OPINION: Julian Assange’s charges are a direct assault on press freedom, experts warn

Fri 12 Apr 2019: Parts of the indictment go head-to-head with basic journalistic activities protected by the first amendment, academics say The charge sheet accusing Julian Assange of engaging in criminal theft of US state secrets contains a direct assault on fundamental press freedoms and could have a devastating effect on the basic acts of journalism, leading […]

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OPINION: In India’s election race Narendra Modi isn’t the strongman the world assumes

The country’s massive diversity means the Hindu nationalist leader needs to do more than threaten war with Pakistan he conventional wisdom in Delhi is that recent border clashes with Pakistan over Kashmir will help Narendra Modi win the landmark election that starts 11 April. If patriotic fervour benefits incumbent leaders, the prime minister is certainly well placed. […]

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OPINION: Bulldozing mosques: the latest tactic in China’s war against Uighur culture

Mon 8 Apr 2019 The levelling of ancient sites in Xinjiang, alongside mass detention, is part of an attempt to destroy an entire society en years ago, I started researching Islam among the Uighurs. I spent my summers travelling around the Xinjiang region in western China. I took long bus journeys through the desert to Kashgar, Yarkand […]

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OPINION: Blacklisting Iran’s IRGC Will Decrease Middle East Tensions

The White House these days continues to discuss designating Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) as a major sponsor of terrorism. The U.S. Congress has been weighing a number of different bills proposed for this purpose. In response, Iran and its lobbies have been distorting the truth in the media by claiming such a move will lead […]

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OPINION: Leave Brunei alone, it is a sovereign state

An international outcry from governments, rights groups, the UN, and numerous celebrities has been sparked, following the decision of Brunei to enact strict new Islamic laws that make being homosexual, adultery, rape, and robbery punishable by death. On a personal note, I think those condemning Brunei for enacting strict laws to contain acts she considers offensive are hypocrites or […]

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OPINION: White supremacy feeds on mainstream encouragement. That has to stop

Rather than making concessions to bigots, politicians must confront them. It’s the only way to end the violence n 19 April 1995, Timothy McVeigh blew up the Alfred P Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people and injuring another 684, in the deadliest act of domestic US terrorism to date. A white supremacist, […]

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OPINION: I fought South African apartheid. I see the same brutal policies in Israel

Ronnie Kasrils I was shut down in South Africa for speaking out, and I’m disturbed that the same is happening to critics of Israel now • Ronnie Kasrils was a leading member of the African National Congress during the apartheid era and former government minister s a Jewish South African anti-apartheid activist I look with horror […]

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OPINION: Raeesi’s appointment: Iranian power game at full swing

Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei surprised Iranians by appointing Ibrahim Raeesi as the new chief of Iranian judiciary By Selim Celal -The Turkey-based writer is an expert on Iran’s foreign policy and domestic politics. On March 7, 2019, Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme leader of Iran surprised Iranians by appointing Ibrahim Raeesi as the new chief of […]

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OPINION: Terrorism in New Zealand and history of targeting mosques

Challenging this terrorist attack requires us to primarily challenge the broader discourse that has enabled the legal discrimination of Muslims By Farid Hafez Farid Hafez is senior researcher at the Department of Political Science, University of Salzburg and senior researcher for The Bridge Initiative at Georgetown University. SALZBURG  The white supremacist terrorist could have chosen […]

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