Archive for October 14, 2011
Ahmad Chalabi
My weekly article in Al-Akhbar: ”Ahmad Chalabi in Beirut”
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Qatar reforms
“Yet many of the political reforms have stalled. Parliamentary elections, originally promised for 2005, have been postponed indefinitely. For the time being, despite Sheikh Hamad’s talk of elections, the country continues under the old, largely unacc…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
courage in journalism award
There is a one page ad in the NYT today about some silly international journalism award and it usually features the picture and name of Queen Youtube of Jordan. But she has been out of the limelight since the beginning of the Arab uprisings, so s…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
I am never concerned when Israel is concerned
“Israeli government officials said as early as July that troves of Libyan antiaircraft missiles, rocket-propelled grenades and other weapons were being smuggled by land across Egypt into the neighboring Gaza Strip, the Palestinian territory t…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
The Saudi ambassador in DC
During a class we took (`Adil Jubayr (current Saudi ambassador in US) and I among others) on International Relations in the Middle East with Michael Hudson at Georgetown University, we all had to make presentations about our research papers. When…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Hariri tribunal and the Iranian plot in DC
Kuwait press was respectable until the royal family expelled Palestinians from Kuwait in 1991. ”Well, possibly – look at the Al-Rai al-Aam story today – which says the plot looked a lot like the Hairi bomb (!) and that maybe a Lebanese bank m…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
From Stockholm
Uffe sent me this: “Regarding the release of Gilad Shalit, the western media is not even slightly aware of the bizarre proportions of it all. Gilad Shalit have received far more attention and articles than all palestinian prisoners throughout hsitory, …
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Spies of Arab embassies: when the US acts
Angry Arab chief Bahrain correspondent wrote me this: ”I’m glad you posted something about the Syrian spy. The entire thing is making me so angry. Why? Because Bahrain has been spying on Bahrainis abroad in the US, Canada, the UK and Australia …
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
a movie on Kristof
Marc sent me this: “hey remember the win a trip with nicholas kristof contest? o man, they made a movie out of it where they go to the DRC. throughout the movie kristof tries to speak french to the locals, its the funniest shit ive ever seen, he sounds…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
US Congress intervenes
“In his letter to Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf, Berman wrote: “In light of the recent tensions between Egypt and Israel, there is a widespread perception that the reported ban on lulav exports was imposed for purely political reasons,” he wrote…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Egyptian air force
Egyptian air force command yesterday bragged that it is patrolling the skies over Sinai to protect Israeli occupation and its war crimes. So the Egyptian military can kill Copts while protecting Israel.
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Pierre Ghanim
Saudi media favor hiring right-wing Lebanese with ties to Phalanges or Lebanese Forces. Take Al-Arabiyya (the news station of King Fahd’s brother-in-law): he is one of the worst correspondent on the screen. Bad command of Arabic and inabili…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Iranian government
By the way, people don’t realize that the lousy Iranian government is extremely cowardly in responding to Saudi propaganda attacks. Like the lousy Syrian regime, the Iranian regime deceptively always claims that all is well between Iran and Saudi…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
royal report on Bahrain
Angry Arab chief Bahrain correspondent: ”This is a very interesting interview by Cherief Bassiouni, head of the Bahrain “Independent” Commission of Inquiry. Bassiouni had stated that he would stop giving interviews before the report is submitted…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Even Judith Miller is skeptical
“Several diplomats, who asked not to be identified by name, also expressed surprise that senior Iranian officials would have authorized such an ambitious, but amateurish plot at this time. “Very little about this makes sense,” one of the foreign offici…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Nadine Nujaym
Yesterday, a Lebanese actress (and a former Miss Lebanon), Nadine Nujaym, appeared on an entertainment show on New TV and was talking about love of one’s country so she quoted Hitler on the subject. Kid you not.
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Aljazeera and Al-Arabiyya
Aljazeera and Al-Arabiyya are like Fox News in another way: they all claim that they are objective.
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Syrian reforms
I was thinking this morning when I woke up to yet another death toll in Syria. Can you think of one concrete “reform” enacted by the lousy Syrian regime? One? I am not talking about various committees by the Ba`th party, but about con…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Car Salesman’s terrorism
The Texas-based Iranian-American cars-salesman is now linked to attacks on US soldiers in Iraq. See this article. It proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that if it were not for the Quds Forces, the Iraqi people would have no reason to …
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad
Muftis for hire
The Syrian regime Mufti last week threatened that there are people ready in the West to perpetrate suicide operations if Syria or Lebanon are attacked by Western governments. Syrian opposition supporters sent me video of the same Mufti in which h…
Posted on October 14, 2011 by As'ad