Worldcrunch
When Istanbul’s Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu was arrested, it sent shockwaves through Turkey, igniting fears that no opposition figure was safe. But instead of silencing dissent, Erdoğan’s crackdown has sparked a nationwide movement that could shape the country’s political future.
Anti-corruption protesters find themselves on the wrong side of the law, charged with “character assassination of honorable people.
The Left’s reluctance to denounce President Maduro’s fraudulent reelection in Venezuela may seem tactical or expedient to itself, but is nothing short of stabbing the very principle of democracy at a challenging juncture in modern history.
Venezuela’s Bolivarian regime has been trampling on democracy, by degree, for 25 years while deftly managing international opinion to avoid too much backlash. Now, with Maduro defying fair elections, there may be no turning back.
Ten years of Narendra Modi’s leadership have contributed to create a personality cult around his person in India. But recent elections show that something is now changing, writes Harish Khare.
The Venezuelan opposition and its leader Corina Machado may yet end 25 years of socialist rule with an against-the-odds election win in July, which would bring to mind that of Corazon Aquino in 1986 that toppled the Marcos regime in the Philippines.
Olaf Scholz has refused to dissolve Germany’s parliament, even though his coalition suffered a major defeat at the European elections. The Chancellor’s weakened position comes at a bad time for Europe, where the union’s other major power, France, is also in a fragile state.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, now 84, has been in power since 1989. What will happen when he dies? His death may lead to a hybrid military-Islamic regime, with members of the Revolutionary Guards imposing a more pragmatic yet equally corrupt regime. It is time for the opposition to find a unified leader they can rally behind and that can help mobilize Iranians in the transition.
India goes to the polls next year, with a united opposition hoping to unseat Prime Minister Modi after 10 years in power. Mallikarjun Kharge, who may be the best candidate, is from India’s “lowest” caste system.
Two years ago, Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critic Alexei Navalny was jailed. Much has and hasn’t changed since then, but Putin’s invasion of Ukraine means that Russia has put itself on a course of no return.
Ever since journalist Marina Ovsyannikova protested on live Russian television against the war in Ukraine, her life has changed radically. Now that includes writing for leading German daily Die Welt. In her first article, Ovsyannikova explains what drove her action, how police have targeted her and why the Kremlin’s propaganda works on so many of her fellow Russians.
Russian pop starts, artists and athletes are speaking out against the war in Ukraine, with some already suffering the consequences.
The jail sentence against the opposition leader is a clear sign that strongman Lukashenko is not looking back.
-Essay- CAIRO — As someone who fully supports the Palestinian cause, it is challenging to write an article about boycotting Israel for fear of being dragged into the particulars of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In a world that is very much manipulated by biased media, it is hard to resist the urge to first rebut Israel’s […]
After last week’s sham election, the international community — starting with the nations of Latin America — need to isolate Maduro and encourage peaceful, democratic regime change.
-Analysis- It’s now more than a year since Donald Trump“s inauguration as the 45th President of the United States, and the media’s animosity towards him continues unabated. After his surprise victory against the wishes of the establishment, Trump remains the target of a never-ending campaign against his legitimacy, his very presence at the White House […]
Falling revenues, dire financial conditions and voter exasperation have curbed populist-socialist power in Venezuela and Argentina. The opponents have their work cut out for them.
ISTANBUL — The program to train and equip the “moderate opposition” in Syria, as long planned by the United States alongside Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, ended in utter failure. What led to this global diplomatic fiasco that has left the future of Syria looking so grim? The chain of problems began with the most […]
Hampered by plummeting oil prices and fading public support, President Nicolas Maduro and his crafty sidekick, Assembly leader Diosdado Cabello, are trying to provoke an opposition outburst. Last week’s arrest of Caracas Mayor Antonio Ledezma was a c
DAMASCUS — Across the country, an increasing number of would-be soldiers are ducking Syria’s mandatory 18-month military service requirement. In most cases, the young men are either hiding out — or taking up arms for the opposition. Hossam, a 26-year-old from Hama, has been summoned by the Syrian army to fulfill the compulsory 18-month service required of all young men here. But three years into a conflict that has killed more than 62,800 fighters from all sides, he is refusing to comply. “The Syrian army is no longer the nation’s army, and nothing motivates me to join it,” he says. […]
Reports of the Thai army taking control in a military coup come as a growing number of activists are openly challenging the country’s long-reigning King Bhumibol.
Siberia provided 76% of Russian exports. And taxes on its mined resources account for over half the federal budget. As tension grows at the Ukraine border, some in Siberia want more control.
