November 22, 2005
Israel to Reportedly Get New Submarines
As Iran’s Manhattan Project moves along, and with little substantive opposition from the international community, it appears Israel is wisely taking some additional precautions: According to German reports, Israel is acquiring another two German Dolphin class submarines. The subs may… Posted by Jeff on 2005 11: Read more… | Comments (0)
November 18, 2005
New Poll Out of Jordan
It looks like our prediction was somewhat correct, although it is likely still too early to determine whether this is a short-term or long-term trend: Almost two thirds of Jordanians have changed their views of al Qaeda for the worse… Posted by Jeff on 2005 11: Read more… | Comments (2)
November 16, 2005
Democratic Strides in the UAE?
This certainly sounds like good news (via TigerHawk): A major declaration on political reforms in the UAE is expected to be announced by President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan “within months”, it has been revealed. A highly… Posted by Jeff on 2005 11: Read more… | Comments (0)
November 14, 2005
Jail Sentence for Bible Discussion in Saudi Arabia
Be warned that praising Jews and discussing the bible in Saudi Arabia can result in a prison sentence and several hundred lashings: A court sentenced a teacher to 40 months in prison and 750 lashes for “mocking religion” after he… Posted by Jeff on 2005 11: Read more… | Comments (0)
November 10, 2005
Terrorist Attacks in Jordan
It will be interesting to see if the terrorist attacks that predominantly killed Jordanian Muslims will effect the support of suicide bombers among Jordanians. I wager that it will and this is why. In a poll taken in portions of… Posted by Jeff on 2005 11: Read more… | Comments (3)
October 27, 2005
Russia to Protect Syria
It is business as usual on the United Nations Security Council for Russia: Russia will do everything to prevent sanctions being imposed against Syria, a spokesman for Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, amid pressure on Syria in a probe of… Posted by Jeff on 2005 10:Read more… | Comments (0)
October 23, 2005
Harari’s killers’ names Dropped in Final Edit
Steve Schippert, at the Word Unheard has more…. Posted by Brad on 2005 10: Read more… | Comments (0)
October 21, 2005
Syria and Lebanese Security Services Involved With Harari’s Assassination
AP The decision to assassinate Hariri “could not have been taken without the approval of top-ranked Syrian security officials and could not have been further organized without the collusion of their counterparts in the Lebanese security services,” the report said…. Posted by Brad on 2005 10: Read more… | Comments (1)
September 20, 2005
More Progress in MiddleEast
More good news from the Middle East as another Muslim nation softens its stance towards Israel: Bahrain announced to the United States recently that it will rescind its economic boycott of Israel. A message sent by Bahrain’s treasurer, Ahmed bin… Posted by Jeff on 2005 09: Read more… | Comments (0)
September 19, 2005
Syria’s Isolation to Grow
The United States is allegedly set to increase the pressure on the Syrian dictatorship by bolstering the international position of Lebanon: US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will convene a multilateral meeting on Lebanon here in a bid to broaden… Posted by Jeff on 2005 09:Read more… | Comments (0)
September 02, 2005
Israel Pakistan Hold Talks
The shake-up of the status quo in the Muslim world continues to reap dividends, this time on the political front: The foreign ministers of Pakistan and Israel have for the first time held publicly acknowledged talks. After the talks Pakistan’s… Posted by Jeff on 2005 09: Read more… | Comments (0)
June 21, 2005
Lebanon Breaks Free, Syria Strikes Back
A day after Lebanon took a giant step towards joining the small group of Middle East democracies, while sending a message to their former occupiers in Damascus, Syria responded in usual fashion: A bomb blast killed a politician who was… Posted by Jeff on 2005 06: Read more… | Comments (0)
June 09, 2005
Regime Change Syria
In the aftermath of the forced withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon, and while Syria continues to actively support the Iraq “insurgency,” the Bush administration has begun to make regime change in Syria official policy of the United States: President… Posted by Jeff on 2005 06: Read more… | Comments (0)
June 01, 2005
Missed This; I Think We All Did
But Wretchard caught it, thankfully, over at the Belmontclub. Saad Hariri, the son of the dead former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, has swept parliamentary elections in the capital Beirut, according to official results announced today. The elections were the country’s… Posted by Brad on 2005 06: Read more… | Comments (0)
May 08, 2005
Latin America & the Greater Middle East to Unite
The Washington Times repots that both the U.S. and Israel are concerned about a regional meeting between Latin American and Middle East leaders set to take place this week. Here is an excerpt of the situation: Brazil will host a… Posted by Jeff on 2005 05: Read more… | Comments (0)
April 11, 2005
Not All Torture is Reported Equally (Exhibit B)
The Association for Human Rights reported over the weekend that Syrian security forces tortured 13 people to death last year. Presumably, Abu Ghraib style media coverage of this situation is right around the corner…… Posted by GPR on 2005 04: Read more… | Comments (1)
March 29, 2005
Preparing For Life After Assad?
