Joseph Colonna

OPINION: Iran begins to reap rewards of foreign manipulation

Wed, 09 May 2018 - 12:02 GMT

Iran sits in the middle of a complicated game of power politics in the Middle East, and there is seldom an incident where Iran is absent.

Iraqi elections: The players, parties and alliances

Mon, 07 May 2018 - 03:29 GMT

At a time of internal divisions, external pressures and touch security, economic, and social pressures, these elections come at a crucial time for the Iraqi people.

Lebanon votes: New faces and old ideas

Sun, 06 May 2018 - 12:29 GMT

What is expected in this election is that little will change. Faces may chance, but the prevailing forces behind the faces will not. Business as usual? Most likely, yes.

R2P: The dead weight on the shoulders of the West

Thu, 26 Apr 2018 - 02:25 GMT

Russia and China have been blamed for blocking attempts invoke R2P, but the willingness of the U.S., UK and France to act independently is equally as damaging

Syria's Cold War: Iran readies to strike Israel

Thu, 19 Apr 2018 - 01:01 GMT

Israel has been in a fight with Iran since the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and the rise of Islamic Republic under the Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini

ANALYSIS: 'Mission Accomplished' in Syria and concealed U.S. motives

Sun, 15 Apr 2018 - 01:24 GMT

What does “mission accomplished” even mean? The words are ambiguous in every aspect: what was the “mission”, and what does it mean for it to be “accomplished”?

ANALYSIS: Why U.S. won’t leave Syria, impact of Douma chemical attack

Tue, 10 Apr 2018 - 09:43 GMT

Following the recent chemical weapons attack in Douma, the debate about a U.S. withdrawal has become further interlinked with the humanitarian question.

Death in Douma: Timeline of chemical attacks in Syria

Sun, 08 Apr 2018 - 04:49 GMT

Footage of the attack shared on social media shows piles of lifeless bodies in rooms, corridors and stairwells, with foam visible from their noses and mouths.

OPINION: The West vs. Russia - Putin talks, but can he walk?

Tue, 03 Apr 2018 - 04:50 GMT

Unleashing a nerve agent on to the streets of rural England is far from a divisive issue, and it dangerously oversteps the mark.

Turkey sits on a tightrope in Syria, threatens ISIS revival

Sun, 25 Mar 2018 - 04:02 GMT

Operation Olive Branch had the opportunity to seriously strain the delicate balance of power in Syria, and the capture of Afrin city affirms Turkey’s ambitions in the long term

Turkish occupation of Afrin: The game and gamble for Syria

Mon, 19 Mar 2018 - 02:58 GMT

Fifty-eight days after Ankara instigated Operation Olive Branch, the Turkish army and its allied mercenaries have raised the Turkish flag in Afrin city centre

Turkey is isolating the Kurds in Afrin, but who will ultimately be alone?

Thu, 15 Mar 2018 - 05:11 GMT

Fifty-five days since the launch of Operation Olive Branch, the Turkish-led military assault has made significant gains against Kurdish positions in Afrin.

UK sanctions Russia after 'sarcasm, contempt and defiance'

Wed, 14 Mar 2018 - 01:06 GMT

23 diplomats to be removed, Russian state assets frozen, high-level bilateral meetings cancelled along with diplomatic trips to the World Cup in Russia this summer.

SIPRI: Egypt’s arms imports skyrocket amidst greater security threats

Mon, 12 Mar 2018 - 02:47 GMT

The flow of arms to the Middle East has more than doubled in the past five years, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

MBS’s visit begins, but what governs the UK’s relationship with Riyadh?

Wed, 07 Mar 2018 - 01:00 GMT

Westminster serves as an important ally for the Saudi state and in reciprocity Saudi Arabia has pumped billions into the U.K. economy.

What Hariris's selfie with MBS tells us about Middle East politics

Sun, 04 Mar 2018 - 01:29 GMT

A picture is worth a thousand words, and Hariri’s most recent trip to the Kingdom will be remembered through the selfie posted on Twitter on March 2

Pirates of the Eastern Mediterranean: The Turkish Thirst

Tue, 27 Feb 2018 - 02:36 GMT

Cyprus has its own quarrels with Turkey; quarrels which pull the island westward towards Greece in an intertwined narrative

ANALYSIS: Turkey is isolated, is its military to blame?

Mon, 19 Feb 2018 - 04:54 GMT

Turkey’s foreign policy under Erdoğan has led Ankara astray from its western allies and has done little to build bridges with its easterly neighbors

Iraq: $30 billion is simply not enough

Fri, 16 Feb 2018 - 04:29 GMT

On the one hand the world cares, on the other it doesn’t

ANALYSIS: Will Russia mediate Israeli-Iranian confrontation in Syria?

Mon, 12 Feb 2018 - 04:21 GMT

Changing realities on the ground in Syria are threatening to introduce a new phase of the civil war, and open up a new front to the conflict

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