in Lebanese politics? Anyway, as I’m sure you know Lebanon has been going through some issues lately. Obviously Syria is deeply involved so I will do my best to discuss the Syrian side of events while trying not to get too caught up […]
I had the privilege on Friday of attending a Pacific Council on International Policy luncheon discussion with US Deputy Secretary of State James B. Steinberg, a thoughtful and intelligent State Department appointee who holds the position of Hillary Clinton’s top deputy. In the discussion a guest asked the Deputy Secretary an interesting question: why did […]
When Lenin’s body was still warm, a special emergency committee was formed to keep him “more alive than the living”, in the words of Mayakovsky. It was called the Immortalisation Commission. The Soviet Union’s top scientists were assembled to work against all odds. As one remarked, when Lenin was shown to them, “the left hand […]
The latest democratic movement taking place in Tunisia has already cost the presidency to long timer Mr. Ben Ali, but now is exemplifying the limit of EU power and influence in times of crisis. Following Mr. Ben Ali’s departure caused by massive strikes and civil unrests against his power and regime, the EU and other […]
Indirectly we’ve talked about immigration repeatedly on this blog. I commented on the right-wing, anti-Islam reaction in a number of European states, it again played a role in my post on Tunisia and the tepid lack of European support for its democratization. Finally, as my co-blogger pointed out the other day: the overall immigration population […]