JOUN, Southern Lebanon: Some Lebanese, especially those with a sense of irony, like to share an American traveler s impressions of their homeland on the eastern Mediterranean: William Thomson noted that Lebanon s religions and sects-there are 18 recognized ones in a country smaller than Connecticut-share a country but little fraternal feeling. Of the Muslim …
LONDON: After years of rapid growth, the countries of Eastern Europe have been especially hard hit by the world financial crisis. Some required billions of dollars of international support. Even those countries that were better prepared were made painfully aware of the after-effects of crisis: export markets collapsed, commodity prices fell, and credit markets seized …
EAST MEREDITH, New York: The American University of Beirut (AUB), from which tens of thousands of Arab leaders have graduated over the last 140 years, is a shining example of foreign aid put to good use. What distinguishes the graduates of AUB is not only leadership and a sense of service to the Arab world; …
TEL AVIV: The forthcoming United Nation’s conference commemorating the 60th anniversary of UNRWA (The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) could not come at a better moment. The restitution of lands occupied in 1967 will obviously continue to be indispensable to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but it is the legacy of the 1948 …
NEW YORK: When caricature takes the place of dialogue, everyone suffers – especially when it comes to understanding issues affecting women, who struggle worldwide against being silenced. Some right-wing American bloggers recently twisted an article that I wrote in a way that did just that. I wrote that many women activists in Muslim countries tend …
NEW YORK: This week the United Nations Human Rights Council will debate the report of the fact-finding mission led by Judge Richard Goldstone on human rights violations in the Gaza conflict. Let us hope it is a full and fair examination based on the report’s findings and recommendations. Goldstone and his team concluded that both …
NEW JERSEY: In the concluding remarks of his courageous speech on human rights in early July, retired, Supreme Court president Justice Aharon Barak held up a mirror to Israeli society – and not a particularly flattering one at that. “If we don’t find a way to live in peace with our neighbors and with the …
JERUSALEM: How do you make peace with someone whose entire view of recent history is completely different from yours? For Jews, 1948 stands out as one of their finest hours – tiny, beleaguered Israel heroically stood up to vastly superior Arab forces in the War of Independence, which gave birth to a dream of 2000 …
New York: Every September, the world’s leaders gather at the United Nations to reaffirm our founding Charter – our faith in fundamental principles of peace, justice, human rights, and equal opportunity for all. We assess the state of the world, engage key issues of the day, and lay out our vision for the way ahead. …
CAIRO: There is a general feeling in Egypt that the plan to groom Gamal Mubarak to succeed his father as the next president has virtually entered the stage of implementation rather than being mere speculation. The sentiment grew stronger after President Mubarak’s visit to Washington this past August and following remarks he made in which …
NEW YORK: What purpose is Switzerland serving by jailing the renowned Franco-Polish film director Roman Polanski on a 30-year-old warrant? Arrested in 1977 for allegedly raping a 13-year-old girl in Los Angeles, Polanski pleaded guilty to the lesser offense of having unlawful sex with a minor. In the belief that his judge, the late Laurence …
NEW DELHI: America’s war in Afghanistan is approaching a tipping point, with doubts about President Barack Obama’s strategy growing. Yet, after dispatching 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan, Obama is considering sending another 14,000. Let’s be clear: America’s Afghan war is not winnable, even though Obama has redefined American goals from defeating the Taliban to preventing …
NEW YORK: The announcement that Turkey and Armenia have decided to establish diplomatic relations is a significant measure, the importance of which goes beyond the relationship between the two countries: it could also catalyze Turkey s accession bid to the EU and improve Armenia s standing in the region. In 1915, as the Ottoman Empire …
WASHINGTON, DC: President George W. Bush once explained his failure to advance the Israeli-Palestinian peace process with the excuse that, “We can’t want peace more than the parties themselves . Dennis Ross, who tried and failed to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace for several decades and under several Presidents, said the same thing. And now White House …
DALIAN, China: Last month, a company called Complete Genomics announced 10 new customers for its genome-sequencing service. The price was not specified, but the company said its goal is to offer the service for $5,000 within a year. What struck me was not the announcement itself, but the name of the CEO: Cliff Reid, the …
