One of the lessons from our recent visit to Iran as a Peace Delegation is that Iran is a mature country. It is 2,500 years old, ten times as old as the United States and one of the world’s oldest continuous major civilizations with settlements dating back to 7,000 BC. …
Read More »Is a War With Iran on the Horizon?
The Trump Administration Is Reckless Enough to Turn the Cold War With Iran Into a Hot One Here’s the foreign policy question of questions in 2019: Are President Donald Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, all severely weakened at home and with few …
Read More »Senior Iranian official: foreign Shiite militias to fight in Iran if Islamic Republic in danger
On March 6, Hojjat ol-Eslam Musa Qazanfar-Abadi, the head of the Tehran Islamic Revolution Courts, said the Islamic Republic would deploy non-Iranian Shiite militias in Iran if the system faces danger of downfall.
Read More »Lebanon’s president says Hezbollah part of Lebanese people
Michel Aoun tells visiting UK foreign minister that organization, considered a terror group by Britain, is represented in the cabinet and parliament.
Read More »Iraq leader says Islamic State foreign fighters may face death penalty
Iraqi President Barham Salih said foreign Islamic State fighters tried in Iraq could be handed death sentences, according to an interview published by Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National on Friday.
Read More »Life after ISIS: Hellish public execution square in Raqqa returns to former glory
Once known as the Islamic State “public square from hell,” with regular executions, crucifixions, and lashings, Raqqa’s old Paradise Square is returning to its former glory, two years after its liberation.
Read More »The real Energy Return of Crude Oil: smaller than you would have imagined
A simple but important study by Luciano Celi shows what is the real energy return that oil companies manage to attain. Much smaller than you would have believed, in several cases it is today well below 10. Which means that renewable energies already produce a larger EROI than oil and …
Read More »Syria Accuses U.S. Stole 40+ Tons of Its Gold
The Syrian National News Agency headlined on February 26th, “Gold deal between United States and Daesh” (Daesh is ISIS) and reported that, Information from local sources said that US army helicopters have already transported the gold bullions under cover of darkness on Sunday [February 24th], before transporting them to the …
Read More »Iran and North Korea highlight pitfalls of Trump’s ‘maximum pressure’ strategy
Donald J. Trump’s hitherto failed ‘maximum pressure’ approach to Iran, as well as for that matter North Korea, begs the question what the US president’s true objectives are and what options he is left with should the policy ultimately fail.
Read More »Finding a way forward in the Baghdad-Erbil oil dispute
Disagreements between Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) over oil policy have been one of Iraq’s most stubborn problems. Resolving this issue would allow for better development of natural resources, generate more revenue that’s badly needed for reconstruction, and might potentially deflate competing claims to disputed territories. There are …
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