Afghanistan has been no stranger to turbulence and upheaval, particularly concerning its historical association with terrorism. Situated at the crossroads of geopolitical rivalries, the country’s significance in the realm of global security has been pronounced, primarily owing to its tumultuous past, including periods when it served as a sanctuary for extremist elements.
Isolated from the international community and in urgent need of weapons and ammunition to continue its fight in Ukraine, Russia has chosen to double down on its alliance with North Korea. Although Moscow and Pyongyang have been allies for decades, recent developments point to deepening military cooperation, which may prolong the war in Ukraine and increase provocations on the Korean peninsula.
To those born in the 20th century, the phrase “Never Forget” carries an entirely different meaning than it does today. Back then, the rallying cry was most associated with the Holocaust. Today, it is linked to the events that took place on Sept. 11, 2001. When pro-Palestinian protestors on college campuses chant, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” one wonders how many young people could tell you what river and what sea? Do they understand it as a fierce antisemitic call to eradicate Israel and its people from the Holy Land? For that matter, how many would be able to define the word Holocaust? If education is the key to knowledge, then young Americans rallying on behalf of the pro-Palestinian cause are sorely lacking.
Over one hundred years ago, Ludwig von Mises wrote about the impossibility of successful rational economic planning under socialism. Yet China is still trying, even while its blend of markets and socialism results in shortages and surpluses. This article examines three contemporary initiatives spearheaded by Xi Jinping, each marked by an inherent problem: food insecurity, the aging crisis, and the real-estate bubble. Each problem was created by legislation and is being made worse by further legislation enacted to correct the problem.
At the recent European Summit in Brussels, the heads of state and government did not make the call for “humanitarian pauses” conditional on the release of the Israeli and foreign hostages held in Gaza by Hamas.
Israel has entered “a new phase in the war” against Hamas in Gaza, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said on Saturday. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has sent tanks and other ground forces into Gaza and kept them there while continuing its intense artillery attacks and aerial bombardment, but for now it has held off on an all-out ground invasion. It is not clear if there will ever be a formal D-day for such an operation, but Israel is steadily increasing its ground operations within Gaza, conducting raids into the strip and severing telecommunications there.
L’attaque dévastatrice du Hamas le 7 octobre a changé la donne au Moyen-Orient. Le dossier israélo-palestinien, relégué au second plan depuis au moins une dizaine d’années, est brutalement revenu au cœur de la géopolitique régionale.
Over the past few years, MEMRI has translated top officials from Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and even the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) talking openly about how Iran is funding their organizations’ military activity.
Hamas has a complicated and fragmented leadership structure. The militant components of the group have become more powerful in comparison to the political ones in recent years, in part due to Iranian influence.
Hamas’ unprecedented and deadly incursion in southern Israel on Oct. 7 brought the group to new levels of prominence in the region and internationally. Hamas’ leadership structure amid the ongoing war with Israel in the Gaza Strip is complex, but a closer look reveals who is in charge of what.
Aucun pays n’a sans doute autant bénéficié de l’invasion américaine de l’Irak que la République islamique d’Iran. Au cours d’une guerre qui a duré plus d’une décennie, Washington a dépensé plus de 2000 milliards de dollars de ses propres fonds pour éliminer l’un des adversaires régionaux les plus puissants de l’Iran. Ce faisant, l’invasion a facilité la montée du mouvement militant chiite irakien, qui constitue aujourd’hui le noyau des Forces de mobilisation populaire (FMP) irakiennes. Bien qu’il s’agisse techniquement d’une branche auxiliaire des forces de sécurité irakiennes, les FMP se tournent régulièrement vers Téhéran pour obtenir des conseils.