Recently came across this blog, Humble Musings, which touches a lot on women's issues in the Middle East (and other issues germane to this blog, as well as other interesting pieces). We don't seem to get a lot of time to talk about these issues on this page, what with the author's particular obsessions, so […]
No matter how advanced our human civilization becomes, creating and then depending on such things as the Internet and cell phones, life for all humans still comes down to one thing, WATER. Central Asia's historically harsh winter this past year has put tremendous strains on all parts of life in the region, from households to […]
Whatever the Israelis offer, Syria won't give up its alliance with Iran, which allows it to punch above its weight in the region said Jonathan Spyer. What else is new? Every so often Assad repeats the same old, same old. The alliance with Iran is Syria's upper hand. It has Hizballah and the Palestinian […]
At the Council on Foreign Relations Andrew Meldrum, a Nieman fellow at Harvard University and former Zimbabwe correspondent for the Guardian, discusses (via podcast) the Zimbabwe crisis and South Africa's role in it.
As complex as the situation is in Zimbabwe, we do know that there will be a runoff election. President Robert Mugabe has accepted the results and is preparing for the runoff. His opponent, Morgan Tsvangirai, however, appears to maintain his view that a runoff is invalid and that he won the count outright. He may […]
I would like to think that I have been as active a voice about the crisis in Zimbabwe and as critical toward Robert Mugabe as anyone writing over the past few years. And yet moral outrage is not a sufficient stance to take to write effectively about Zim, even if a soupcon of outrage may […]
For all you lucky readers I have a present…Press Conference reports from US State Department officials about ongoing relations with Central Asia! Calm down please. Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, Pamela Spratlen (Photo, left) recently made diplomatic visits to Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan and in each destination held a press conference. In Bishkek, she participated in what […]
And no, the title isn't some kind of National Review fantasy about the links between public broadcasting and Evildoers, but rather about a segment on NPR this morning regarding the State Department's annual report on terrorism. The guest was Ambassador Dell Dailey, who talked at length about foreign fighters in Iraq returning home. We’ve discussed […]
On April 21st I discussed Turkmenistan-EU's growing energy supply relations, specifically in regards to the building of the Nabucco and Trans-Caspian Pipelines, and yesterday I dropped you a quick article about a recent Memo of Understanding (MoU) between Turkmenistan and India regarding oil and gas cooperation. I have been wanting to discuss India's growing role […]
Jacob Zuma's reputation appears to be enjoying a fairly significant renaissance. He has even made Time magazine's list of the “100 Most Influential People,” an irredeemably silly exercise that nonetheless is an indicator of Zuma's rise as a potentially serious player not only in South African politics, but perhaps continent-wide and globally. Now if only […]
As a follow-up to yesterday's post on press freedom I would encourage you to read Guy Berger's column, “Role Models for a Free Press,” in the Mail & Guardian. A free and open media does not just happen naturally, as events across the globe sadly show on a regular basis and as Berger reveals in […]
The Arab League from its headquarters in Cairo backed a plan by Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri to hold a national reconciliation dialogue to end the political crisis in Beirut. A delegation from the 22-member Arab League plans to visit Lebanon to start a national dialogue with Berri and members of the Lebanese opposition groups […]
The United States military, targeting al Qaeda militants, has killed at least ten in a bombing mission in the town of Dusamareb. Among those apparently killed was Aden Hashi Ayro, military commander of al-Shabab, the military wing of an Islamist insurgent organization tied to al Qaeda.
Leaked results from Zimbabwe indicate that Morgan Tsvangirai and the Movement for Democratic Change outpolled President Robert Mugabe and ZANU-PF by 47% to 43% in last month's election. If these results hold the stage will be set for the expected runoff between Mugabe and Tsvangirai. And if they do hold, Tsvangirai will be unable reasonably to […]
Current crime and fears of crime, coupled with the contentiousness of the apartheid past (and the opposition to it) seem to be encouraging a debate over the role of guns in South African society. Fikile-Ntsikelelo Moya explores the questions involved in this column at the Mail & Guardian.