Tag Archives: syria

By Ramzy Baroud No matter how one attempts to wrangle with the so-called ‘Islamic State’ (IS) rise in Iraq and Syria, desperately seeking any political or other context that would validate the movement as an explainable historical circumstance, things refuse to add up. Not only is IS to a degree an alien movement in the larger body politic of the …

The Syrian Feminist Lobby strongly condemns the UN Special Envoy Steffan De Mistura’s statement saying that Bashar Assad is part of “the solution” in Syria. The Syrian Feminist Lobby stresses the importance and urgency to maintain the due course of the internationally agreed upon Geneva Communiqué, which requires the establishment of a transitional governing body on the basis of mutual …

Reporters Without Borders released the annual World Press Freedom Index, which ranks 180 countries performance according to criteria including media independence, legislative framework and the level of censorship prevailing in the country, and the infrastructure environment in which the media operate. The index highlights the worldwide deterioration in freedom of information in 2014 because of wars, the growing non-state actors …

Finding Fateh By Joobin Bekhrad- Reorient ‘Hello, can you hear me?’ I say, raising my voice a pitch, surmising our connection has been lost after a lengthy pause. I take another sip of tepid, bitter coffee from a stained white mug. ‘… Yes, I can hear you …’ comes the shaky, distorted voice on the other end of the line. …

The UN on Thursday requested for $8.4 billion so that it can provide emergency aid and more permanent help to almost 18 million people in Syria and its neighbors affected by the Syrian civil war. The appeal includes funding for shelter, food, humanitarian aid and developmental support. UN agencies had initially asked for$2.9 billion to help 12.2 million people in …

Since May, over 22 people have left Switzerland to fight abroad as foreign militants, including eight in the past two weeks, Switzerland’s Federal Intelligence Service (FIS), said on Monday. According to the agency, 61 Swiss nationals have left to fight overseas since 2001, including 37 who left to Iraq and Syria, and 25 to Somalia, Yemen, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The …

Canada on Monday closed its embassy in Cairo to civilians, citing security reasons but providing very little details about a specific threat. It follows Britain, which shut down its embassy to the public on Sunday. The move comes as militant attacks in Egypt continue to be on the rise, with extremist group Islamic State (IS) calling for attacks on Westerners …

Airstrikes launched on extremist group Islamic State (IS) by the global coalition led by the US have had no impact, Syrian President Bashar Assad said, despite members of the offensive making claims of winning the fight. “You can’t end terrorism with aerial strikes. Troops on the ground that know the land and can react are essential. That is why there …

The US on Monday ruled out plans to create a no-fly zone along the Syria-Turkey border, brushing aside rumors that it is in talks with Turkey about creating a safe haven for refugees. According to US President Barack Obama’s spokesman Josh Earnest, the US was “open to discussing a range of options with the Turks” but that a no-fly zone …

The Canadian government is working to determine the credibility of reports about a Canadian citizen that was allegedly captured by extremists in Syria. The Jerusalem post, citing websites “known to be close” to extremist group Islamic State (IS), reported on Sunday that Canadian Gill Rosenberg, who had reportedly joined Kurdish fighters, was captured by the extremists. However, CBC reported a …