Russian Diplomat on Syria: Iran, Hezbollah Not Our Chess Pieces to Move

Faced with the defiance of Syria’s allies, Israeli occupation forces have grown increasingly desperate and attempted to not only whip up sectarian passions pitting Sunni Muslim Syrians against Shias, but have also blamed Iran for causing “millions” of refugees to flee to Europe.

Elliott Gabriel
By Elliott Gabriel

BEIRUT – In a signal of foreign powers’ inability to dictate terms to regional forces involved in the Syrian conflict, Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin has made clear that Russia has no intention to press resistance movement Hezbollah or Iranian military advisors to vacate Syria. The call to oust them from the country, along with

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IDF Videos Aimed Squarely at Spurring Arab-on-Arab Hate and Sectarianism

The head of the IDF’s Arabic language media division has been making a series of videos hoping to undermine Arab support for Palestine and foment hate against Iran.

Whitney Webb
By Whitney Webb
IDF Arabic media spokesman Avichay Adraee.

GAZA – A new video released by an Israeli Defense Force (IDF) spokesman has unnerved many in the global Muslim community for its use of sectarian rhetoric and slurs targeting Shia Muslims that are often used by leaders of extremist Wahhabi terror groups. The video, released on social media on Thursday and already with more than 20,000 views,

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Saudi Attempts to Sow Seeds of Sectarianism in Yemen Are Backfiring

Day and night, Yemenis in rebel-held areas are bombarded with polarizing sermons, radio ads reminiscent of the vitriol that fueled the 1994 Rwandan massacre, and leaflet drops that routinely rain down messages of disunity like confetti commandments hurled from an angry, vengeful God.

Ahmed Abdulkareem
By Ahmed Abdulkareem
Supporters of Yemen's Houthi Shias attend a rally to mark the third anniversary of the Yemen's revolution in Sanaa, Sept. 21, 2017. Abdel-Malek al-Houthi, the leader of Yemen's Houthis, accused the U.S., Saudi Arabia and the UAE of seeking to divide Yemen. (AP/Hani Mohammed)

SANA’A, YEMEN -- A  phalanx of flickering video cameras frames the portly Saudi Imam in a shimmering half-light, as he exhorts a brigade of Sunni Muslim mercenaries from the East African nation of Sudan to prepare for battle with rebels from Yemen’s Shia sect known as Houthis. The (Saudi) King Salman Bin Abdulaziz brought you to defend the Prophet

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How will Washington’s Third Gulf War Play Out?

The way to war, which will surely prove to be the road to hell, seems open with a Third Gulf War looming on humanity’s horizon.

Michael T. Klare
By Michael T. Klare
Iraqis pass by a British tank as they flee Basra, southern Iraq, as smoke looming over the city can be seen in the distance, March 29, 2003. (AP/Anja Niedringhaus)

With Donald Trump’s decision to shred the Iran nuclear agreement, announced last Tuesday, it’s time for the rest of us to start thinking about what a Third Gulf War would mean. The answer, based on the last 16 years of American experience in the Greater Middle East, is that it won’t be pretty. The New York Times recently reported that U.S. Army

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Trump Just Made Non-Arab Iran the Champion of Arab Nationalism

As Saudi Arabia embraces Donald Trump and Israel, Iranian leaders called for all 56 Muslim-majority countries to make a stand against the US decision on Jerusalem, proclaiming that the city will always be Arab and Islamic.

Juan Cole
By Juan Cole
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks with Iranian officials, participants of the 31st International Islamic Unity Conference and ambassadors from Islamic countries, in Tehran, Iran, Dec. 6, 2017. Khamenei condemned President Donald Trump's imminent recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. (AP Photo)

Opinion -- Some sections of the crazy quilt that makes up the Trump administration want to push Iran back out of the Arab world and weaken it, in support of Israel and Saudi Arabia. Those actors have just been handed a big setback by Trump’s slurred and crazed announcement that he will move the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem and recognize it as

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Iraq Defeated ISIS, but the Battle Against Extremism Rages On

The military campaign against the Islamic State is almost over. But now, locals and politicians alike say, the Iraqi government must work to ensure they cannot return to recruit more followers.

Mustafa Habib
By Mustafa Habib
A suspected ISIS fighter sits in a basement as Iraqi forces continue their advance against Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq, July 3, 2017. (AP/Felipe Dana)

Even as Iraq’s pro-government forces close in on Rawa, one of the very last strongholds of the extremist group known as the Islamic State, ordinary Iraqis everywhere are wondering where the extremists will turn up next. A series of recent attacks and arrests are cause for concern. In Kirkuk, the headquarters of the Shia Muslim militias in that

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