JUNE 18, 2014 A THIRD IRAQ WAR? POSTED BY ROBIN WRIGHT The United States now faces the possibility of its third intervention in Iraq. On paper, the two earlier wars quickly achieved their military goals. In 1991, a muscular alliance of thirty-four nations, led by the United States, forced Iraq to withdraw from…
9-11 and the United States’ Empire of Language and Ideas
Old globes are comforting relics. They show how old rivalries and threats fade — just as today’s will do. al-Qaeda Crippled If you are looking for a date on a globe, you probably won’t find one. Most manufacturers want to preserve shelf life as long as possible. But half the fun of…
The weeks before President Obama ordered Navy SEALs into Pakistan in pursuit of Osama bin Laden, administration officials weighed using American warplanes to obliterate the terror mastermind’s fortified compound from the sky or sending commandos on a high-risk mission to assault the structure from the ground. But there’s one option the administration appears to…
As evidenced by this year’s “Arab spring,” Osama Bin Laden’s political influence began to wane even before his death.
Protesters destroy a car belonging to government supporters during a protest outside Sanaa University yesterday. Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh said protesters demanding an end to his 32-year rule could not achieve their goal through ‘anarchy and killing’, after nationwide unrest which has killed too many. – A possible US shift calling for…
What a world! Much of North Africa remains roiled with mass protests against autocratic or crazed leaders. One predictable result has been skyrocketing oil prices with potentially adverse consequences for recovering economies. And, in the United States, a possible shutdown of government looms because America’s two political parties prefer to indulge in a game of…
This is a make or break moment for al Qaeda.