Paris, and by extension Syria, is obviously the big story at the moment, but we shouldn't forget the other brutal, destructive civil war wracking an Arab country at the moment: the one in Yemen. Forces loyal to President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, along with his coalition of Gulf supporters, entered Taiz, Yemen's third largest city … Continue reading Let’s not forget about Yemen

I put a new piece up at Medium, just to be different, on Aung San Suu Kyi and the Rohingya in the aftermath of Myanmar's recent elections. Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won an overwhelming victory, giving it control of parliament despite the fact that a quarter of the seats in the legislature have … Continue reading Suu Kyi and the Rohingya: no more excuses

A new piece from yours truly went online at LobeLog yesterday, and while I think the main point still holds, I'll admit that it got a little overtaken by events (I sent it in late Friday afternoon, before...well, you know). Please go read it anyway! See, on Saturday, in the aftershock of the Paris attack, … Continue reading The Syrian peace talks and governance, my latest at LobeLog

If you'll permit me to put my head up my own hindparts for a second, I'd like to say something about the justifiable concern that the coverage of Friday's attack in Paris has dwarfed any coverage of Thursday's ISIS bombing in Beirut, or their bombing in Ankara in October, or their (probable?) involvement in the … Continue reading Why Paris gets more attention than everywhere else

Conditions in Burundi have taken a serious and rapid turn for the worse over the past several weeks, to the point where a total collapse into large-scale violence -- maybe even genocide -- would not be out of the question. To recap: Burundi's President, Pierre Nkurunziza announced back in April that he was planning to … Continue reading Burundi is in danger of collapse

First of all, here's something I didn't write last night, because sometimes I am an idiot: to all those who lost friends and loved ones last night, and the day before in Beirut, and everyday in Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere; to Parisians, Beirutis, the French people, the Lebanese people, and everyone else whose lives have … Continue reading Don’t help ISIS get what it wants

If anybody has officially claimed responsibility for tonight's terror attacks in Paris, that hasn't been widely disseminated yet. ISIS-related social media accounts are reportedly celebrating the attacks, but that's not the same as claiming responsibility. When Wilayat Sinai (allegedly) brought down that Russian airliner a couple of weeks ago, they claimed responsibility for it pretty … Continue reading Some too-soon Paris thoughts

The AP is reporting that 26 people (expect that number to rise) have been killed in a series of terrorist attacks in Paris this evening. A shooting at the Bataclan Theater resulted in multiple deaths and may now have become a hostage situation (perhaps 60 hostages are being held), and there's also been another reported … Continue reading Terror attacks in Paris (Updated)

The Pentagon is "reasonably certain" (unofficial US sources are saying they're "99% sure") that Mohammed Emwazi, AKA "Jihadi John," AKA ISIS's chief beheader of Western hostages, was killed in a drone strike in Raqqa yesterday. I mention this only because it's all over cable news and the internet, and has been for much of the … Continue reading BREAKING: Man Probably Dead