Skype, Dissent and MERS: Concerns for Saudi Authorities
STEVE ROYSTON: Protecting telco operators revenues, internal dissent, labour rights and a dangerous virus. Difficult times for the Saudi authorities
‘Two State Solution? No Chance!’ Israeli Minister Speaks Out
MONDOWEISS: ‘We do whatever we want, whenever we want’. Danny Danon injects a bit of plain speaking into the debate about the future, or not, of Palestine.
Brutality Back-Fires: Arab Spring’s Lesson for Erdogan
JAMES M. DORSEY: Once again battle-hardened football fans are taking the lead in confronting a regime. We’ve been here before.
Syria Is A Microcosm of All The Issues Facing Region
GREGORY HARMS, INFORMED COMMENT: The conflict in Syria contains all of the elements that have made the Middle East a bubbling pot for the last century
Algerian Revolt: Surge in Soccer-Related Violence A Signal
JAMES M. DORSEY: Violent protest attending soccer matches has proven to be a reliable indicator of an imminent popular revolt in the Arab World. Algeria’s next then.
Thomas Friedman in Yemen: ‘An Innocent Abroad’?
DANIEL M. VARISCO: I felt the ghost of Mark Twain speaking to me as I read about Tom Friedman’s latest adventures in Yemen.
‘Sauce, Goose, Gander’: Political vs Family Ties in Public Debate
PHILIP WEISS, CGNEWS: Josh Landis’s marriage to a Syrian Alawite was judged fair game in a discussion on his views on the political situation. Why only him?
The History of Palestine: ‘We Must Seize Our Narrative’
RAMZY BAROUD: Palestine’s history has traditionally been told through the prism of an accepted Israeli or Western narrative. It’s time for Palestinians to tell their own story.
Brotherhood’s Battle With Judiciary: ‘A Matter of Revenge’
JUAN COLE: The Muslim Brotherhood’s history with the Egyptian judiciary is defining how they are working, or not, with them today.
Keeping the Balance: Qatar’s Rulers Walk Tightrope
DAVID ROBERTS: Qatar’s been punching above its weight in foreign affairs but its rulers are mindful of the voices of its small local population
“We Win or Die”: Syrian Conflict Is a Matter of Existence
SYRIA NEWS WIRE: A new documentary examines both sides of the conflict through the eyes of its combatants. It’s a grim story.
Syrian Refugee And Family Receive Kindness of Strangers
MICH CAFE: It’s a touching story that has captured hearts around the world – the story of one woman and her family’s flight from Syria to Turkey
Massacres: The Line That Leads from Deir Yassin To Gaza
RAMZY BAROUD: The telling of Palestine’s recent massacres has generally been in the hands of Israeli writers and historians. Time for a change
Boston Cool: Measured Response Required
So Boston, it seems, has had its 9/11. Not on the scale of the New York attacks, of course. But the shock will be almost as deep.
STEVE ROYSTON: So Boston, it seems, has had its 9/11. Not on the scale of the New York attacks, of course. But the shock will be almost as deep.
‘Come and See A Skeleton’: Response to Issawi’s Invite
IRA GLUNTS, MONDOWEISS: The Palestinian hunger striker Samer Issawi sent a letter to prominent Israelis inviting them to see him in prison. There have been radically different responses.
Egypt Division = Ongoing Despair in Gaza
RAMZY BAROUD: It seemed unthinkable a Muslim Brotherhood government could impose worse conditions on Gaza than Mubarak.
From Arab Awakening to ‘Political Stupor’
The Arab world is suffering from a lack of secular inspiration. There are plenty of leaders who find their political language in religion, but no secular leader or thinker is inspiring the crowds all over the Middle East as happened a generation ago.
FRANCIS MATTHEW: The Arab world is suffering from a lack of secular inspiration: No secular leader or thinker is inspiring the crowds.
Reassessing Margaret Thatcher, 1925 – 2013
I breathed a sigh of relief when Margaret Thatcher resigned as Prime Minister in 1991. She was a divisive politician, and I found myself on the anti-Thatcher side of the divide.
STEVE ROYSTON: Margaret Thatcher was a divisive politician, and I found myself on the anti-Thatcher side of the divide.
Applying ‘The Rumsfeld Test’ on the Kingdom
DAVID ROBERTS: Reading the runes of Saudi Arabia’s possible succession is an art, a science and a mystery wrapped in one.
The Fine Art of Political Insult, Bahrain-Style
STEVE ROYSTON: Yet another lively debate in the Bahraini parliament this week and the insults were running thick and fast. They follow in a long line distinguished (or not!) company
