Category: Opinion

Sat 01 February 2020: To the surprise of the pollsters, the media, the political class and arguably most of the British public, Brexit won by 52% to 48%, or by 1.3 million votes. It has been a divisive vote, pitting London, Scotland and Northern Ireland against the rest of England and Wales, the young against […]

Sat 01 February 2020: With anti-regime protests once again breaking out across Iran,  it’s notable that one region, Ahwaz, is conspicuously not participating, at least so far, in the latest wave of demonstrations. The brutally oppressed people of Ahwaz in southwest Iran are certainly watching and silently supporting the current demonstrations, this time instigated by regime […]

Thu 30 January 2020: Following the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923, African affairs were regarded as a secondary issue in the new state’s foreign policy. Until relatively recently, that is, when Cold War dynamics compelled the Turkish government to align itself with the West. Having good relations and alliances with the West was […]

Wed 29 January 2020: Rohingya Muslims, described by the UN as one of the most persecuted minorities in the world, have finally seen a beacon of light in the fight for justice driven forward by Gambia. The historic decision by the UN’s International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Myanmar is now legally bound to protect Rohingya […]

Tue 28 January 2020: Pro-government media and politicians have cast the protesters as paid anti-India agents, but that’s far from the reality driving the demonstrations. The passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) has led to one of the longest and most intense citizen-led, anti-government mobilizations in India in the last decade. Deemed discriminatory in nature, the […]

Wed 22 January 2020: Nationalism and national identity are two key concepts in the shaping of the contemporary world since the 19th century. Nationalism aims to create group loyalty, through a single national identity based on various aspects particular to a certain nation or homeland, including culture, religion, politics and a common shared history. Nationalism, […]

Mon 20 January 2020: Soleimani is the product of the same historical events that have curbed popular sovereignty and democracy in the region. A plethora of articles has been published in recent days on the US air strike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis. Many authors claim that it “is […]

Sun 19 January 2020: Iraq is far too fragile to find itself on a collision course with the US, for the sake of Iran. In the aftermath of the US drone strike that took out infamous Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) General Qasem Soleimani, Tehran’s allies in Baghdad have been making noise about forcing […]

Thu 16 January 2020: The clash between the ‘resistance’ and ‘revolutionary’ movements will define the Middle East in the future. The events surrounding the US assassination of Iranian Quds Force leader Major General Qassem Soleimani brought to the surface the two main ideological forces that now battle each other across the Middle East – the […]