Syrian President Bashar al-Assad finally addressed the nation in a televised speech. As with recent pronouncements from Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and Bahrain’s King Hamad Al Khalifa, Assad’s performance contained all the classic elements of the time-tested Arab strongman’s harangue A R A B I C A ارابيكا By Kristen […]
Month: March 2011
Air support from Western powers has helped the Libyan rebels, but they are outgunned by Gaddafi’s forces along a complicated political and tribal landscape.
Hans-Peter Friedrich has upset Muslims before with his historical views. Now, critics say, he hit more bad notes during the annual Islamic Conference, where he invited Muslim participants to form a “security partnership.”
As Shiite-led protests against the Sunni royal family are met with a violent crackdown, some in the Shiite majority have started to lash out at Pakistani immigrants, who are Sunni.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا CAMERAS ROLLING *Video of a night rally in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo showed protesters chanting “freedom” …. “one hand” … “unity” as the popular challenge to the reign of President Bashar al-Assad continues to gain momentum. Comments on the video included: “The regime is going […]
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THE CONCEPT We know Worldcrunch can reach even farther, deeper and faster with the active participation of all newshounds of goodwill and linguistic abilities to help spot and/or translate relevant (and just plain good) stories from around the planet. Crunch It will become our platform to make that happen. THE FRAMEWORK We are still kicking […]
Luxury brands are eager to take advantage of India’s new wealth. But the road to success is strewn with political and cultural obstacles.
Towards the end of World War II, the German Luftwaffe airforce resorted to a series of deadly suicide missions. Die Welt journalist and historian Sven Felix Kellerhoff examines a little documented chapter in Germany’s military history.
The worst nuclear accident in history is frozen in time in this Ukrainian city. Is this the fate that awaits the Japanese towns near the Fukushima plant?
The faux spy scandal debacle couldn’t have come at a worst time for the French carmaker, already struggling to regain its mojo on the hyper-competitive European auto market It’s been a long winter for Renault (Marc Lagneau) It’s tough these days to remember that Renault promised to refund 100 French customers the price of their […]
A R A B I C A ارابيكا SIZING UP SYRIA *Pan-Arab news website Elaph.com reports witnesses in Daraa as saying that members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard are part of the 5,000-strong troop contingent surrounding the southern Syrian city. There are also reports of “Hezbollah elements’ in both Daraa and the northern city of […]
Migrants fleeing Tunisia and Libya cross the dangerous Strait of Sicily to the island of Lampedusa and other landing spots in Italy. Eventually, many amass in Ventimiglia, an upscale Italian border town and resort in the north that is the gateway to Franc
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An Obituary For The Hated German
According to a recent BBC poll, Germany is the best country in the world — for the third year running. Do we really deserve it? BERLIN – The 2009 International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has a “red list” of threatened species, which includes 17,291 species in danger of extinction. But there’s one endangered […]
The Venus of Morgantina, a priceless pre-Christ statue, crosses land and sea after Malibu’s Getty Museum agrees to let her go after a long battle over business, laws and history. (maveric2003) ENNA – The Venus of Morgantina, a priceless statue dating back to the fifth century B.C., has made it home to a remote Sicilian […]
Veteran Turkish war correspondent Cengiz Candar, who covered the aftermath of an ill-fated uprising in Syria in 1982 which left thousands dead, tries to predict where the country’s current popular rebellion will lead.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy is stuck with an approval rating below 30 percent. Will his weekly lunches with the cream of Paris “civil society” help change his image?
In the town where Syria’s popular revolt began a week ago, and where dozens or more were reportedly shot dead by government troops, there is no sign protesters are ready to surrender. Protesters disperse after police open fire in Daraa (Youtube) DARAA – The capital, Damascus, may be staunchly behind Syrian President Bashar Assad, as […]
French authorities try to step up their campaign against alcohol. The result may create more confusion than concern.
The U.S. President finds himself trapped in a war he didn’t want to fight, with the 2012 elections already on the horizon. A European perspective on fast-moving events in Washington, and beyond.
After its diplomats abstained in opposition to last week’s UN Security Council resolution on Libya response, China state media and bloggers take up debate over Western policy. A U.S. F-16 pilot returns from mission over Libya (dvidshub) BEIJING – If one was to believe China’s official press and its television and radio outlets, the war […]
Editorial: In Germany, the clamor for a rapid end to nuclear power ignores a long list of consequences, from wind turbines in forests and to slowing down on the autobahn. Anti-nuclear protesters in Germany (2e14) Germany’s energy policy has three objectives: security, efficiency and environmental protection. This is law, enshrined in the preamble to the […]
Proud of their quickly constructed but costly welfare state, the Portuguese have always wanted to play in Europe’s big league. Now that it’s time to pay the bill, they may have to reconsider.
