Eurasia

The violent clash between Israel and Hamas during May 10-21, 2021 has brought back the prolonged Israeli-Palestinian conflict to the forefront of complex issues afflicting West Asia. The Arab Spring and its aftermath had relegated the conflict to the bottom of regional problems. The significance of the conflict had further …

While in the natural sciences a laboratory experiment can isolate various elements and their movements can be followed through, there is no equivalent in the economic discipline. The introduction of econometrics and model building is an attempt to produce a laboratory where controlled experiments can be conducted. The idea of …

In the wake of last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests, many have asked themselves what they are doing to tackle racial injustice. For economists, one central question is the extent to which the profession has examined the causes and consequences of racial inequality. This column reports evidence that race-related research …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Wednesday announced a four-month ban on all cryptocurrency mining, citing widespread power outages that have hamstrung the Islamic Republic earlier than usual this year. “Today everybody has a few miners laying around and are producing bitcoins,” the frustrated Rouhani told his cabinet. The practice of …

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday expressed his support for the nation’s Guardian Council decision, announced Wednesday, to disqualify a string of reformist candidates from running in the upcoming presidential elections. The move, which all but ensures victory for hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi, who currently serves as Iran’s chief …

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani has increasingly been seen meeting with tribal elders in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib, part of efforts to polish his image and that of his group. A video circulated on social media on May 17 showing the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), …

The Israeli shelling of the Gaza Strip has destroyed hundreds of houses and buildings, leaving many to stuck under rubble that rescuers are ill-equipped to move. Riad Eshkuntana, 42, recalled exactly where he was at 1 a.m. May 15 in his rented apartment on the third floor in the Abu …

Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would prefer that a consulate to another entity – the Palestinian Authority – not be on Israeli sovereign territory. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that Israel opposes the reopening of a US consulate for Palestinians in sovereign Israel, hours before …

Egypt has longstanding relations with both sides in the conflict and played a key role in brokering the Gaza ceasefire after 11 days of violence, in coordination with the United States. Egypt and the United States said they would work together to reinforce a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militants …

“We are ready for the great battle, if the enemy commits a great folly in Jerusalem and the holy sites,” Sinwar said in his first speech since Operation Guardian of the Walls. Gaza’s Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar claimed on Wednesday that Hamas has 500 km. of tunnels in the Gaza …