AFP reports that the U.S. State Department has confirmed meeting with Syrian dissidents based in the United States. State Department officials deny the meeting represents an indication the U.S. is planning for the demise of Syrian “President” Bashar Assad despite…Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (0)
March 12, 2005
Sending a Message?
TigerHawk has come across some very interesting information via Stratfor indicating that the United States is sending three carrier groups to the Middle East. Be sure to read about this development here, and remember that France has reportedly moved a… Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (1)
March 08, 2005
The Dominos Are Wobbling: Exhibit E
Women protested in Kuwait yesterday to demand greater rights (via: LGF): Around 500 Kuwaiti activists, mostly women, have demonstrated outside parliament to demand female suffrage amidst tensions in the Gulf Arab state over a government drive to grant women political…Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (0)
March 07, 2005
Siding with the Despotic
The AP reports that terrorist group Hezbollah (which prior to September 11th was the foreign terrorist group with the most American blood on its hands) has decided to side with their Syrian benefactors in the dispute over Syria’s thirty year… Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (0)
March 04, 2005
EU Terrorist Designation Would “Destroy” Hezbollah
With all the euphoria over common ground between the U.S. and the EU on Syria’s need to end their occupation of Lebanon, it is easy to forget France refuses to perform a simple and seemingly commonsense function that would greatly… Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (0)
March 02, 2005
The Dominos Are Wobbling: Exhibit D
The Washington Times reports that the “Cedar Revolution” in Lebanon may be reaping benefits next door in Syria: Demonstrations that brought down the government of neighboring Lebanon on Monday inspired Syria’s intellectuals and activists to issue new calls yesterday for… Posted by GPR on 2005 03: Read more… | Comments (0)
February 28, 2005
Lebanese Defy Protest Ban
Protesters wave Lebanese flags in central Beirut, Lebanon, Monday Feb. 28, 2005. In a show of mass support for the opposition in Monday’s parliamentary debate, About 10,000 people defied a protest ban and demonstrated calling for Syria to withdraw… Posted by GPR on 2005 02:Read more… | Comments (0)
February 27, 2005
The Dominos Are Wobbling: Exhibit C
The “regional election fever” spreading through the Arab world may soon hit the United Arab Emirates (UAE). An important council in the country has officially endorsed the concept of democratic elections: Academics and members of the appointed consultative council in…Posted by GPR on 2005 02: Read more… | Comments (0)
February 26, 2005
The Dominos Are Wobbling: Exhibit B
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced today that he has ordered the immediate implementation of democratic reforms in Egypt. But most importantly, he will now permit more than one candidate to run for President: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Saturday ordered… Posted by GPR on 2005 02: Read more… | Comments (0)
February 22, 2005
World is Skeptical of Bush’s Liberal Democracy Agenda
The AP recently commissioned a poll (predominately focusing on Europe) which sought to determine opinions on President Bush’s aggressive push for democracy in the Middle East. The strong opposition to such an effort was even surprising to us, because it… Posted by GPR on 2005 02: Read more… | Comments (2)
February 21, 2005
The Dominos Are Wobbling
Coinciding with the anti-Syrian occupation protests in Lebanon today (discussed in the entry directly below), the BBC reports that anti-government protests also took place earlier today in Cairo, Egypt: Hundreds of protesters have staged a demonstration against Egyptian President Hosni… Posted by GPR on 2005 02: Read more… | Comments (1)
The Law of Unintended Consequences
While it still remains unclear who was behind the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri (possible culprits range from Syria to al Qaeda), it is clear the Lebanese have determined that Hariri’s death offers an opportunity to end… Posted by GPR on 2005 02:Read more… | Comments (0)
January 21, 2005
Defending Syria
Continuing Russia’s recent trend of supporting state sponsors of terror (reference their enabling of Iran’s clandestine nuclear program), Russian officials came to the defense of Syria amidst the Bush Administration stating (the obvious) that Syria has ties to terrorism. At…Posted by GPR on 2005 01: Read more… | Comments (0)
November 03, 2004
Death in the UAE
The president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan died yesterday after reports had him incapacitated for approximately one month. The Associated Press reports: The president of the United Arab Emirates, who helped forge a federation… Posted by GPR on 2004 11: Read more…
