Latest Articles about Middle East
Insurrection in Iranian Balochistan
Issues of dissent and rebellion amongst Iran’s elaborate patchwork of ethnic and sectarian minority communities are receiving increasing international scrutiny. Many advocacy organizations representing Iranian minorities accuse Tehran of operating a policy of cultural subjugation aimed at erasing identities distinct from Iran’s dominant Persian culture... MORE
Turkey’s Other War on Terrorism
On December 31, 2007, the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth quoted the claims of unnamed Israeli security officials that intelligence reports suggested al-Qaeda cells had infiltrated into Turkey in preparation for an imminent attack against Israeli and U.S. targets inside the country. Yedioth Ahronoth reported that... MORE
Implications of the New Kurdish-Sunni Alliance for Security in Iraq’s Ninawa Governorate
As the U.S. military “surge” and the activities of Iraq’s Awakening Councils drive al-Qaeda and other insurgent groups into northern Iraq, a new and largely overlooked accord between Kurds and Sunnis could have enormous implications for the security situation in the Ninawa governorate. On December... MORE
MOSCOW EXPLOITING THE KOSOVO CONTEXT TO TAKE OVER SERBIA’S ENERGY SECTOR
The European Union looks like a bystander to Russia’s step-by-step capture of energy markets and infrastructure in EU territory. This time, Moscow is using an opening through Serbia, a country that Russia has tempted into isolation from the West by encouraging Serbian past-oriented nationalism over... MORE
RUSSIA STRUGGLES TO SUPPLY POWER TO DOMESTIC CONSUMERS
Distracted by the country's longest festive season, Russia has faced a series of power outages in early January, including in areas where temperatures plummet to extreme lows. The accidents came as an ominous reminder that Russia needs to improve and redevelop its basic infrastructure, specifically... MORE
Bin Laden Identifies Saudi Arabia as the Enemy of Mujahideen Unity
Osama bin Laden’s latest message is one of the richest, most comprehensive and starkly realistic he has issued since the start of the Iraq war. The following essay is the first of two that will analyze the message and offer an assessment of its importance.... MORE
Diyarbakr Bombing Marks New Stage in PKK Campaign
The January 4 detonation of a large, vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (IED) in the city of Diyarbakır in southeastern Turkey appears to mark a new phase in the 23 year-old insurgency of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). Shortly before 5 PM local time on the... MORE
PUTIN PRAISES SUCCESSFUL ICBM LAUNCHES
On December 25, Christmas Day, the Russian military test-fired two intercontinental ballistic missiles – one from land and the other from the sea. The Tula, a Delta-4 nuclear submarine, launched the RSM-54 Sineva from the Barents Sea. The Sineva is a modification of the Soviet-made... MORE
GAZPROM SET TO POUNCE ON SERBIA AS PUTIN MOVES INTO THE BALKANS
Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to visit Bulgaria on January 18 for the signing of a Russian-Greek-Bulgarian agreement to build the South Stream gas pipeline. A joint project of Gazprom and Italy’s ENI, the line would run from Russia across the seabed of the Black... MORE
MOSCOW RAISES STAKES IN IRAN GAME
In the last days of 2007, Moscow made several purposeful steps that barely registered in the West, where the Christmas break was already well underway. The first step was the delivery of fuel elements to the nearly completed nuclear power station in Bushehr, which could... MORE