Despite the unfolding crises in Libya and Japan, U.S. President Barack Obama stuck to his Latin America agenda with stopovers in Brazil, Chile and El Salvador. Obama wined and dined in Santiago with Chilean President Sebastian Piñera (Gobierno de Chile) EYES INSIDE – LATIN AMERICA Perhaps the biggest news from U.S. President Barack Obama’s first […]
In the small town of Taro, as elsewhere along the coast, the massive anti-tsunami wall could not withstand the violence of the wave that destroyed all in its path.
Prostitution is on the rise in Paris. The number of streetwalkers on the outer northern boulevards of the city has increased, as authorities debate so-called “passive solicitation,” and look for new ways to crack down on the sex trade.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا LIBYA instant analysis …forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi barraged the western city of Misurata as allied airstrikes entered their fourth day. An item on the BBC’s Arabic page warns that “the specter of Iraq looms over Libya crisis.” Foreign military intervention in both countries is […]
Famed Italian director Franco Zeffirelli worked with Elizabeth Taylor, and was also a longtime friend. Here are his reflections on the death of the legendary American actress at the age of 79. Elizabeth Taylor (spleeny) People like Liz no longer exist. With her passing, the sun has set on that image of the unforgettable diva. […]
Bank of Italy governor Mario Draghi is in pole position to replace Jean-Claude Trichet as president of the European Central Bank. But Germany, which was widely expected to provide the next ECB head, remains ambiguous on Draghi’s chances. Mario Draghi (INSM) By Gianluca Paolucci Bank of Italy Governor Mario Draghi would be a “first-rate candidate” […]
The Libyan leader has turned for additional firepower to the Tuareg berber people, who have a history of relations with Tripoli — and their own longstanding conflict with the Niger government.
PORTRAIT – Egypt’s last monarch, Ahmed Fouad II was forced out of his native country before his first birthday. Today, he lives a quiet life in Switzerland, bankrolled by the Saudis, and rejoicing over the democratization of his country.
Alcohol consumption has halved over the past 50 years, as the quality of wine has risen.
Ahmed Gaddaf al-Dam looks so much like his older cousin Muammar Gaddafi that people can’t tell them apart. Did he defect to Egypt? Or was it just a cover to run a secret mission to Syria?
Editorial: Germany’s abstention in the UN Security Council vote on Libya was a mistake. The French are wondering what’s behind our Merkel’s hesitation. Angela Merkel (wef) One of the disadvantages of political decisions is that we only learn after the fact if they were farsighted or foolish. Whether history will deem our decisions right or […]
The Japanese nuclear plant, which continues to burn and emit radioactivity, was the lifeblood for people like Yutaka Takano, who was on the afternoon shift when disaster struck.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا ON THE GROUND *Forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi barraged the western city of Misurata as allied airstrikes entered their fourth day. An item on the BBC’s Arabic page warns that “the specter of Iraq looms over Libya crisis.” Foreign military intervention in both countries is […]
Catholic Church condemns as “sinful behavior” certain so-called social vices, including medical help for sterility. But will adding new sins bring faithful back to confession?
It is unlikely European oil companies ENI, Repsol and Total will be able to return to their operations in Libya if Muammar Gaddafi’s regime remains intact. (Rul) The future of Western oil companies in Libya appears increasingly linked to the outcome of the rebellion against Muammar Gaddafi. Spanish Repsol, French Total and Italian ENI all […]
The Libyan leader’s lifelong grudge with Italy, and the Italian attempts to appease him, may help explain how Gaddafi sees the current conflict. (AbodeOfChaos) It all began with a scar, a sign left on the arm of a child who’d been playing with his cousins along a stretch of desert. That scar sealed the fate […]
What pushed Libyans to rise up against Gaddafi’s regime? It may have all begun with the Feb. 15 arrest of Fathi Tirbil, a young Benghazi attorney known for his probes into earlier massacres.
A R A B I C A ارابيكا YEMEN IMPLODING *The respected opposition news website YemenPortal, run by a Yemeni dissident based in Sweden, is monitoring blow-by-blow the rapidly breaking news of mass defections from the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. *Meanwhile, the official Saba news agency features an announcement by the military, which […]