Who says Russia has no soft power? Well, Robert Amsterdam, for one. He has argued that the Russian invasion of Georgia illustrated its woeful loss of any sort of diplomatic legitimacy. Outside of polite society, it has been a point beaten to death by such brownshirted bloggers as la Russophobe: “Russia's need to rely on […]
Hizbullah's General Conference ended speculations regarding keeping its Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in his current position, following a Fatwa (religious decree) by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei allowing him to maintain his top post. The Kuwaiti daily al–Rai said that the conference is mulling naming senior Hizbullah commander Mustapha Shehadeh to succeed the late […]
Cote D’Ivoire is supposed to have a long-awaited presidential election this year. Elections are, of course, a crucial marker on the way to true liberal democracy in Africa and anywehere. But human rights observers have increasingly expressed concerns that rushing to have an election just for the sake of having an election might prove to […]
On 11/5, Secretary Rice will start a four-day trip to Israel, Jordan, Egypt and Palestine. I guess she's decided the term “lame duck” won't apply to her. Although, I know that I expect to hear about nothing but the presidential election over those four days; we’ll see whether that's the case for her.
DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) ‚ Suspected U.S. missiles hit a house frequented by an Arab militant near the Afghan border Friday and killed 20 people, intelligence officials said, in the latest alleged American attack on targets inside Pakistan. It was unclear if the Arab, identified as Abu Kasha Iraqi, was among those killed in […]
In all the violent incidents that have plagued the people of Afghanistan in its recent history, many have died, but even more have been permanently maimed and disabled. Below is a remarkable video about some of the Afghani disabled and their struggle for rights and services: Because the New York Times, who produced this video, […]
ISLAMABAD: Not only the opposition but also some sympathisers of the PPP-led government in the Senate on Thursday opposed loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). They said that if at all such a step was unavoidable, the matter should be debated threadbare in parliament.However, all that fell on deaf ears as no one from […]
Tasnaq is not the only Armenian party. However, I believe it is the most important one on the Lebanese political scene. MP Hagop Pakradounian strikes me as a different type of politician. “Our alliance with the Free Patriotic Movement in the upcoming elections is ultimate and we don't stab our ally in the back.Today thanks […]
WAM, Pakistan , Children begged for food from trucks passing through Pakistan's quake zone Thursday as the death toll rose to 215 and survivors prepared for another frigid night camped out amid wrecked mountain villages. Provincial government minister Zamrak Khan said 215 people died and hospitals were still treating dozens of people who were seriously […]
A treasure from the archive of the Christian Science Monitor detailing women's efforts to persuade the Coalition Provisional Authority to include them. International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IIDEA)'s Global Database of Quotas for Women. Trivia: Rwanda has the world's highest proportion of women in the elected legislature, at 48.8%.
WAM, Pakistan , Soldiers handed out blankets, tents, jackets and sleeping bags to earthquake survivors in the frigid mountains of southwestern Pakistan on Thursday, as a provincial official reported that the death toll had risen to 215. The 6.4 magnitude quake hit an area of Pakistan's Baluchistan province near the Afghan border before dawn Wednesday, […]
WAM, Pakistan (AFP) , Thousands of villagers in southwest Pakistan waited for aid in freezing conditions Thursday after a powerful earthquake that destroyed hundreds of homes and killed at least 215 people. The 6.4-magnitude pre-dawn quake on Wednesday flattened mud-brick houses and triggered landslides in the impoverished province of Baluchistan bordering Afghanistan, killing or injuring […]
… the female ones, anyway, and of course they are in favor. Iraq's Parliament right now is 25.5% female – the US House is 16.8% female, and the Senate 16%. Since the women as a group form a big enough bloc to disrupt the body's work if they make a collective decision to do so, […]
The 50-member Pak-Afghan "jirgagai" or mini-jirga has concluded its session in Islamabad on Tuesday with a call to initiate peace talks with the Taliban, "including all who are involved in the conflict situation". Two committees have been formed, one to ensure that the resolution of the "jirgagai" is implemented, and the other to actually engage […]
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan , Pakistan's government summoned the U.S. ambassador on Wednesday to urge an immediate halt to missile strikes on suspected militant hide-outs near the Afghan border. Missile strikes have killed at least two senior al-Qaida commanders in Pakistan, putting some pressure on extremist groups accused of planning attacks in Afghanistan ‚ and perhaps terror […]