Recent Posts

Iraqi independents to form new parliamentary bloc

Representatives of the demonstrations and independent candidates did well in the Iraqi elections, unsettling many existing political elites. A group of independents and representatives from the October Movement plan to form an independent parliamentary bloc to oppose powerful forces and parties in the political arena. Iraq’s Independent High Electoral Commission …

Read More »

Syrian government forces deploy in response to Turkish threat

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces are sending military reinforcements to Tel Rifaat to confront any possible military operation that the Turkish army and the Turkish-backed Free Syria Army may launch. The Syrian government forces and their affiliated militias are still deploying military reinforcements in Tel Rifaat, which is under the …

Read More »

Political Islam and Democracy Crisis in North Africa

When the news circulated that Morocco’s leading political group, the Development and Justice Party (PJD), has been trounced in the latest elections, held in September, official media mouthpieces in Egypt celebrated the news as if the PJD’s defeat was, in itself, a blow to the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood movement. Regionally, …

Read More »

Muqtada al-Sadr: Iraq’s kingmaker in uncertain times

Al-Sadr’s party controls 70 of a total 329 parliamentary seats in Iraq and the movement has a large base across country. Muqtada al-Sadr remains one of Iraq’s most influential political figures and plays a pivotal role when it comes to the country’s future. He is currently considered the kingmaker, but …

Read More »

Poland Claws Back Sovereignty from European Union

Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal has ruled that Polish law takes precedence over European Union law. The power struggle has angered European federalists, who are seeking to turn the 27-member EU into a European superstate — a United States of Europe — and who do not take kindly to those who challenge …

Read More »