North Africa

Tunisia: progressive forces still under attack

The same day the Tunisia Quartet civil activist group was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, a parliamentarian from the center-left ruling coalition survived an assassination attempt.

Greater Middle East

Syrian Kurds as pawns in Turko-Russian game?

With tensions high between Turkey and Russia, Moscow's intervention risks drawing the Kurds into the geopolitical game and escalating divisions within the Syrian resistance.

Greater Middle East

Russia bombs ISIS —not!

The Syrian regime says Russian air-strikes hit "ISIS dens"—but a look at the map indicates the strikes were nowhere near ISIS territory, and targetted rebel forces hostile to ISIS.

Afghanistan

Fall of Kunduz signals Taliban resurgence

The fall of Afghanistan's northern city of Kunduz to the Taliban is but their most dramatic advance in recent weeks, with Taliban and ISIS forces rapidly seizing territory.

Greater Middle East

Putin pries Western leaders from anti-Assad stance

British Prime Minister David Cameron is now the first Western leader to take Vladimir Putin's bait in agreeing that Bashar Assad can be part of a Syrian "transition government."

Iraq

Iraq: Yazidis urge ICC genocide investigation

Members of Iraq's Yazidi minority formally requested that the International Criminal Court open an investigation into possible genocide committed against their community by ISIS.

Greater Middle East

China enters Syrian war?

China is reported to be sending warships to Syria to augment the Russian build-up there—as word emerges of a Uighur jihadist group allied with the Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front.

Greater Middle East

HRW: Egypt violated international law in Sinai

Human Rights Watch charges that Egypt violated international law in the creation of a "buffer zone" on the border with the Gaza Strip, evicting thousands of local residents.

Greater Middle East

FAIR serves up more lies on Syria

The poorly named Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting (sic) continues to propagate the bogus conspiracy theory of a CIA effort to overthrow the Bashar Assad dictatorship.