Author’s Note: The appearance of General Petraeus’s Counterinsurgency Field Manual, published recently for the US book trade by the University of Chicago Press, has created a stir because of charges of pilfered scholarship, damage to the reputation of UC, and the role of anthropologist Montgomery McFate in writing the book. The mission of social science […]
Geography Archives: Middle East
Peru Free Trade Agreement Faces Mixed Labor Response
On October 9, the Oregon AFL-CIO passed a resolution opposing the U.S.-Peru Free Trade Agreement and three other pending trade deals with Panama, Colombia, and South Korea. A state federation condemning a free trade deal would normally be an unremarkable event, except for the remarkable absence in the Peru case of a typically heavy-weight free […]
America, America!
Directed by KP Sasi and based on Kamaan Singh Dhami’s anti-war song “American War Paar Da! (Check Out the American War!),” the 4-minute music video is a satirical but severe indictment of America’s role in escalating world conflict. Originally written following the post-9/11 bombing of Afghanistan by the USA, and developed to address the occupation […]
The Hamilton Declaration on the Palestinian National Struggle
Over the weekend of October 27-28th, 2007, 54 delegates from Palestinian community organizations across Canada participated in a two-day convention in Hamilton, entitled the Palestine National Voice Preparatory Conference. The convention was the third in a series of preparatory meetings toward the founding of a national organization representing the Palestinian community in Canada. Previous meetings […]
Palestine and Apartheid
Preamble Dear Friends, it is a great privilege to be with you again since 2002. As you know, my address then has recently been in the news because on the basis of a distortion of what I said, President Dease of St Thomas University decided I shouldn’t visit his campus. It is good that […]
Resistance Movements Unite! Cairo International Conference and Liberation Forum
International Campaign against Zionist and American Occupation Cairo International Conference and Liberation Forum, 27-30 March 2008 Declaration of Principles For National and Individual Liberation In Support of Resistance to the Zionist/American Project Against Zionism and Imperialism Against Despotism and Oppression Against Exploitation and Corruption The political forces, popular committees, civil society organizations, and independent […]
They Met the Resistance
On one of those beautiful, fall Sunday mornings that can make you feel all is right with the world, filmmakers Molly Bingham and Steve Connors discussed their new documentary about Iraqis fighting the U.S. occupation, Meeting Resistance, 84 minutes of unflinching wallop destined to unhinge the way millions of Americans see their country’s role in […]
Israel’s Military Court System Is the Model to Avoid
Should the United States, seeking to recalibrate the balance between security and liberty in the “war on terror,” emulate Israel in its treatment of Palestinian detainees? That is the position that Guantanamo detainee lawyers Avi Stadler and John Chandler of Atlanta, and some others, have advocated. That people in U.S. custody could be held […]
On the Ninetieth Anniversary of the Russian Revolution: Why Socialism Did Not Fail
When the Russian Revolution of October 1917 took place, it raised the hopes of the working class worldwide that a socialist state was possible. The civil war that followed plus the intervention of foreign powers devastated the economy, necessitating a postponement in the transition to socialist relations of production. The New Economic Policy was a […]
How Can Anybody Be Persian? [Comment peut-on être Persan ?]
Dans son chef-d’oeuvre Les Lettres persanes, publié en 1721, le grand philosophe français Charles-Louis de Montesquieu s’interroge sur les comportements surprenants des Français : lorsque Rica, son voyageur iranien arrivé à Paris, décide de s’habiller à la française, il constate avec étonnement que ses amis français ne le traitent plus avec l’admiration qu’ils lui portaient […]
Surmounting Sectarianism in the Middle East: An Interview with Hisham Bustani
In a recent interview with the Qatari daily al-Raya, the Jordanian Marxist writer and activist Hisham Bustani analyses current issues: the situation in the Arab region; threats against Iran; the “Broader Middle East Initiative”; the U.S., Arab regimes, and Islamists; and prospects of the Arab liberation project. This interview, conducted by the journalist As’ad al-Azzouni, […]
Iran: Bernard Kouchner’s Declaration [Iran : Déclaration de Bernard Kouchner]
La déclaration de Bernard Kouchner appelant à se préparer à la possibilité d’une guerre avec l’Iran est inquiétante. Cette déclaration venant après le discours de Nicolas Sarkozy sur une alternative entre « la bombe iranienne ou le bombardement de l’Iran », simplifiant à l’outrance le problème du dossier nucléaire iranien, vise en réalité à préparer […]
Abuse of Iran’s President in New York Fits a Pattern
Many Iranians, ranging from university presidents in Iran to immigrants here in the United States, feel insulted by the treatment president Ahmadinejad received in New York in September. This is understandable, coming in the midst of a larger media campaign to demonize Iran, including the newspaper cartoon last month that depicted Iranians as cockroaches crawling […]
Russian and Iranian Presidents’ Joint Statement
Wednesday, October 17, 2007 Tehran, 16 October: A joint statement has been signed following today’s talks in Tehran between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinezhad. Here is its full text. On 16 October 2007, which corresponds to 24 Mehr 1386 in the Iranian calendar, Russian President Vladimir Putin, at the head of […]
“Resistance Is Part of Our Culture and History”: Interview with Khaled Hadadeh, Secretary General of the Lebanese Communist Party (PCL) [“La résistance fait partie de notre culture et de notre histoire”: Interview de Khaled Hadadeh, secrétaire général du PCL, parti communiste libanais]
Le Parti communiste libanais participe à la résistance contre l’occupation israélienne, résistance politique, sociale, mais aussi armée, malgré le peu de moyens dont il dispose. Nous avons passé une journée entière à Jamaliya, dans la vallée de la Bekaa, où 7 militants communistes sont tombés les armes à la main lors d’une opération israélienne en […]
Putin in Iran: Interview with Vladimir Putin
Interview with IRNA Information Agency and Iranian State Television and Radio ABBAS ALI HADJI PARVANE: In the name of Allah! Mr President, we are very grateful to you for finding the time to give us this interview in spite of your busy schedule and to answer our questions on Russia’s international position and bilateral relations […]
In Defense of Academic Freedom
Listen to the recordings of the “In Defense of Academic Freedom” conference (University of Chicago, 12 October 2007). Click on the links to download them in MP3 format. Introduction — Tariq Ali, Editor of the New Left Review and Verso Books Dr. Noam Chomsky, Institute Professor & Professor of Linguistics (Emeritus), Massachusetts Institute of […]
Unembedded, an American Journalist Keeps Focus on Iraqis
The U.S. corporate media have been widely criticized for their refusal to question the Bush administration’s motives and assertions during the run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Armed with one-sided experts and pundits, the media fanned the passions of the American public, acting as a kind of perverse cheerleader for war with slick TV […]
Much Ado about A Lot: Uranium Mining in Canada
An Anishnabe blockade in 1996. Photo by Macdonald Stainsby John Cutfeet outside the Legislature in June 2007. Members of Grassy Narrows and Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nations protested mining on their land. Photo Adrian Wyld Opposition to uranium mining has once again become a major topic of coverage by the media. From Australia to Canada, people […]
Pro-Israel Oppressors Cherished at Columbia University
In the fuss about Iranian president Ahmadinejad’s visit to New York, a finer point was lost. Columbia University and its current president, Lee Bollinger, have for some time each been a leader in the fields of foreign policy opportunism and service to global oppressors. In 1955, a mere two years after the CIA reinstated the Shah […]
