Words Fail Me

I don’t have the words to blog about the atrocious killings in Beslan, Russia. These terrorists are the worst creatures on this earth. At least 200 people have been killed during the bloody climax of a three-day hostage crisis at a school in southern Russia, health ministry officials say. Hundreds of people were injured when… Continue reading Words Fail Me

Pakistan and Darfur

The humanitarian crisis in Darfur engendered by the Janjaweed militia and the Sudanese government has finally caught some international attention. While the US is threatening sanctions and France has moved troops to the Chad-Sudan border, Pakistan has responded with mealy-mouthed statements. Pakistan has called for renewed efforts to find a political solution to the Darfur… Continue reading Pakistan and Darfur

The Great Game

Conrad Barwa has an insightful post at the Head Heeb on the structural and strategic elements in Pakistan’s policy towards the tribal areas and Afghanistan. Here is his conclusion: What does seem clear is that the production of any ‘HVTs’ [high-value targets, i.e. terrorist leader] will not be an easy task and will only be… Continue reading The Great Game

Do They Look Like Me?

You might have heard about the terror induced by 14 Syrian musicians on a Northwestern flight. There is no doubt that something out of the ordinary happened on Northwest Airlines Flight 327 from Detroit to Los Angeles on June 29. The plane was met at the airport by squads of federal agents and police responding… Continue reading Do They Look Like Me?

Torture, Emperor and Forgetfulness

Via Mark Kleiman, I came upon the story of the torture memo in the Wall Street Journal. Bush administration lawyers contended last year that the president wasn’t bound by laws prohibiting torture and that government agents who might torture prisoners at his direction couldn’t be prosecuted by the Justice Department. The advice was part of… Continue reading Torture, Emperor and Forgetfulness

Darfur, Sudan

Sudan has been in the news for quite some time. First there was the civil war between the North and the South. Finally, a peace agreement has been signed there. But now some militias backed by the Sudanese government are on a killing spree in the western region of Darfur. This has led to a… Continue reading Darfur, Sudan

Over

A year after President Bush declared major combat operations over in Iraq, the war in Iraq has finally ended. In case you don’t know, the US lost. Also over is my brief and very skeptical love affair with Sharon. If Likud voters want Greater Israel, they’ll not only get it, they’ll live to regret it.… Continue reading Over

Israeli Fence

Let me just say that I agree wholeheartedly with Jonathan about the fence Israel is constructing. I think the fence can have a positive effect in cooling down Israel-Palestinian relations and thus get them to the negotiating table. Forward talks about the effects of the fence on Jenin. Life is returning to normal here in… Continue reading Israeli Fence

No More Editing Embargo

It seems that the embargo on editing scientific and technical papers from countries on which the US has imposed economic sanctions (Iran, Cuba, Libya and Sudan) has been lifted. According to IEEE, they can now publish papers from the embargoed countries. IEEE scored a victory for freedom of the press and the scholarly publishing community… Continue reading No More Editing Embargo

Assassinations and Arrests

Recently, the former President of Chechnya, Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, was assassinated in Qatar. Two Russian intelligence agents were arrested. Russia protested and promptly detained two Qatari wrestlers on their way to a sports competition. The Gulf state of Qatar says Russia arrested two of its citizens after Qatar charged two Russians over the death of a… Continue reading Assassinations and Arrests