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Jordan's Abdullah showed everyone who's 'king'
American writer and academician Robert Satloff summarizes his exclusive meeting with Jordanian King Hussein in 1996 as follows:It was in River House, in June 1996, that I had my last face-to-face conversation with Hussein. When I entered, the house s... more
The female president wearing a hijab
On Wednesday, March 17, 2021, West African President of Tanzania John Pombe Magufuli (61) took his last breath. In official statements, it was said that Magufuli, about whom health rumors were spreading like wildfire because he failed to make a publ... more
The conscience of Rachel Corrie that was crushed under an Israeli bulldozer
I’m here for other children. I’m here because I care.I’m here because children everywhere are suffering and because forty thousand people die each day from hunger.I’m here because those people are mostly children.We have got to understand that the po... more
The Pope's rosary and the destruction of Iraq's Mosul
ISIS, also known as Daesh, which left its mark on recent Middle East history, served to weaken the opposition in Syria, bolster the regime and strengthen the PKK-PYD-YPG structure in the north of the country. In Iraq, the gradual capture of Sunni reg... more
The ball is in Saudi Arabia’s court now
As anticipated, the reaction of the Saudi front to the U.S. administration’s release of the report last week regarding the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was met with anger. As for Riyadh's response to Washington, we can see that the Kin... more
What will Biden do if Israel, UAE back MBS in Saudi Arabia?
During an assignment I took on back then, I had joined the Islamic Hajj pilgrimage in 2016 as an official guest of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. After performing the basics of the pilgrimage, a feast was organized on the second day of Eid al-Adha, bri... more
Why hasn’t Biden called Bibi yet?
The fact that Joe Biden has not yet called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, despite it being a month since he was inaugurated as U.S. president, is currently at the top of the agenda of global media. White House reporters for their part ar... more
The tragedy in Yemen
The new American administration did what was anticipated: It declared that the Houthis, one of the parties involved in the Yemen civil war, will be removed from the list of “terrorist organizations.” An official from the U.S. Department of State said... more
The end of the road for Jewish casino mogul Sheldon Adelson
On Monday, January 11, 2021, Jewish casino mogul Sheldon Adelson died at 87 years old after suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Adelson was a colorful character indeed, what with the power of the money he administered, his influence on U.S. politics... more
Is Russia behind the sudden dissent of Assad's tycoon cousin?
Syrian regime leader Bashar Assad’s maternal cousin Rami Makhlouf released videos last week voicing his open criticisms aimed at some of the regime’s actions. Makhlouf, who, based on his tone and context of speech, was obviously unable to directly re... more
How a slap with a fly swatter led France to invade Algeria
Exactly 193 years ago, on April 29, 1827, Algerian ruler Hussein Dey, who was a subject of the Ottoman Empire but was largely autonomous, hosted the French Consul-General Pierre Deval. A very tense meeting between the two ensued. The matter at hand w... more
The Qatar blockade: A sibling's quarrel
On Monday evening, our Qatar Airlines flight, which departed from Doha, the capital of Qatar, bound to the Omani capital of Muscat, first proceeded headed north and then entered Iranian airspace. Later, after flying for a while parallel to Iranian te... more
Why did Egypt issue a fatwa forbidding Arabs to watch Turkish TV series?
Egypt’s High Fatwa Council (Dâru’l-İftâ) recently issued a fatwa, stating that under no circumstances should Turkish TV series be watched.It warned the Arab public that Turkey was in pursuit of regional hegemony through its dramas and that they shoul... more