By Benoit Lannoo* ANTWERP, Belgium | 23 July 2026 (IDN) — It was a remarkable meeting at the Vardavar celebration – the 14th Sunday after Easter – in Etchmiadzin. Armenian Apostolic Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan was blessed by Catholicos Garegin II in the mother-cathedral of this autocephalous (independent) Eastern Church. ‘Blessing with lots of water’ plays a […]
Sri Lanka Is the Crucial Hub of the Ancient Maritime Silk Road
By Ambassador Dr Palitha Kohona The writer is Sri Lanka’s Former Ambassador to China, a former Permanent Representative to the UN, a former Foreign Secretary, and a former Head of the UN Treaty Section. The following is extracted from a presentation De Kohona made to the Colombo Port City Rotary Club. COLOMBO | 1 November […]
The rediscovery of America from within
By Jan Servaes MIAMI | 10 July 2025 (IDN) — In 2019, The New York Times published “The 1619 Project” by Nikole Hannah-Jones. Four centuries after African captives arrived on the Virginia coast, this project reshaped America’s origin story, centering on slavery and the contributions of African Americans. An updated version appeared in 2021 and […]
Criticism Of Israel Is Misrepresented as Anti-Semitism
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 11 March 2025 (IDN) — In the New York Times, columnist Roger Cohen argued that anyone who queries the Jewish right to Israel is anti-Semitic. More than that, he accuses us of being racist, even though many of us fought against South African apartheid. He accuses us of “pursuing […]
Berlin Conference: Colonial Legacy Continues 140 Years Later
By Abayomi Azikiwe* From 15 November 1884 until 26 February 1885, the Berlin West Africa Conference was held in Germany where numerous European states convened to carve up the continent based upon their own economic interests. DETROIT, USA | 6 December 2024 (IDN) — Commonly known as the Berlin Conference, the gathering marked the consolidation […]
Noah, the Ark, and the Flood: Applying Themes of an Ancient Tale
By Yossef Ben-Meir* MARRAKECH, Morocco | 01 November 2024 (IDN) — It is worth considering, in light of humanity’s profound struggle against the world’s climate and matters of elemental justice, how the onset of the Biblical tale of Noah is relevant today. According to ancient Hebraic commentaries, Noah actually grew the timber he used for […]
Sixty-Three Years on The Death of Hammarskjöld Remains a Mystery in UN History
By Vibhu Mishra, UN News NEW YORK | 20 October 2024 (IDN) — One of the most enduring mysteries in United Nations history—the 1961 plane crash that killed Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld and all on board as he sought to broker peace in the Congo—will linger on, with a new assessment announced on 18 October suggesting […]
Where do UN Diplomats Hide During Politically-Sensitive Voting?
By Thalif Deen* When the UN’s four high-level summit meetings take place September 22-30, over 150 world leaders, including Presidents and Prime Ministers, are expected to address the gatherings. Besides the annual high-level General Debate, the focus will also be on the Summit of the Future, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Sea-Level Rise, and on Anti-microbial […]
Doubts On the Origins of World War II, On The 80th Anniversary of D-Day
By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden | 9 July 2024 (IDN) — It is a common trait in mankind to apply to ourselves a generosity of interpretation which we do not extend to others. We find proofs of wickedness, using evidence that we would not use against our own. We play down the sins of ourselves, […]
USA: Who Owns the Constitution? Democrats or Republicans?
By James E. Jennings* ATLANTA, Georgia | 5 July 2024 (IDN) — July 4, US Independence Day— the day MAGA guru Steve Bannon finally went to prison, the US Supreme Court voted along party lines 6-3 that a president could not be held liable for any act considered within the scope of his official duties, […]