Steve Royston

‘The Devil’s Fire’: Syria’s Unique Blend of Pure Horror

‘The Devil’s Fire’: Syria’s Unique Blend of Pure Horror

STEVE ROYSTON: The situation in Syria is so desperate, so serious and so wide-ranging that it has the potential to affect every individual living in the region

 Juan Cole

‘Domestic Issue Deflection?’ Morsi’s Call for Syrian Action

‘Domestic Issue Deflection?’ Morsi’s Call for Syrian Action

JUAN COLE: President Morsi’s called for a no-fly zone over Syria. He is, though, facing a raft of serious issues at home

 Tabsir

“Game Changer”: Is This The Phrase That Will Haunt Obama?

“Game Changer”: Is This The Phrase That Will Haunt Obama?

DANIEL M. VARISCO: For George W. Bush the phrase was ‘Mission Accomplished’. For his successor there could be another phrase that defines his foreign affair policy

 Mich Cafe

‘Help Now’: Syrian Refugee Crisis ‘Unprecedented In Its Scope’

‘Help Now’: Syrian Refugee Crisis ‘Unprecedented In Its Scope’

MICH CAFE: If Americans diverted the money they spent in a month on ice-cream to the UN Syrian refugee fund the target would be met.

 Juan Cole

Clinton Tries To Set Up Obama As ‘Patsy to The Hawks’

Clinton Tries To Set Up Obama As ‘Patsy to The Hawks’

JUAN COLE: Bill Clinton has criticised President Obama for not providing stronger military support for the Syrian opposition. His own record on military intervention isn’t so good.

 Ramzy Baroud

Sunni vs Shia: This Sectarianism Is Destroying Arab Identity

Sunni vs Shia: This Sectarianism Is Destroying Arab Identity

RAMZY BAROUD: Any possibility of a Pan Arab national identity is being destroyed each day that people are being butchered in the name of a particular sect

 Juan Cole

Syria Is A Microcosm of All The Issues Facing Region

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

 Mondoweiss

‘Sauce, Goose, Gander’: Political vs Family Ties in Public Debate

‘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?

 Syria News Wire

“We Win or Die”: Syrian Conflict Is a Matter of Existence

“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.

 Juan Cole

Obama Telephones Putin: Regional Implications of Boston

Obama Telephones Putin: Regional Implications of Boston

JUAN COLE: It’s clear that reverberations from the Boston bombings will spread to Chechnya and beyond. How will it impact the U.S view of Syria?

 Mich Cafe

Syrian Refugee And Family Receive Kindness of Strangers

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

 Common Ground News Service

Syria’s ‘Florence Nightingales’: U.S Medics Go To Front

Syria’s ‘Florence Nightingales’: U.S Medics Go To Front

KIRAN ANSARI, CGNEWS: Tired of watching the horror unveil on television a group of American medics have decided to take direct action

 Ramzy Baroud

Turkey’s Dilemma: Fence-Sitting Not A Viable Option

Turkey’s Dilemma: Fence-Sitting Not A Viable Option

'Confused’ may be an appropriate term to describe Turkey’s current foreign policy in the Middle East and Israel in particular. The source of that confusion - aside from the appalling violence in Syria and earlier in Libya – is Turkey’s own mistakes.

RAMZY BAROUD: Turkey’s attempt to re-position itself as a fulcrum between East and West has come unstuck…

 Francis Matthew

Tangled: The CIA’s Confused Middle East Web

Tangled: The CIA’s Confused Middle East Web

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has got itself into the confused position of fighting Sunni fighters in Iraq, but supporting some of them in Syria.

FRANCIS MATTHEW: The CIA is in the position of fighting Sunni fighters in Iraq, but supporting them in Syria.

 James M. Dorsey

Divide, Conquer: Attack on Egypt’s ‘Ultras’ Imminent

Divide, Conquer: Attack on Egypt’s ‘Ultras’ Imminent

JAMES M DORSEY: There appears to be a concerted plan by the Egyptian judiciary and security forces to confront militant football fans. It may, though, backfire.

 Editor, MEP

Finding Love on the Front Line

It has been called a sniper's war, as fighters look for their enemy from rooftops, from behind the cover of fragile walls, through dug-out holes, and down telescopic sights.

Abu Jaffar has now recovered from his injuries and is now the leader of a small brigade in Aleppo city. The experience brought the two together, and a few months later they were married – on the frontline.

 Francis Matthew

Syria US Foreign Policy: Assad Seizing Opportunity

Syria US Foreign Policy: Assad Seizing Opportunity

FRANCIS MATTHEW: The problem with this approach is that by going gently, it allows Al Assad to think that he might still win by fighting. And it also places a huge strain on the opposition not ready to fight a long war of attrition.

 Ramzy Baroud

Turkey and Israel: A Thaw’s In the Air

Turkey and Israel: A Thaw’s In the Air

RAMZY BAROUD: There are unmistakeable signs that the atmosphere between Turkey and Israel is becoming distinctly warmer

 Mich Cafe

Zeinab and Iyad: Love Across the Syrian Divide

Zeinab and Iyad: Love Across the Syrian Divide

MICH CAFE: They met, fell in love and got married. A simple story but not so simple when you’re on two sides of a sectarian divide in the midst of a civil war

 Mich Cafe

‘Charlie’ Had His ‘Angels’, Now Assad Has ‘Lionesses’

‘Charlie’ Had His ‘Angels’, Now Assad Has ‘Lionesses’

MICH CAFE: It seems to be a common theme among Arab dictators – recruiting women to front up the military in your regime.