Worldcrunch
A summit of Arab countries will be held in Doha on Sunday to discuss the consequences of Tuesday’s Israeli raid on Hamas in Qatar. The Gulf states have reacted very negatively to this Israeli incursion, which appears as an act of pure hubris by Benjamin Netanyahu.
Once a fortress of neutrality and wealth, Qatar now finds itself on the front lines of an escalating regional conflict, as Israel, Iran, and Gulf powers maneuver for strategic advantage.
Qatar was crucial to the ceasefire negotiations in the Middle East. It proves that you don’t need a large army or nuclear weapons to play an important role in the world.
The people of Gaza will return to their homes, even those that have been destroyed. Loved ones will be reunited after a long separation, and far too much death. They will hug each other with amputated arms. Is there way to find joy amid the pain and rubble?
Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States — with an important role played by Donald Trump — along with Qatar and Egypt. It’s a relief to families of hostages and Palestinians in Gaza but also raises the question of the “day after,” which remains unwritten.
A ceasefire could happen any moment now in Gaza, with Donald Trump’s surrogates playing a key role in softening Benjamin Netanyahu. The president-elect wants to reenter the White House having already ended a conflict, even if nothing is actually resolved for the long term.
Having played a precious though ultimately futile role as mediator, Qatar announced it will step back from Gaza talks as both sides remain uninterested in a ceasefire. And following Trump’s election victory, there’s a notable new appointment to represent Israel in Washington.
Wounded by the bombs, some had to face surgeries on kitchen tables. La Stampa reporter Francesca Mannocchi met them and their parents in Doha, Qatar, where they seek refuge.
The higher cost of the war will not deter Hamas leaders from claiming victory once any truce is reached. It will only push the discussion of a real solution for the region farther away from all.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, just as Washington has submitted a stunning resolution at the UN pressuring Israel into a ceasefire. But is there a way out?
Famine creeps into Gaza, one could expect a certain pragmatism would push influential countries in the region to intervene. Yet each of these countries has its own political agenda.
In the Israel-Hamas war, Qatar now plays the key role in negotiations, while the United States appears increasingly disengaged. Shifts in the region and beyond require that Washington move quickly or risk ceding influence to China and others for the long term.
Ever since Hamas launched its attack on October 7, experts have feared that the conflict, alongside the one in Ukraine, could spill over into a large-scale war between the world’s major geopolitical players. Nikolai Kozhanov, associate professor at the Center for Gulf Studies at Qatar University, analyzes how likely this is and who would benefit from such a conflict.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed ahead a deal negotiated via Qatar, for a four-day truce and an exchange of 50 hostages for 150 Palestinian prisoners. Though the humanitarian and political pressure was mounting, Israel’s all-out assault is suddenly halted, with unforeseen consequences for the future.
Qatar is leading negotiations for one to two day humanitarian truce in exchange for the release of up to 15 hostages held by Hamas.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent tour of Gulf states is proof that the Turkish president aims to repair his country’s diplomatic ties in the region, all the while looking for investment for Ankara’s floundering economy. Quite the reversal of fortunes considering that not so long ago Gulf countries faced accusations of sponsoring the 2016 coup attempt in Turkey.
Despite the official “consensus” by Arab League nations to welcome Syria back to the organization after 12 years of suspension, several key countries were opposed on principal — including key questions still open in North Africa.
Located on the shore of the Red Sea, rich in natural resources, Sudan is strategically important to the Arab states of the Persian Gulf. Worried about a conflict that is getting bogged down, Arab capitals are mobilizing behind the scenes, with initial “pre-negotiation” talks beginning Saturday in the Saudi port city of Jeddah.
It’s been hailed as one of the most riveting finals in World Cup history ever. After 120 minutes of improbable reversal of fortunes, Argentina beat France on penalties. Argentine striker Lionel Messi scored twice (plus a penalty in the decisive showdown), securing his status of one of the sport’s all-time greats. This is how newspapers […]
The World Cup in Qatar has been political on many fronts. Right now, with the event in an Arab country for the first time and Morocco as the first Arab team to make the quarterfinals, the Palestinian question is now very much on the agenda.
This is the Argentine author’s fourth world cup abroad, but his first as the father of two young boys.
Soccer is a useful political tool for dictatorships. But Qatar is able to milk the World Cup as much as possible because the sport is infected by unbridled capitalistic greed.
The deaths of migrant worker deaths and Qatar’s poor human rights record will linger over the upcoming World Cup. Foreign powers need to intervene to help the situation of those trapped in slavery-like conditions.
The Qatar World Cup has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons. However, the newly constructed city of Lusail in the country makes one thing clear: the West is not the target audience for this World Cup. Qatar has different, even bigger ambitions.
For Cairo, Qatar had been part of an “axis of evil,” with anger directed at Al Jazeera, the main Qatari outlet, and others critical of Egypt after the Muslim Brotherhood ouster. But the vitriol is now gone, with the first ever visit by Egyptian President al-Sisi to Doha.
Authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran have laid out tough conditions for a nuclear deal. They apparently live in a parallel world, oblivious to the reality of Iran’s weakness after years of international economic isolation.
The legendary soccer star of FC Barcelona has signed up with the Parisian club, owned by the Emirate since 2011…and just in time for the World Cup slated next year in Qatar.
Image is valuable currency in our modern world. It can make or break a brand, or a career. Entire nations, meanwhile, also have to consider how they are seen — at home and abroad. We also know that for both companies and countries, image so often starts at the top. Take the now former Uber […]
The Brussels attacks are a reap-what-you-sow moment for Europe, after biding its time and coddling its dangerous allies for too long.
Ahead of Sunday’s talks in Rome on the Libyan crisis, the U.S. and Italy stress that a lasting solution to the ISIS threat must include Arab allies — and Moscow.
Despite the fanfare of the huge financial commitments from Arab and Western countries to rebuild Gaza after the latest Israel offensive, collecting the cash is a whole different story.
-Analysis- One year since taking office, Iran President Hassan Rouhani and his government are confronted with an extremely unstable geopolitical situation across the Middle East. Tehran had long been seen as the main beneficiary of the 2003 U.S. intervention in Iraq, but it must now face unexpected difficulties in its neighboring country and former sworn […]
The emirate of Qatar is tiny, but it wields disproportionate power in the world, where it maintains complicated and often troubling relationships. Just ask Israel.
Military defeat can still be a strategic victory for the Islamist militants of Gaza.
A Latin American call for the global soccer chief to step aside amidst ongoing corruption investigations. Yet even a Blatter-less FIFA would still have a long road to rectitude.
PARIS — There is no doubt among the people at the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), Europe’s soccer governing body, that allegations of corruption against UEFA President Michel Platini is a case of paranoia gone wrong. Some there believe that the controversy suggesting Platini was bribed to support Qatar’s 2022 bid may be the […]
The inside story of the Syrian army photographer assigned to log images of the victims of torture. One day, he’d seen enough, and joined the opposition – photos in hand.
SANTIAGO – Last year in London, engineers from Airbus presented their vision for the future: An airplane featuring a transparent roof that allows passengers to see the stars, with an air system that pumps antioxidants into the cabin air. If this audacious concept becomes reality in 2050 and the airline market remains more or less […]
FRANCE FOOTBALL, AFP (France) LE SOIR (Belgium) Worldcrunch PARIS – When Qatar was chosen as the site for soccer’s World Cup in 2022, the sports world let out a collective: What?…Where?? But for the more cynical, the real question has always been: How? According to Paris-based sports weekly France Football, the answer to that last […]