US President Barack Obama’s call for an “immediate, unconditional” humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza has strained Israeli-US ties and put Israeli Prime Minister in a spot of bother among hardliners in his government. According to analysts, Obama’s call for a ceasefire on Sunday was seen as an ultimatum to Netanyahu, as the death toll due to the Israeli violence in Gaza …
أكمل القراءة »أرشيف الوسم : government
Scholars and academics sign open letter condemning Israeli assault on Gaza
Nearly 1,500 academics all over the world and rectors from 111 Turkish universities have signed an open letter condemning the actions of the Israeli government in Gaza. The letter also appeals to Israeli academics to speak out against their government. “We have been asked by our academic colleagues in Gaza – whose universities have been destroyed a number of times …
أكمل القراءة »Fraser Institute: Arab Spring Reforms Remain Ineffectual Due to Lack of Economic Freedom
TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwired – July 22, 2014) – Despite the promise of the Arab Spring, most nations in the region have failed to reform their economies, largely leaving elite privilege in place, finds a new essay released today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank. The essay,Institutions and Economic, Political, and Civil Liberty in the Arab World, …
أكمل القراءة »Israel’s Operation Protective Edge: Why now?
Another Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip; it’s not the first and won’t be the last if the political equation in the region does not change. With the previous offensives launched by Israel on Gaza, several military goals were declared. This time, “Operation Protective Edge” comes within a different context, with new domestic, regional and international factors at play. …
أكمل القراءة »Chilean government suspends trade agreement with Israel in protest of Gaza assault
On Thursday, the Chilean government suspended its Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiation with Israel, and said that it was considering withdrawing its ambassador to Israel, protesting against the Israeli assault on Gaza Strip. The Palestinian-Chilean parliamentary group, after meeting with ChileanMinister of Foreign Affairs Heraldo Munoz, said that the Chilean government will seek the condemnation of Israel by the UN …
أكمل القراءة »The Canadian government could never see Israel’s hypocrisy, now it can’t see its own
The Canadian government’s stance towards Israel is akin to that of an irresponsible mother’s to her bratty child – the mother cannot, or simply choose not to, see her child’s transgressions. Israel’s numerous human rights violations however, are not mischievous pranks born out of the mind of an idle child. They are far more malicious in intent, and more significantly, …
أكمل القراءة »Iraq: rights group alleges campaign of mass murder committed against Sunni prisoners
International rights group Human Rights Watch said that Iraq’s security forces and militia aligned with the government seem to have illegally executed at least 255 Sunni prisoners in six Iraqi villages and cities since June 9th, 2014. Most of Iraqi militia and security forces are Shiites. According to the rights group, in all cases but one, the executions took place …
أكمل القراءة »Iraq: Senior cleric supports Maliki’s removal
The ouster of Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki could be an “important part” of the solution to the political crisis in Iraq, a spokesman for top Shi’ite cleric Grand Ayatollah Bashir al-Najafi said. This is the first time any of the revered Shi’ite clerics in the nation have explicitly called for Maliki’s removal, and is one of several recent announcements …
أكمل القراءة »Libya: Authorities considering international help to deal with violence
The Libyan government on Tuesday said that it was considering asking for international help to restore security in the country, as fighting between rival militia near Tripoli airport has pushed the country towards a civil war. Liberal and hard-line militiamen have been locked in a lethal power struggle, and the country’s main airport, which was closed for security reasons on …
أكمل القراءة »Iraq: parliament speaker elected, security forces attempt push on Tikrit
On Tuesday, the sharply-divided Iraqi parliament elected its speaker and moved that much closer to forming a new government, which has already been delayed for a while. Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s top Shi’ite cleric, and several world powers, had pressured Iraqi MPs to set their differences aside and work together as they face a militant offensive which has overrun …
أكمل القراءة »