Seven months after the "surge" of 21,000 more U.S. troops to Iraq,the security situation is too "fragile and reversible" to allow for adrawdown of the 140,000 combat forces that will remain there in July.Tha... [Full Article Text.]
Editorial Articles
Petraeus Progress Report Falls Flat (View on Dissent Magazine.)
Tuesday, January 1, 2008 - Dissent Magazine
Osama bin Laden's growing anxiety (View on The Christian Science Monitor.)
Friday, October 26, 2007 - The Christian Science Monitor
In yet another sign of trouble for Al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden publicly conceded that his like-minded militants in Iraq "made mistakes." In an audiotape broadcast by Al Jazeera this week, he sounds deeply anxious about ... [Full Article Text.]
Deadly Embrace (View on washingtonpost.com.)
Sunday, October 21, 2007 - washingtonpost.com
Suicide Bombers in Iraq
The Strategy and Ideology Of Martyrdom. By Mohammed M. Hafez. US Institute of Peace. 285 pp. $17.50
A Poisonous Affair
America, Iraq, and the Gassing of Halabja<... [Full Article Text.]
His mentor turns on bin Laden (View on International Herald Tribune.)
Friday, September 21, 2007 - International Herald Tribune
After Osama bin Laden reappeared on the world's television screens on the sixth anniversary of 9-11, commentaries focused on his newly blackened beard and his changed message. But more important was the reaction of a Saudi cleric.... [Full Article Text.]
Bin Laden's new image: younger, more Marxist (View on Christian Science Monitor.)
Thursday, September 13, 2007 - Christian Science Monitor
After a three-year absence, Osama bin Laden has resurfaced in another of his rousing videotapes, only this time with a new image and a new message. Projecting a younger look, Mr. bin Laden gives his most ideological address since ... [Full Article Text.]
Understanding the Many Faces of Islamism and Jihadism (View on Nieman Reports.)
Tuesday, July 17, 2007 - Nieman Reports
Since the September 11th terror attacks, Americans have come increasingly to believe that Islamism, not just jihadism, is a mortal threat to the West, an aggressive and totalitarian ideology dedicated to random destruction a... [Full Article Text.]
Seething Anger in a Broken Middle East (View on YaleGlobal.)
Tuesday, June 12, 2007 - YaleGlobal
Marking 40 years of Israeli occupation, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas warned that his people are on the verge of civil war. Infighting between Islamist Hamas and nationalist Fatah is worse than living under Israeli military ... [Full Article Text.]
The Poisonous Legacy of the Iraq War – Part I (View on YaleGlobal.)
Thursday, March 15, 2007 - YaleGlobal
Four years ago the US and its coalition of the willing plunged into Iraq to punish it among others for an alleged connection with the 9/11 attacks. In a self-fulfilling prophesy, what was not true then has come to pass: Iraq has b... [Full Article Text.]
Diplomacy as Afterthought Wins US Few Mideast Converts (View on YaleGlobal.)
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 - YaleGlobal
While elaborating on his new Iraq war plan, President Bush announced that he was sending Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to the Middle East on a serious diplomatic mission. Political leaders, though skeptical, had hoped that R... [Full Article Text.]
The triumph of tribal vengeance: The hanging of Saddam was a dangerous mistake (View on The Guardian.)
Thursday, January 4, 2007 - The Guardian
In a statement issued after the execution of Saddam Hussein, President Bush said that bringing Saddam to justice "is an important milestone" of Iraq's evolution into a democracy and ally in the war on terror.
As attacks in Iraq... [Full Article Text.]