'Historian James Renton suggests that this week's application for UN membership by the Palestinians could provide the moral and legal backing required to achieve the reality of statehood, much as the Balfour Declaration of 1917 laid the ground for the birth of the Israeli state in 1948.
In this eventful month of September, the Israeli (Arab) spring has to decide: where does it stand, first and foremost, in regard to Palestine, but also in regard to Turkey and Egypt.
At their very best, Israeli-Palestinian partition plans envision the same kind of complex ethnic patchwork rejected by western diplomats in Bosnia.
Afghan forces, aided by ISAF have managed to end the attack on the US embassy, Nato headquarters and police buildings in Kabul. A bomb planted on a military bus in Iraq has killed 15 Iraqi soldiers and wounded 20 others. Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh has authorized his deputy to negotiate a
The links between the Israeli far right and Islamophobic groups in Europe follow a certain inexorable logic of the post 9/11 world. These alliances, encapsulated as well as encouraged by the redefinition of the "new antisemitism", make it very hard for Israel to overcome the monomaniacal war spiri
Two uncomfortable flights pose some difficult questions.
Underlining a sea change in their relationship, India and Bangladesh foster ties during prime minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Dhaka. Turkey-Israel relations reach a new low as Ankara suspends defence industry relations. US and Pakistan praise arrest of al-Qaeda operatives in Quetta while Tuareg
Thoughts on the Arab revolution from an Arab nationalist.
The writer visits a friend he hasn’t seen for a while. A piece about longing, dreaming about a white horse, freedom and steak for dinner
With China storming ahead of its neighbours in economic development, we are seeing an admiring India beginning to emulate some of the less attractive aspects of the Chinese style of government. Whose example should they follow?
After years of state building activities and a long period of full cooperation of the Palestinian authorities with Israel and the West, the country now seems ready to become a full member of the UN. It is time for the US and Europe to welcome this timely and legitimate bid, argues Rene Wildangel
This remarkable movement needs to strengthen its democratic decision-making processes, including marginalized groups in the negotiations, ensuring welfare for the poor, not only for the middle classes.
