PALESTINIANS .. A STORY OF CONSTANT SADNESS

When Dorothy Thompson filmed her documentary on the situation of the Palestinian refugees in 1950, she named it "the Sands of Sorrow", it was the first documentary on the suffering of the people who, between 1947 and 1948, lost their homes and, in process, they lost their land, rights, and nation. The documentary was released in an attempt to mount enough solidarity and response to a dire situation and to end it soon. These sands of sorrow, and the roots of it, are still, six decades later, haunting the middle east.

It is our Humanity that guards our Soul

As I froze myself in front of the screen swirling around news channels, watching how tyrants are waging war against their own people, and how intellectuals debate in words of hate and suspicions .. I realized how desperately we need to understand each other. Maybe because we allow words to wrath in an emotionless language. We are casting out our humanity for the sake of political and economic interests  And this must be diverted to the other direction.

Al JAZEERA & BAHRAIN: BIASED OR NOT?

I hereby, before I rumble on about Al Jazeera and its coverage of Bahrain's "revolution", I would like to state that it will be a criticism of a news channel that I love and respect. And so, any attempt by anyone to criticize a loved party, usually, goes too much emotional, and too personal. Though, I will try to be objective as much as I can.

THE SYRIAN DILEMMA .. STATE TV WORSENING IT

As protests are sweeping around Syria, the Syrian TV, instead of listening to the call of its people, is keeping broadcasting the same absurd propaganda that we all watched in the media of Arab tyrannies. It didn't work in Egypt or Tunisia, and it did only managed to worsen the situation in Yemen, Jordan, and Bahrain. And it did fuel sectarian and ethnic tensions, and jeopardize the co-existence of the society other than saving the regime. Yet the Syrian state TV didn't learn the lesson.

SAUDI ARABIA: ISLAM BANS PROTESTS, BUT CORRUPTION IS OK

In their pre-emptive move to quell the feasibility of any protest call to materialize, Al Saud ailing ruling family returned, more than a week ago, to an old friend, the religious institution. The latter responded positively, and issued a fatwa, or a religious edict banning all kind of protests as un-Islamic. Really!!, .... And now the princes are more than satisfied. They are printing 1.5m copies of it. 
Someone told me: how on earth those princes don't feel ashamed by advocating such nonsense publicly?!! .. I say, it goes far worse than that, they don't feel ashamed admitting corruption publicly, just listen to Bander Bin Sultan, former Saudi ambassador to the United States.       

GREAT BRITAIN .. SHAMEFUL

Almost everybody in the Arab world cried demanding a No-fly-zone since the lunatic tyrant of Libya started bombing his people. The revolutionaries repeatedly, and for weeks, wondered, in complain, about the reason behind the delay of such implementing. The corrupt GCC leaders (Arab Gulf countries) asked the UN Security council to sanction such operation, crying crocodile tears over the causalities among civilians inflected by El Qaddafi forces. Amr Moussa, the Secretary of the Arab League, stated in a press conference the organisation's request, or consent, for the No-fly-zone to be carried out. Then, he went to Paris to consent again the start of actions.
But, once the coalition forces started bombing Libya's air defenses, the mood dramatically, changed.

WHAT IS BEHIND U.S.-SAUDI ALLIANCE? .. IT IS NOT OIL

I always wondered how could the United States allied itself with a State like Saudi Arabia. It looked to me that it is an alliance between certain values and its demonic opposite. An alliance between the 21st century and the 12th one. Between a country that embraces values (at least at home) like free expression, gender equality, the role of think-tanks, personal liberty, and human rights .. and a dark kingdom that

EVERYBODY WANTS AL ASSAD TO STAY .. EVEN THE ENEMIES

Since Syrian people started to break their silence and are protesting in demand of democratic reforms, the supporters of the Syrian regime kept accusing everyone who does not go along with Damascus' foreign policy, accusing them of destabilizing "the last Arab fortress of resistance", the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia got the most of the blame. Surprisingly, Hillary Clinton came out to state that Washington have no influence to exert over Damascus and won't seek the use of force if things there escalated. The ailing Saudi Monarch expressed solidarity with the Syrian president. But, a very bizarre wish that the Syrian president will survive this turmoil came for unexpected direction. Really. If you don't believe me, just read this article from HAARETZ ...

ARABS - FROM A GREAT CIVILIZATION TO BACKWARDNESS, WHAT HAPPENED?

Once upon a time, a thousand years ago to be precise, a super-intelligent alien arrived to earth to study its civilizations. The alien reached a conclusion that the far advanced Arab civilization will one day conquered all Europe, and will discover and settle in the Americas. The alien returned last year and shockingly asked: What happened?!!! Nicholas D. kristof is trying to provide an answer in his article published by New York Times ...   

OBAMA CAESAR ... THE IMPERIAL PRESIDENCY

If oneself picked a random person in this globe and asked him: What was George W. Bush worst blunder of his countless follies? I bet you the answer will be "waging war against Iraq" .. And if oneself asked why? .. One of the top answers will be "He waged it without a UN mandate" .. But the Bush-era has become of the past now, someone came cruising to the White house in 2008 with the word "CHANGE" is printed in-bold on his Sail .. He pledged to reverse his predecessor policy, and Libya came as his first test .. And YES, he passed it by securing a UN mandate, but wait, Oops .. He forgot to get a congressional authorization!! .. Simply, he didn't follow his predecessor policy, he followed Julius caesar's one.

