Archive for March 25, 2011
Gates realizes that there are only three authoritarian regimes in the whole Middle East
“Gates cited Syria, Libya and Iran as examples of “authoritarian regimes (that) have suppressed their people and have been willing to use violence against them.”" And one of the three was a close ally of the US, until a few weeks ago.
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
Al-Khalifah and the sectarian war
“Pakistani emigration to Bahrain jumped to almost 6,000 people in 2010, a sixfold increase from 2001, official Pakistan government figures show. A breakdown of how many Pakistanis go into security-force jobs wasn’t available, but Police of Pakistani or…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
Hillary says that Moroccan autocracy is a democratic model
“At a joint press briefing after meeting with Foreign Minister Taieb Fassi Fihri yesterday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised Morocco for advancing democratic reforms under His Majesty King Mohammed VI, and for advocating internati…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
`Ali Farzat responds
`Ali Farzat–that most brilliant of cartoonist–responds to the lousy press conference by Buthayna Sha`ban.
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
Saudi dirty hands
Just like in the Iranian opposition, there are elements–elements, not all–in the Syrian opposition. They operate through the criminal and corrupt Rif`at Asad (who in turn works for Saudi Arabia) and through the Muslim Brotherhood. Note th…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
The sectarian factor in Syria
The Alawite ruling elite in Syria would not give up power willingly or unwillingly. If protests grow in Syria, bloody confrontations are very likely. This would resemble neither Tunisia nor Egypt. There is no Army that can stand above…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
Reform in Syria?
Of course, the announcement of “reforms” in Syria yesterday would not have been sufficient to address popular grievances. A decision to “study” the matter of state of emergency? Or a formation of a committee to combat “corruption”? This was a jok…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad
The disgrace of Lebanon: Defense Minister Ilyas Murr
“noting that the Israelis behaved “sweetly” and asked if the LAF “could come tomorrow.” Murr was amazed that the Israelis had already pulled most of their troops out of the South, even though the LAF and UNIFIL-plus might still be s…
Posted on March 25, 2011 by As'ad