NEW YORK — At long last, the members of the United Nations Security Council have reached an agreement on a Syria resolution. The West has agreed to give up on including language that Russia had furiously opposed — that is, to automatically sanction the use of force against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad if he fails […]
BBC, AFP Worldcrunch CAIRO — Ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi is to stand criminal trial for “incitement to murder,” though no trial date has been set, according to Egyptian state television and the AFP. The charges are related to the deadly clashes outside the presidential palace in December 2012, when at least seven people were […]
The images of an apparent chemical attack in Syria mean that the West’s wait-and-see approach is simply no longer viable.
AFP (France), TUNIS AFRIQUE PRESS (Tunisia) Worldcrunch TUNIS – The General Union of Tunisian Labour called for a general strike Friday, after thousands took to the streets to protest the killing of secular opposition leader Mohamed Brahmi, the state-run news agency TAP reports. People gathering in Mohamed Ali Square in Tunis (Photo – Ochlocratie via […]
CNN, KOMMERSANT (Russia), RIA NOVOSTI (Russia) Worldcrunch KIROV – Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was released from detention on bail Friday, one day after being sentenced to five years for theft and embezzlement. The Kirov regional court, east of Moscow, ruled that keeping him in custody would deprive him of his right to stand in […]
BUENOS AIRES – After a period when South American regimes seemed untouchable, the forces of opposition have revived in Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela. Up until a few months ago, South American presidents seemed invincible. They were reelected automatically. If someone faced a term limit, a successor would be designated who would later achieve a crushing, […]
AFP, AL JAZEERA (Qatar), BBC (UK), REUTERS Worldcrunch MOSCOW– Russia announced Friday that the Syrian government has agreed in principle to attend an international peace conference. The summit was proposed by Russia and the U.S. and could take place in Geneva, reports the AFP. “We note with satisfaction that we have received an agreement in […]
MOSCOW – There’s a novelty for the spring in two of the capital’s parks that has the air of democracy: Muscovites can now submit applications to hold public events on the official websites of Gorky Park and Sokolniki Park without having to get authorization from the authorities. This is part of a new program instituted […]
In Venezuela, Hugo Chavez’s handpicked heir will find securing his narrow victory was nothing compared to actually serving as president of a country with deep structural ills.
SYRIA ACCUSED OF RAZING NEIGHBORHOODSThe Syrian government is alleged to have unlawfully demolished entire neighborhoods in parts of Damascus and Hama to punish civilians in areas where the regular army had been fighting with the opposition, NGO Human Rights Watch said in a report published this morning. The study is based on satellite pictures that […]
ABC NEWS, CNN (USA), BBC NEWS (UK), Worldcrunch WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama has recognized the leading Syrian opposition coalition as the legitimate representative of the country’s people. “We’ve made a decision that the Syrian Opposition Coalition is now inclusive enough, is reflective and representative enough of the Syrian population that we consider them […]
–Editorial– In spite of what the polls say and the voting urns told us – Hugo Chavez has indeed won another term, which will keep him in power until 2019 – it is also true that the true triumph in Venezuela’s election yesterday lay elsewhere: in the support for the young Henrique Capriles Radonski, the […]
KOMMERSANT (Russia) RADIO SVOBODA (Russia) TBILISI – Celebrations continued into Tuesday morning in the capital as the opposition coalition “Georgian Dream” led by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, scored a surprise victory in Georgian parliamentary elections. Pro-government forces conceded defeat, saying the opposition obtained 51% of the vote. According to the opposition television channel, the results were […]
MOSCOW – U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland has announced that Washington would close the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) offices in Russia. Nuland said that it was the Russian government forcing the closure, a charge the Kremlin denies. “Like all foreign agencies that provide financing to Russian NGOs, USAID needs to follow […]
MOSCOW – Russia’s federal government, which has instituted its own new public order decrees, is starting to be concerned that the outer regions of the country are cracking down on civil society protests a little too enthusiastically. Regional leaders took part in a meeting last month of vice-governors with the presidential administration to discuss laws […]
BBC NEWS, THE GUARDIAN (UK), WASHINGTON POST, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (US) Worldcrunch MANAMA – A Bahraini civilian court has upheld jail sentences against 20 leaders of last year’s pro-democracy demonstrations, including eight prominent activists facing life in prison, reports BBC News. Among those convicted to life were Abdulhadi al Khawaja, who went on a 110-day […]
KOMMERSANT (Russia) KREMLIN NEWS (Russia) GAZETA.RU (Russia) NEWSRU (Russia) Worldcrunch SMOLENSK – A young mother and political activist, Taisiya Osipova was lucky enough that her case caught the attention of then Russian President Dimitry Medvedev, who came to her defense in January. But so far, at least, that has counted for little. Earlier this week, […]