ISIS Video Shows Execution of 25 Men in Ruins of Syria Amphitheater
A just-released video from ISIS shows militants executing 25 captives in the ruins of a Roman amphitheater in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra. The graphic video begins with images of the Quran, followed by gruesome scenes showing what appears to be the aftermath of fighting, with bodies in the street.
Iraqi Forces Plan Offensive to Retake Ramadi From ISIS
Seven weeks after their frenetic retreat from Ramadi, Iraqi security forces are preparing to mount a counteroffensive in the coming weeks to try to reclaim the pivotal western Iraqi city from the Islamic State, American and Iraqi officials say.
Obama Won’t Play ‘whack-a-mole’ With More U.s. Troops, Wants Iraq to Keep Islamic State Fight Local
President Obama said on a rare visit to the Pentagon Monday that he isn’t planning to send more U.S. troops to Iraq to fight the Islamic State, saying local forces must prevail against the extremist group.
Dark Geopolitics of the Middle East
A third wave of geopolitics has been making its way into Middle East political geography since the end of the Cold War. The first wave began with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire after World War I. The second wave followed World War II, when the European colonial order crumbled.
The Rise of the Islamic State: ISIS and the New Sunni Revolution
Journalist Patrick Cockburn’s first-hand observations and reported conversations with fighters on the ground in Syria and Iraq lend much credibility to his coverage of events in those two countries. In The Rise of Islamic State: ISIS and the New Sunni Revolution, he provides…
Bahrain: the U.S. Makes a Symbolic Gesture of Support for Its Allies
On June 29, State Department spokesman John Kirby announced that the United States had lifted certain holds on security assistance to both the Bahrain Defense Force and Bahrain’s national guard, citing improvement in the area of human rights reform.
A Good Bad Deal?
Sometime after the 1973 war, I remember seeing a cartoon that showed President Anwar el-Sadat lying flat on his back in a boxing ring. The Israeli prime minister, Golda Meir, wearing boxing gloves, was standing over him, with Sadat saying to Meir something like…
While Saudi Arabia Goes to War Abroad, It’s Simmering at Home
To hear Saudi leaders tell it, the primary threat to the kingdom’s stability is the Islamic Republic of Iran. Worried over Washington and Tehran’s slowly improving relationship, Riyadh has projected an increasingly militarized and sectarian foreign policy aimed at countering Iran’s alleged hegemonic aims in the Middle East.
House Starts Its Review of Iran Deal
The US House of Representatives is set to kick off its review of a final nuclear deal with Iran this week following a month of parallel activity in the Senate. vThe Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing July 9 with former George W. Bush…
Which Countries in the Middle East Haven’t Been Hit by Any Daesh Attacks?
In the midst of keeping up with all the Daesh (ISIS) attacks, it’s easy to look over the positive patterns — for one, the states left untouched. A Twitter user uploaded this map that showed attacks made by in the Middle East, and some countries stand out from the rest.
