As 2008 draws to a close, the rising Taliban force in Afghanistan is taken a backseat to more immediate concerns in the region and elsewhere. But the crisis in Afghanistan remains, indeed 2008 was the deadliest year of the seven year long war.
The US death toll was a record 151. Roadside bombings doubled. The Taliban’s [...]
As clocks around the world hit 12:00, the United Nations Mandate under which American military personnel in Iraq have operated for years, expired. In its place is the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the Iraqi government, which restricts American operations and places military forces under Iraqi authority for the first time since the 2003 [...]
As the war in the Gaza Strip rages on, protests continue all across the world. In the United States alone, over 100 protests have already been organized against the attacks, from a small rally in Salt Lake City to much larger rallies along the east coast. Among the largest was in Dearborn, Michigan, where thousands [...]
After five days of aerial bombardment against the Gaza Strip, the death toll has finally surpassed 400 while nearly 2,000 are reportedly wounded. The situation in the strip is increasingly dire, and the civilian populace has gone for days without electricity and running water, and supplies are in short supply.
No amount of preparation helped the [...]
Before Saturday, when Israel began its massive attacks on the Gaza Strip, the political picture for February’s elections looked extremely straightforward. Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party was riding high in the polls on his calls to attack the Gaza Strip. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni’s Kadima Party was second, and the Labor Party of Defense Minister Ehud [...]
As Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip continue to escalate, the war or words between the Hamas government in Gaza and the rival Fatah faction in the West Bank continues to heat up.
Arab League head Amr Mussa called for an “immediate reconciliation meeting” between the two sides to repair their increasingly damaged relations. Saudi Foreign [...]
Across Israel, Arab leaders are reporting the same thing: the are called in by Israeli police, or by Shin Bet, and are threatened over the growing protests in their communities against the military operation against the Gaza Strip.
“The call in imams, distinguished sheikhs, and even school teachers – all under threats,” complained MP Abas Zkoor. [...]
Updating yesterday’s story on the Israeli government’s ban on journalists in or even near the Gaza Strip, the Israeli Supreme Court has said that it is “inclined” to allow a handful of journalists into the warzone to provide coverage. It has asked the Foreign Press Association (FPA), who was petitioning for an end to the [...]
Speaking earlier today on the growing death toll in the Gaza Strip, United Nations Relief and Works Agency spokesman Christopher Gunness said that “a minimum of 25 percent of all those killed are civilians,” adding that “it may well be far higher.”
At present count, that would put the minimum civilian toll in the Gaza Strip [...]
As pro-war rallies continue across Israel, the Israeli government has announced that it will reject the 48-hour ceasefire proposed yesterday to allow humanitarian aid to be delivered to the Gaza Strip. Labeling the truce as ‘unrealistic’, the attacks on the strip will continue unabated.
“There’s no such thing as a ‘humanitarian ceasefire’,” one aide to Prime [...]
