Tag: Greater Middle East

Greater Middle East
tuareg

Tuaregs flee Mali

Bashar Assad arrived in Russia to publicly thank Vladimir Putin for his military support in the ongoing re-conquest of Syria—prominently including the deployment of new missile systems. Undoubtedly discussed behind closed doors was the  new "energy cooperation framework agreement" between Moscow and Damascus, under which Russia is to have exclusive rights to exploit oil and gas in Syria. (Photo of Vityaz missile launcher via Wikipedia)

Greater Middle East
trulku

tulku

Egypt's chief prosecutor referred 555 individuals suspected of joining a local ISIS affiliate to military court. The charges against them arise out of a series of attacks carried out by dozens of small militant groups situated in the northern part of the Sinai Peninsula. The suspects will faces charges for the planned and executed killings of security personnel, attacks on military checkpoints, and the destruction of a gas pipeline between Egypt and Jordan. The charges come amid growing concerns over torture, lengthy solitary confinement and other rights abuses in Egypt's prisons. (Photo: Egypt Daily News)

Greater Middle East

Sectarian terror in Yemen

We warned a year ago that Yemen was on the brink of sectarian war. It is starting to look like it is going over the brink. From AP, May 2: Motorcycle bomb explodes outside Yemen mosque, killing 18 SAN’A —… Read moreSectarian terror in Yemen

Greater Middle East
alak

Alak Khasutsang, disappeared

In Episode Eight of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg notes the bitter historical irony: In April of 1937, the aerial bombardment of the Spanish town of Guernica by the Nazi Luftwaffe shocked the world. Today, what happened there is a near-daily occurrence in Syria (as well as Yemen and elsewhere around the world), and we are so inured to it that the "anti-war" people are actually on the side of the authors of aerial terror. During the Spanish Civil War, the left heroically opposed Generalissimo Francisco Franco's drive to establish a fascist dictatorship with the aid of German military intervention. Today, it cravenly abets Bashar Assad's drive to re-establish his fascist dictatorship with the aid of Russian military intervention. Even as Russia scrambles to block any investigation into the Douma chemical attack and other war crimes in Syria, "leftists" shamefully echo Russian propaganda denying any responsibility by Assad. Weinberg again urges that any legitimate anti-war position must begin with opposition to the genocidal regime of Bashar Assad, and with solidarity for the Syrian Revolution. Listen on SoundCloud. (Photo of Aleppo ruins from UNHCR)

Greater Middle East

Riots rock Yemen

Tanks have been deployed in parts of southern Yemen after a fifth day of angry protests by thousands of mostly young people. Youth are blocking roads and burning tires, and up to 100 have been arrested. In al-Dalea, two police… Read moreRiots rock Yemen

Greater Middle East

Bread riots in Egypt

Egypt‘s President Hosni Mubarak has ordered the army to start baking more bread following a series of clashes breaking out at long lines for government-subsidized loaves. Acute shortages of the flat, round bread which is a staple of the Egyptian… Read moreBread riots in Egypt

Greater Middle East
Untitled 3

Basra electrical workers

The group Syria Solidarity New York City will feature a screening of the VICE/HBO film Assad's Syria, a documentary depicting life under brutal dictatorship and war conditions. Followed by a discussion with Malek Rasamny, a journalist and film-maker with experience on the ground in Syria. We will examine the causes of the refugee crisis, and what we as part of the world community can do to help. April 27, 6:30 PM at Word Up Community Book Shop, 2113 Amsterdam Ave. (at 165 St.), Washington Heights, New York City.. Syria Solidarity NYC also holds a Weekly Syria Peace Vigil every Friday at from 6-8 PM in Union Square Park.

Greater Middle East
Untitled 9

Sit-in at Musayyib power plant

Since the Douma chemical attack terrorized the rebel defenders of Eastern Ghouta enclave into accepting a "surrender deal" and evacuating to Idlib province, the Assad regime and its Russian allies have been preparing a final offensive on the last remaining areas of Syria still under rebel control. These of course include Idlib in the north, the largest rebel-held area. But mounting reports suggest the regime may first focus its firepower on Daraa province in the south, where the Free Syrian Army's Southern Front continues to hold territory. And while the rebel militias that hold Idlib are mostly conservative Islamists, the Southern Front is secular-nationalist in its leadership. (Southern Front logo via Wikipedia)