As the United states prepares to pull out of Afghanistan, President Barack Obama, facing november reelection, continues hedging his bets on just how involved his country intends to be in Kabul’s future.
The enduring duel between Palestine and Israel is taking a back seat to civil war in Syria and institutional change in Egypt, but both are likely to have an impact on what remains the Middle East’s most troubling issue.
Longtime enemies, Greece and Turkey are gradually developing lasting practical bonds that may actually help Athens escape the worst of the euro crisis.
INTERVIEW Acclaimed Israeli author Amos Oz says the two-state model is the only solution to the Israel-Palestinian problem, if only both sides would learn to compromise.
Algeria has largely resisted Arab Spring winds. Instead, it has been busy building up oil reserves and cash, to the point that the IMF has asked it for a loan. But beneath this apparently tranquil surface, many complain women’s rights have been ignored and are growing skeptical that longtime President Bouteflika Abdelziz has any interest in substantive social and political change.
When Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah speaks, the country listens raptly. Though his exact whereabouts remain a mystery, Nasrallah and his party are exerting an ever-growing role both in Lebanon and in the region.
