Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Diana Alghoul
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Cluster bombs are killing civilians in Yemen
So far, there have been 4,500 people killed and 23,000 wounded in the conflict in Yemen. The calamity shows no sign of abating and the only solution that those fighting seem to have in mind is to have more of the same. Into this has stepped Human Rights Watch, with…
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How long will the world tolerate US exceptionalism?
The Washington Post reported recently that Barack Obama has promised an extension of the military aid given to Israel. Instead of the current aid package of $3.1 billion every year, in 2017 it is likely to increase to $3.5 billion a year, making an increase of $400 million dollars over…
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Changing the Yemeni capital and the country’s future
Last week, it was announced by Aden governor Nayef Al-Bakri that the city is to become the capital of Yemen for the next five years. The decision comes mainly because of Aden’s strategic location; in many points in history Aden has been at the forefront of Yemeni military and economic…
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What makes the UAE’s assistance to anti-Houthi forces unique?
The July 14 announcement of Aden’s liberation has proven to be a game changer in the Yemen conflict. After the Houthis lost Aden, they have been experiencing several losses in the rest of the country. August 4 was especially traumatic for them, as they lost control of the largest airbase…
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The hijab ban is part of a wider war against women
Hijab debates are on the rise, yet again, in Egypt. As usual, they are initiated by the ruling class who are provoking a national debate for profit. Businesses in tourist areas of Egypt such as Sharm Al-Sheikh are banning women who wear the hijab from entering their restaurants or leisure…
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Erdogan’s security dilemma
The 20 July bomb attack in Suruç made it clear that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing a long battle. The Daesh bombing of a leftist youth centre took 32 lives; it has not only shown that Turkey is now becoming increasingly vulnerable to such attacks, but also that…
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What to expect from the retrial of Al-Jazeera staff in Egypt
With less than a week left before the 30 July retrial of the remaining two Al-Jazeera journalists detained in Egypt, tensions are running high over what might happen next. The Egyptian government is currently holding Mohammed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed on charges of inciting terrorism and being a threat to…
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Could an independent South Yemen be good for Saudi Arabia?
The sudden fall of the Houthis in Aden last Wednesday was a cause for celebration for much of Yemen. The Hirak resistance forces have recently dominated the battleground, with the assistance of military aid and training from the Saudi-led coalition. The Houthis retreated rapidly; despite having stolen some of the…
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King Abdullah’s ISIS paradox
The international community has witnessed a change in King Abdullah of Jordan since ISIS burnt pilot Muath Al-Kasasbeh to death in January. “We are waging this war to protect our faith, our values and human principles,” said the Jordanian monarch, “and our war for their sake will be relentless and…
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Defending Riyadh with weapons of mass destruction
As predicted, an agreement with Iran over its nuclear programme was not reached by the 30 June deadline and the delegates at the G5+1 talks gave themselves an extra seven days. Supreme Leader Ali Khameini went back on a condition set by the previous talks to allow international inspection of…
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An alliance with Al-Sisi is a strategic error, but is it also dangerous for Britain?
On Tuesday afternoon, Egypt’s Interior Minister, Magdy Abdel Ghaffar, met British ambassador John Casson in Cairo to discuss security issues in the region. Casson said that the reason for the meeting was to show Britain’s “readiness to cooperate with the Egyptian Interior Ministry to support efforts to combat the spread…
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Currency, petrol and the corruption behind the ISIS enigma
In recent days, ISIS social media has been showing off its long-anticipated currency. Rumours have been circulating for many months, but they were embellished in November 2014, highlighting not only the group’s geopolitical expansion, but also its infiltration into the societies it invades. Pictures of the coins have been posted…
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The illusion behind the Yemen peace talks
After three months of bloodshed, Yemen’s conflicting parties have finally agreed to sit at the negotiation table at UN-backed peace talks in Geneva. The process so far has been as anticipated; messy. Despite the violence looking to spiral out of control, so far it doesn’t seem like there is a…
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Russia’s Middle East conundrum
Recognising that it may soon be holding its lasts thread of dignity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, Russia has reportedly been taking appropriate action. According to a report by Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, senior Western diplomats have said that in a secret meeting held to discuss security threats…
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Is Al-Sisi a diplomat extraordinaire or a puppet?
On 3 June, German Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed Egypt’s President, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to Berlin. In typical Western fashion she met a military dictator who carries out and justifies executions under a corrupt judiciary as a matter of routine by condemning him half-heartedly for PR’s sake before granting him international…
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What’s happening with the US-Houthi talks?
On Sunday, the spokesperson for the Yemeni government-in-exile, Rajeh Badi, told Reuters that it had been told that Houthi representatives had flown to Muscat on a private jet at America’s request for private talks. So far, the details of the talks are unconfirmed, but there has been speculation that US…
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Beyond its neutrality: Oman’s unique role in Yemen
The best way to explain Oman, both historically and in the midst of the current crisis facing the Gulf, is to say it puts its long term security first. For the past few decades, Sultan Qaboos’ policy of not being too close or being too far from the states around…
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Saudi-Muslim Brotherhood relations create a sense of déjà vu, nostalgia or…
The past two years have been very difficult for the Muslim Brotherhood. Being declared a terrorist group by regional powers backed by media outlets worldwide was a political, military and diplomatic setback for the movement. The late King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia fuelled much of this opposition, mainly because the…
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Fuel, blockades and the last thread of Yemen’s lifeline
Yemen’s humanitarian situation has been deteriorating since the beginning of the airstrikes. The conflicts that have pelted Yemen over the past few decades have put the country in a vulnerable position before the dramatic escalation of violence caused by the airstrike. Already, over half of Yemenis lived below the poverty…
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Beyond the Sunni-Shia narrative in Yemen
Over the past few weeks, much of the coverage on the Yemeni conflict has reduced it to a simple case of sectarianism. Sunni and Shia are words plastered over most coverage on Yemen, which gives an inaccurate picture of the complex network of arms and social relations that criss-cross the…
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Israel’s neo-slavery in the Jordan Valley
The decline of Liberal Zionism has shown a disturbing level of hostility towards Palestinians, much of which is justified by fascist pro-Israel NGOs and lobby groups. They defend crimes against the Palestinian population and propagate their message by denying that the oppression of the Palestinians even exists. One of the…
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Yemen’s unnoticed but crucial province
Rich in history, culture and resources, Hadramawt in Yemen is one of the most beautiful areas in a country that defines the essence of one of the ethnic groups of the 21 other countries around it. It’s famous for its ancient mud brick houses that give the landscapes of Shibam…
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Hijabs, hyper-machoism and hypocrisy: Egypt’s story
On 6 April, a Facebook post by a self-proclaimed women’s rights activist demanded that women all over Egypt should march to Tahrir Square in Cairo to take off their hijabs to show that they are in control of their bodies. This post ensured that all women in the protest will…
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What’s really behind Morsi’s guilty verdict?
Ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi was sentenced to 20 years in jail today. Taking his age into consideration, he’s 63, and the fact that the average life expectance in Egypt is 71, this sentence is not only a covert life sentence, but also a slower and more painful alternative to…