Category Archives: Middle East

Juan Cole on Turkish-Israeli Relations

Posted on June 29, 2010 by iPouya

Sometimes, most of time, maybe even all the time when I read Professor Juan Cole’s posts, I want to re-post them verbatim here. His recent post on Turkish-Israeli relations is once such moment. Read it here.

Posted in Middle East, The Conflict | Tagged | 2 Comments

Plight of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon

Posted on June 27, 2010 by iPouya

See the video here. If Walid Jumblatt is now speaking in support of Palestinian rights, it just goes to show how perilous their situation is in Lebanon.

Posted in Lebanon, Middle East | Comments Off on Plight of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon

Human Shields

Posted on March 16, 2010 by iPouya

Israel has long claimed that Palestinian civilians die at the hands of Israeli attacks only because Palestinian militants fire from among them and that civilians die from Israeli response fire. Palestinians have long claimed that Israelis deliberately target Palestinian civilians … Continue reading →

Posted in Middle East | 1 Comment

Bedfellows in a tiff

Posted on March 16, 2010 by iPouya

al-Jazeera video on how US-Israeli relations are now under strain.

Posted in Middle East | Comments Off on Bedfellows in a tiff

Army Ebbs, and Power Realigns in Turkey

Posted on March 8, 2010 by iPouya

[Excellent article on recent and historic developments in Turkey… thanx Asli] NY Times: ISTANBUL — The detention of top military officers in Turkey last week was nothing less than a quiet piece of history. The military, long considered untouchable in … Continue reading →

Posted in Middle East | 1 Comment

Brown-nosing the Saudi Dictatorship: A Shameful US Presidential Tradition

Posted on April 12, 2009 by iPouya

I know the media is in love with Obama, but is it okay to criticize him here and there? I mean, I still like him, but his Saudi ass-kissing, a Bush legacy honored by Obama, is seriously annoying. If I … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor, Middle East, Obama's Administration | 2 Comments

Documentary: “House of Saud”

Posted on February 22, 2009 by iPouya

And this too is for the blog’s archives.

Posted in Documentary, Middle East | Comments Off on Documentary: “House of Saud”

Video Project: “Shi’ism: From Defeat to Defiance”

Posted on January 24, 2009 by iPouya

This past semester I enrolled in Professor Harvey Cox’s “Fundamentalism in Religion and Politics” course at the Divinity School here at Harvard. For the final, he gave us the option of doing a video project or a final paper. My … Continue reading →

Posted in Hezbollah, Iran, Iranian Revolution, Islam, Islamism, Lebanon, Middle East, Shariati | 16 Comments

Happy Iranian New Year

Posted on March 20, 2008 by iPouya

And Nowruz was featured in Harvard University’s school paper, The Harvard Crimson.

Posted in Harvard University, Iran, Middle East | Comments Off on Happy Iranian New Year

State of the Union Address

Posted on January 29, 2008 by iPouya

How convenient is it that the Bush Administration supports “freedom in countries from Cuba and Zimbabwe to Belarus and Burma” and fails to mention that it supports tyranny and dictatorship in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt. Let me guess, if … Continue reading →

Posted in Iran, Middle East | 3 Comments

Rape in Saudi Arabia, Selective Justice by the US

Posted on November 22, 2007 by iPouya

So get this, a 19-year-old young woman was in a car with a young man, which is illegal in Saudi Arabia because the two were not married, and were both attacked and raped by 7 men. 4 of the 7 … Continue reading →

Posted in Human Rights, Iran, Middle East, US Foreign Policy | Comments Off on Rape in Saudi Arabia, Selective Justice by the US