middle east

Inching Toward Compromise in the Middle East

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 10:19:17 -0400

by Ira Chernus

I was gliding along the Massachusetts Turnpike, enjoying a summer Sunday in the Berkshires, thinking I was on vacation, when I got an urgent cell phone call from a news anchor at one of the nation's most progressive radio stations. "Will you comment on today's news from Israel?" he asked.

"What news?" I was on vacation from the world and its problems.

Countries 'Wasting Money and Blood' in Afghanistan

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:55:35 -0400

by Sophia Gardner

A politician who has been described as "the bravest woman in Afghanistan" says that military intervention is not the way to find democracy in the war-torn county.

Malalai Joya gained international attention for standing before Afghanistan's constitutional grand assembly and accusing her country's leaders of war crimes, human rights violations and supporting the Taliban.

She spent most of her childhood in refugee camps and as a young woman she worked as a women's rights activist under the Taliban.

Netanyahu Speaks; The Israel-Palestine Ball Remains in Obama's Court

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:29:14 -0400

by Phyllis Bennis

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu threw a rhetorical bone to President Obama in his much anticipated speech on June 14, when he used the term "Palestinian state." But he conceded nothing of substance, reiterating Israel's continuing rejection of real Palestinian statehood, independence, sovereignty, and self-determination.

Obama Fails to Prioritize Human Rights on Middle East Trip

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 09:11:31 -0400

by Stephen Zunes

President Barack Obama's speech in Cairo to the Muslim world marked a welcome departure from the Bush administration's confrontational approach. Yet many Arabs and Muslims have expressed frustration that he failed to use this opportunity to call on the autocratic Saudi and Egyptian leaders with whom he had visited on his Middle Eastern trip to end their repression and open up their corrupt and tightly controlled political systems.

Turning Point?

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:27:31 -0400

by Noam Chomsky

The Obama-Netanyahu-Abbas meetings in May, followed by Obama's speech in Cairo, have been widely interpreted as a turning point in US Middle East policy, leading to consternation in some quarters, exuberance in others. Fairly typical is Middle East analyst Dan Fromkin of the Washington Post, who sees "signs Obama will promote a new regional peace initiative for the Middle East, much like the one championed by Jordan's King Abdullah... [and also] the first distinct signs that Obama is willing to play hardball with Israel." (WP, May 29).

Changing the Discourse: First Step Toward Changing the Policy?

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:37:20 -0400

by Phyllis Bennis

President Barack Obama's much-anticipated Cairo speech reflected a significant shift away from the ideological framework of militarism and unilateralism that shaped the Bush administration's war-based policy toward the Arab and Muslim worlds.

Hold Your Applause

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:12:43 -0400

by Chris Hedges

Did they play Barack Obama's speech to the Muslim world in the prison corridors of Abu Ghraib, Bagram air base, Guantanamo or the dozens of secret sites where we hold thousands of Muslims around the world? Did it echo off the walls of the crowded morgues filled with the mutilated bodies of the Muslim dead in Baghdad or Kabul? Was it broadcast from the tops of minarets in the villages and towns decimated by U.S. iron fragmentation bombs?

We Wanted a World Leader. We Saw Only a US President

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 10:54:04 -0400

by Ahdaf Soueif

This is hard. It's hard because we so need to believe that Obama is about change, that he's wise, that he's good, that he has the interests of the world – rather than just the interests of the United States – at heart.

Obama in Cairo: A Bush in Sheep's Clothing?

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:10:17 -0400

by Ali Abunimah

Once you strip away the mujamalat - the courtesies exchanged between guest and host - the substance of President Obama's speech in Cairo indicates there is likely to be little real change in US policy. It is not necessary to divine Obama's intentions - he may be utterly sincere and I believe he is. It is his analysis and prescriptions that in most regards maintain flawed American policies intact.

Most Arabs Know This Speech Will Make Little Difference

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 08:56:43 -0400

by Robert Fisk

More and more, it looks like the same old melody that Bush's lads used to sing. We're not against the Muslim world. In fact, we are positively for it. We want you to have democracy, up to a point. We love Arab "moderates" and we want to reach out to you and be your friends. Sorry about Iraq. And sorry - again, up to a point - about Afghanistan and we do hope that you understand why we've got to have a little "surge" in Helmand among all those Muslim villages with their paper-thin walls. And yes, we've made mistakes.