MOROCCO .. IGNORED BY THE SPOTLIGHT

As Media breathlessly struggles for broader coverage of the Arab awakening, however, and in a way that seems deliberate, demonstrations in Morocco is not having its fair share of this coverage, in both Arab and International media, despite the continuous protests since the 20th of February. 

HOLD IT .. SOMEONE IS CLAIMING TO KNOW QADDAFI BETTER ..

Since his first speech after Libyans revolted against his backward regime .. El Qaddafi drew the attention of everybody .. Psychologist tried to analyze his lunacy, they were not much successful. UK's "The Telegraph" tried to dig deep in his mind, good job, but in vain .. And after a month of futile attempts .. A man came forward claiming that he knows El Qaddafi better .. He said that El Qaddafi is no saint, but a good man ..    

WHO IS THE GREATEST THREAT TO WORLD PEACE?

If a journalist asked any European politician: Who do you think is the greatest threat to world peace? I bet that he will pick an answer from the following package .. [Iran, Hamas, Syria, North Korea, Islam, Fundamentalists, extremists, Hizbollah, Al Qaeda, Islamist Jihad] .. but surprisingly, my eyes fell on a report that is saying that an EU poll, conducted few years ago, showed that European voters didn't pick from the same package their politicians would do .. they unexpectedly choose someone else .. check it out ..   

THE STORY OF THE ASCENDING TO THE THRONE OF "KING OF KINGS"

After the fall of the Shah in the late seventies, no one thought that someone will claim anymore the title of "Shahanshah" (King of Kings). Let alone, in the 21st century, a leader will be subjected to mockery if he does so, but with Qaddafi, lunacy prevailed. Elizabeth Dickinson tells the story of how Qaddafi maintained to secure such ascending in her article published by FP Magazine ..  

SYRIA .. NO LONGER A "KINGDOM OF SILENCE"

As pro-democracy uprising swept the Arab world, many argued, intellectuals and others, Arabs and westerners, that Syria is immune to such kind of a sweep, ironically this argument was advocated by Al Assad himself in a recent interview. The basis of such argument is stationed around

March Madness: Democrats vs. Dictators

In the West, they are fond upon the idea that the world is a battle between good and evil, just take a tour in any movie store and you will know what I mean, or a video games store .. but to contest it in an article!, this is new for me .. Ladies and Gentlemen, MARCH MADNESS by FP Magazine, Oh, I forgot to say that they (of course) put Putin in the Evil's side ..      

THE LESSONS OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

Amid the fury of the Arab awakening – not to mention the West deepening crisis over Libya – old Constantinople is a tonic, a reminder amid minarets and water, palaces and museums and bookshops and an ancient parliament and a thousand fish restaurants that this really was the only united capital the Arabs ever had (I disagree) .. Robert Fisk argues that Ottoman adventures hold lessons for the leaders of the West ... 

The Eve of the 1st War on Saddam: Four Days of Diplomacy

The history of the Persian Gulf War has been well documented, but the release of declassified transcripts of Saddam Hussein’s deliberations on Feb. 24, 1991, the first day of the Persian Gulf land war, provide gripping new details. Studied along with an archive of transcripts at the George Bush Presidential Library, these records disclose what led up to, and what occurred, on that fateful day. New York times .. 

DICTATORS' MANUAL TO QUELL UPRISINGS

After the success of the revolutions in both Egypt and Tunisia, other uprisings hit a wall. The remaining corrupt-dictators of the Arab world pulled out their demonic manual of "How to quell an uprising" .. Read it (in-Arabic) ..   

A NICE LITTLE STORY FROM SAD BAHRAIN

Bahrain:

More than a thousand people marched today in one of Bahrain's villages during a funeral of a protester that was killed by security forces yesterday. A reporter witnessed an injured look-like participant .. the reporter approached and the conversation went as follows:

I detest the Gaddafis .. But I disrespect them less than the rest

Did you heard Buthaina Sha'aban (A close and formal adviser of President Assad for political affairs)? She was the first Syrian official to address the issue of Dera'a .. I was waiting for such event .. because as far as I disagree with those Egyptians who argued that Egypt is not Tunisia, or with the Lybians who argued that Libya is not Egypt or Tunisia, ... and so on .. I agree with those who argue that Syria is not the rest of the Arab regimes .. The region which is witnessing a general turmoil for the last 3 months and so on, might explode if a revolution occured in Syria .. But after listening to Buthaina Sha'aban .. I said why not?!!! ..

THE RIVER OF MADNESS

Once upon a time, in a small kingdom where people lived in harmouny and prospirity, a river forged itself in the kingdom. People rushed to drink from the yet cold and clean water of this new river.

From that time and so on, the Kindom lived in a grave tragedy, they all drank from the river of madness ..  

King: What you are telling me is horrible!

Vizier: It is Fate, Your Majesty.

Q&A IN THE MIDDLE EAST

In the Arab world, where they chop your nose if they don't like your ears, even Q&A has its unique form ...


Q: Who did burn the ousted Tunisian dictator Bin Ali?

A: Mohammed Bu Azzizi