Category: The Middle East

Been there, done that

Good advice. Been there; done that (1957).  Seemed like a good idea at the time, according to Eisenhower and two good old Presbyterian Princetonians named Dulles. Bad idea, however.  We don’t do intervention very well. Result: more harm than good!  Still paying the price! Ray Leave Syria to the Syrians By Charles Glass, May 02, 2011 … This is not a good time to be running …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/05/07/been-there-done-that/

Mirror, mirror

Stop blaming Israel for every grievance in the Middle East By Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Monday, 2 May 2011 … First came the Arab spring (followed, in some lands, by the harshest of winters) and now Hamas and Fatah have signed a deal for unity. Naturally, Israel is as panicked as are Arab despots by the shifts …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/05/02/mirror-mirror/

The only humane response

Guantánamo piled lie upon lie through the momentum of its own existence By Julian Glover, Monday 25 April 2011 … Let them read the documents. Let them try to tell us after that (as some still do, even now) that the Afghan war was fought well, and fought morally; that Guantánamo was a limited and …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/04/25/the-only-humane-response/

Hear me roar

Rebellion: Smashing stereotypes of Arab women By Soumaya Ghannoushi, 25 Apr 2011 13:28 … The Arab revolutions are not only shaking the structure of tyranny to the core – they are shattering many of the myths about the Arab region that have been accumulating for decades. Topping the list of dominant myths are those of …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/04/25/hear-me-roar/

Dungeons and dragons

What the Guantanamo leaks won’t reveal By Darryl Li, 25 Apr 2011 19:28 … In the coming days, many will pore over the Guantánamo files released by Wikileaks to find startling revelations or to justify pre-existing positions. But before diving in, it may help to reflect on a few things that may not be explicit …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/04/25/dungeons-and-dragons/

Fascists using religion

Justifying a banishment By Admiel Kosman, 12:02 24.04.11 … In one of the versions of the story of Hagar, Abraham holds a feast to celebrate the fact that Isaac has been weaned. At that event, as it is written in Genesis 21:9, Sarah catches sight of Ishmael “laughing.” This is a vague word, which our …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/04/24/fascists-using-religion/

A mere technocrat?

Obama’s Passover liberation theology By Anna Hartnell, Sunday 24 April 2011 14.00 BST … Issued on Friday 15 April, ahead of this week’s Passover celebrations, Obama’s quietly radical Passover message embraced the explosive mix of religion, Middle East politics and African American history that often fired, but also threatened to derail, his presidential bid. Obama’s …

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Permanent link to this article: https://levantium.com/2011/04/24/a-mere-technocrat/