MIDEAST: Israel Lands in Public Relations Nightmare By Mel FrykbergJERSUSALEM - Israeli riot police and soldiers have, since Friday, sealed off the Al Aqsa mosque, Islam’s third holiest shrine, restricting entry to women and Palestinian men over 50. MORE >>
US-ISRAEL: Tiff or Tipping Point? Analysis by Jim Lobe*WASHINGTON - "Condemn" is not a word that rolls trippingly off the tongue of a U.S. politician addressing anything having to do with actions, however objectionable, by Israel. MORE >>
IRAQ: Women Miss Saddam By Abdu Rahman and Dahr Jamail*BAGHDAD - Under Saddam Hussein, women in government got a year's maternity leave; that is now cut to six months. Under the Personal Status Law in force since Jul. 14, 1958, when Iraqis overthrew the British-installed monarchy, Iraqi women had most of the rights that Western women do. MORE >>
EGYPT: Population Growth Overtakes Literacy Rise By Cam McGrathLUXOR - Literacy programmes are teaching millions of Egyptians to read, but are struggling to keep up with the country's high population growth. MORE >>
MIDEAST: Building Settlements, Not Peace By Jerrold Kessel and Pierre KlochendlerJERUSALEM - "The best laid-schemes o' mice an' men gang aft a-gley" (Scottish for 'going wrong'). MORE >>
EGYPT: U.N. Slams Abuse of Emergency Law By William FisherNEW YORK - Despite diplomatic maneuvering designed to block any review of its human rights record, a United Nations special rapporteur has told the U.N. Human Rights Council that proposed changes in Egypt's constitution "would create a permanent legal state of emergency". MORE >>
MIDEAST: Iran, Israel Spoiling for a Fight? Analysis by Mel FrykbergRAMALLAH - Iran and Israel appear to be spoiling for a fight, going by recent belligerent statements emanating from several regional capitals. MORE >>
RIGHTS: Middle East Women Ahead But Not Home By Sanjay Suri*- IPS/TerraVivaUNITED NATIONS - Male leaders fail to break the Mideast impasse. Enter women from Israel and the Palestinian territories working together. And… it would have been nice to say they succeeded where the men failed. MORE >>
MIDEAST: Israeli Left Emerges From Coma Amid Atrocities By Mel FrykbergSHEIKH JARRAH, Occupied East Jerusalem - Amid the wave of violence that swept through the occupied Palestinian West Bank, including East Jerusalem, over the last few days, there are signs that the Israeli left may be emerging from its collective coma. MORE >>
IRAQ: Elections Bring Joy and Uncertainty By Mohammed A. SalihWASHINGTON - The holding of Iraq's third parliamentary elections on Sunday has generated a sense of satisfaction in Washington, but there is a feeling of anxiety about how the post-election negotiation process to form a new government might proceed. MORE >>
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