Recent in-fighting among anti-Assad rebel groups in northern Syria attests to the extent to which the area has become the new home of Islamist jihad. While there may be as many as a thousand rebel "bands," it's clear that most are either al Qaeda, … [Read more...] about Foreign Fighters Bolster Jihad in Syria
Syria
Hezbollah Intensifies Fighting in Syria
1. In late 2013, Hezbollah had intensified its military involvement in the civil war in Syria, suffering heavy losses. The main three sites of Hezbollah fighting were the eastern rural area of Damascus (Al-Ghouta al-Sharqiyya), the Al-Qalamoun … [Read more...] about Hezbollah Intensifies Fighting in Syria
Hurtling Downhill
If recent events are any indication, the pace of U.S. withdrawal from the world and the extent of our fecklessness (and the West's generally) in the face of threats coming from Islamist terrorism, Russia, China, and Iran promises to pick up in 2014. … [Read more...] about Hurtling Downhill
Turkey: The End of a Geopolitical Model
Whether Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan survives the current crisis, the legend of "The Turkish model" is dead. The implications of the loss of Turkey's image abroad, particularly in the Islamic world, may be far more important than the explosion … [Read more...] about Turkey: The End of a Geopolitical Model
In a World He Never Intended (To Make)
The Obama Administration’s foreign policy begins to look like that tightly wound ball of crocheting thread that the kitten has been playing with for several hours and is now finally completely unraveling. How innocent the kitty is may be a question … [Read more...] about In a World He Never Intended (To Make)
“Arab Spring” Delusions
In the Arab-Islamic Political Culture rumors are an integral part of social activity that quickly become absolute truth that cannot be challenged. It has to do with exaggerations, flights of fancy and especially, in a society that believes in … [Read more...] about “Arab Spring” Delusions
The Sunni-Shia Rapprochement: What Went Wrong?
On November 20, 2013, news from Pakistan was replete with articles deploring the recent explosions of Sunni-Shia "sectarian violence." Incidents were reported in Rawalpindi and Multan, two heavily populated provinces, and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the … [Read more...] about The Sunni-Shia Rapprochement: What Went Wrong?
Syria Becoming More Dangerous Every Day
The ballyhooed US-Russian accord on chemical weapons in Syria is coming a cropper. * The deadline, November 15, was not met since there is no country willing to accept and destroy the toxic stockpile; even Albania rejected Washington's request to do … [Read more...] about Syria Becoming More Dangerous Every Day