Middle East

Palestine Papers: Why I blew the whistle

The mislabeled “peace talks” were instrumental in creating divisions amongst Palestinians, compelling me to speak out. In Palestine, the time for national reconciliation has come. On the eve of the 63rd commemoration of the Nakba, this is a long-awaited and hopeful moment. Earlier this year, the release by Al Jazeera […]

Aqaba taking Jordan along for the ride

Marsa Zayed envisions a marina development with room for 300 yachts and a cruise ship terminal all surrounded by a mixture of hotel, resort and luxury apartment complexes. The entire project is slated for completion in several years time, when Jordan first signed the development deal with Al Mabaar, a […]

Editorial: GCC expansion Admitting new members like Jordan and Morocco raises a plethora of questions

Arab News: This newspaper has in the past predicted that the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council would evolve into an Arab political and economic union in the same way that the six-member European Economic Community developed into today’s 27-member European Union. Nonetheless, Tuesday’s announcement following its summit in Riyadh that the […]

Palestinians threaten to go to UN over Israel tax row

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM (AFP) – The Palestinian leadership on Wednesday voted to appeal for United Nations intervention to force a defiant Israel to hand badly needed blocked tax transfers to the Palestinian Authority. “The executive committee has decided to turn to all international bodies, including the UN Security Council, to demand […]

Obama to lay out new Mideast strategy

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama will give a major speech, possibly as early as next week, laying out his new Middle East strategy after the killing of Osama bin Laden and amid upheaval in the Arab world, U.S. officials said on Wednesday. A key sticking point is whether Obama, […]

Gulf states welcome Jordan membership bid

By Hani Hazaimeh AMMAN – Jordan on Tuesday welcomed an announcement by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) supporting the Kingdom’s request to join the GCC. The GCC welcomed bids by Jordan and Morocco to join the six-nation grouping, its secretary general, Abdullatif Al Zayani, told reporters yesterday. “Leaders of the […]

WANA region at ‘turning point’

AMMAN – Recent political changes have the potential to transform a region burdened by a lack of economic opportunities and insecurity into one of enlightenment, experts said on Monday. HRH Prince Hassan, chairman and founder of the West Asia and North Africa (WANA) Forum, stressed that the region’s main challenges […]

Syria Government Detains Hundreds In New Crackdown

BEIRUT — Syrian security forces arrested hundreds of activists and anti-government protesters in house-to-house raids across the country Monday, part of an escalating government crackdown aimed at stamping out the nationwide revolt engulfing the country. President Bashar Assad has dispatched army troops and tanks to crush the seven-week uprising that […]

Arab democracy protests could threaten Israel

by Eveline Kobler in Tunis, swissinfo.ch The Swiss ambassador to Israel says the democratisation process sweeping through the Arab world could pose a threat to Israeli security. Walter Haffner also tells swissinfo.ch that the agreement aimed at uniting the main Palestinian factions is a positive development. The interview was conducted […]

Saudi Arabia: This is who we are

HASSAN BIN YOUSSEF YASSIN | ARAB NEWS Stability of monarchies is in sharp contrast to the failure of Arab republics Napoleon Bonaparte once said that monarchy was the most sensible and effective form of government. In any history or course on political theory in the West, it is taken for […]

Press Release: Syria Government must not allow Syria to become the next state for foreign intervention by denying its citizens’ legitimate grievances.

HRC is deeply concerned by the escalating situation in Syria, including the deaths of protestors and security personnel, and the deepening social polarisation. Syria has been at the forefront of forging an independent bloc in the region, that has stood by the Palestinian cause and repelled foreign intervention in the […]

Saleh’s intransigence jeopardizes GCC deal

By SAEED AL-BATATI | ARAB NEWS SANAA: A tirade from Yemen’s embattled president on Friday threatened to scupper the Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) efforts to end the political deadlock in the country. Ali Abdullah Saleh told a mass rally of supporters on Friday that he would resist calls to quit, […]

Army Officer, Four Policemen Martyred in Homs

(The Syrian Government version): May 06, 2011 Damascus, (SANA)-A military source said that an armed criminal group attacked on Friday a military checkpoint, the police and security forces west of Baba Amr near al-Sultaniyeh Bridge in Homs. The terrorist group fired at the checkpoint members, killing Officer Ahmad Hallaq and […]