Middle East

UNRWA: 300 kites Fly in the Skies of Al Walajeh

By UNRWA Public Information Office – Over the weekend UNRWA’s psycho-social community project culminated in an epic kite flying event held in the village of Al Walajeh located between Jerusalem and the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem. As part of the event students from local UNRWA schools on Sunday […]

Jordan committed to better ties with Egypt

MMAN (JT) – His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday held talks with Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, head of Egypt’s ruling military council, in Cairo on means to boost bilateral cooperation, the latest regional developments and other issues of mutual concern. During the talks between the two sides, which were […]

Islamic fashion

The regular misconception is that Islamic clothes for women are based on ‘old-fashioned’ principles. The truth is that Islamic outfits, whilst being necessarily ‘modest, ‘ does not need to sacrifice elegance, dignity and trend. While common approaches to such clothing may have actually added to this perception, there are a […]

Cult of death

The memory of the dead must not be turned into a defining element of national identity. Haaretz Editorial A new Education Ministry program – details of which are reported by Or Kashti in today’s Haaretz English edition – that would have Israeli junior high and high school students adopt memorial […]

President Obama explains borders stance

Speaking at the annual meeting of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Sunday, President Obama sought to further explain the US position, saying ‘new demographic realities’ would also be considered. At an annual gathering of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on Sunday, Israel’s staunchest American supporters were paid […]

Multilingual site on Sunnah starts today

By YOUSUF MUHAMMAD | ARAB NEWS Published: May 23, 2011 01:00 Updated: May 23, 2011 01:00 MADINAH: Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Dawah, Call and Guidance Saleh bin Abdul Aziz Al-Shaikh will launch on Monday a special website for the Holy Prophet’s Sunnah. The function will be at the location […]

Obama: No UN vote will ever create Palestine

US president says US commitment to Israeli security is “ironclad” during speech to pro-Israeli lobby in Washington. Barack Obama, the US president, has rejected Palestinian plans to seek statehood at the United Nations, and said Washington’s commitment to Israel’s security is “ironclad”. Obama was speaking at the annual policy meeting […]

US, UK and European envoys trapped in Yemen embassy

(CNN) — The American, British and European Union ambassadors to Yemen are trapped in an embassy surrounded by gunmen angry about efforts by Arab mediators to ease President Ali Abdullah Saleh out of power, the American envoy told CNN. U.S. Ambassador Gerald Feierstein said the ambassadors of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, […]

The ‘Turkish Model’ and the Middle East

Hugh Pope, Transtlantic Academy | 13 May 2011 The Middle East’s season of popular revolts for greater freedoms has thrown a critical spotlight on Turkey’s ambition for a leading role in the region, whether as an actor pursuing a ‘zero problem’ foreign policy or through the gravitational pull of its […]

500 migrants taken ashore by Italians

ROME (AP) — Police said Thursday that they rescued about 500 migrants from Libya after a small fire broke out on their boat miles (kilometers) off the Italian coast. Police patrol boats spotted the boat and were escorting it toward the small island of Lampedusa when the fire began, Maj. […]

US quietly expanding defense ties with Saudis

Despite their deepening political divide, the United States and Saudi Arabia are quietly expanding defense ties on a vast scale, led by a little-known project to develop an elite force to protect the kingdom’s oil riches and future nuclear sites. The U.S. also is in discussions with Saudi Arabia to […]

Let actions speak…

So what’s it going to be: Israeli chutzpah or Barack Obama’s audacity of hope? Predictably, Israel’s Netanyahu has lost no time in trashing President Barack Obama’s call for a “viable Palestine” along the 1967 borders. The Israeli PM has virtually rubbed Obama’s nose in, dismissing the borders that existed between […]