PARIS: The bailout of the financial system was a bizarre moment in economic history, for it benefited those who benefited most from the markets’ irrational exuberance – the bosses of financial firms. Before the crisis hit, however, redistribution of wealth (and the tax and social security payments that make it possible) was considered the biggest …
WASHINGTON, DC: Under US President Barack Obama s Administration, the United States has vigorously re-engaged in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and made commitment to Palestinian statehood a national security and foreign policy priority. Obama has said that it is absolutely crucial to American interests to resolve the conflict, and appears determined to persist despite all …
NEW YORK: The key to climate change control lies in improved technology. We need to find new ways to produce and use energy, meet our food needs, transport ourselves, and heat and cool our homes that will allow us to cut back on oil, gas, coal, nitrogen-based fertilizer, and other sources of the climate-changing greenhouse …
CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts: When the European Commission announced in October 2004 that Turkey had met the criteria for starting membership negotiations, it became front-page news worldwide. Turkey attracted international attention because of its geo-strategic importance, and because it is the first Muslim-majority EU candidate. Over the previous five years, Turkey has made spectacular progress in strengthening …
A language of tolerance in Saudi Arabia, by Tariq A. Al-Maeena JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia received a massive jolt in 2001 when it was widely reported that 15 of the 19 suspected 9/11 perpetrators were sons of its soil. In the days and weeks that followed, practically every Saudi felt they had become a suspect on …
MAYNOOTH, Ireland: On Oct. 2, Irish voters go to the polls for a second time to decide whether to adopt the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty. The mood in EU capitals is one of nervousness as polling day looms, with the future of the EU in the hands of Ireland’s unpredictable voters. On two of the …
We come from varied ethnic backgrounds and religious faiths that are diverse. We are Democrats and Republicans. We are veterans of war and of the struggle for peace. Together, we are all Americans. We find common cause in supporting strong US leadership to achieve a negotiated, sustainable resolution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict – a fundamental …
NEW YORK: There is little doubt that green will be the metaphorical color of choice for world leaders when they gather at the G-20 Summit in Pittsburgh. Attention will focus on turning the “green shoots of recovery into sustainable “green growth, leading to “green economies consistent with the goal of protecting the world’s climate. Governments …
One advantage of covering the Gulf region is that there is rarely a dull day. The sheer pace of development means that more or less every week there is some new mega-project of some description announced, unveiled or – in these more constrained times – cancelled. This week saw the opening of Saudi Arabia s …
PRINCETON: Although Al-Qaeda’s leadership, beliefs, and ideology are rooted in Saudi Arabia, the organization has been all but crushed in the Kingdom by a government policy that combines a big carrot and an even bigger stick. The attempted assassination in Jeddah last month of Prince Muhammad bin Nayef, the deputy interior minister for security affairs, …
TEL AVIV: Israel’s government erred in not cooperating with the Goldstone Commission, which investigated claims of human rights violations during operation “Cast Lead in Gaza. In refusing to cooperate with the commission, Israel missed an opportunity to justify its position and insist that the international community adapt the rules of warfare to the reality of …
ATLANTA, Georgia: The warm atmosphere in downtown Atlanta had less to do with the southern sunshine than it did with the sea of friendly faces serving their local community. Muslim and Christian volunteers came together on Sept. 6 to show their love for God by helping Atlanta s homeless population, which is all too often …
TEL AVIV: Israelis want peace but don’t believe it’s possible. That is the cumulative finding of a host of opinion polls, and it is critical to any effort by President Barack Obama to create a new momentum toward peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors. For many Israelis, the peace with Egypt and Jordan has …
CAMBRIDGE: When they met earlier this month, G-20 finance ministers and central bankers called for global improvements in corporate governance. Such appeals are often heard, but powerful vested interests make it hard for governments to follow through. So, if serious reforms are to be implemented, strong and persistent public pressure will be needed. Many countries …
CAIRO: It was a big Zionist plot that lost our very own Farouk Hosni his UNESCO bid for director-general. The Israelis would never have allowed an Arab and a Muslim to head the world’s leading education and culture organization with their Judaising plans for Jerusalem. In short, Hosni was the victim of an Israeli-stoked conspiracy …
