By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 16 September 2026 (IDN) — In 1995, in a little-remembered event, Li Ruthuan, a member of the Chinese Politburo (containing the top seven in the government), made a speech likening the Chinese takeover of Hong Kong to the case of a lady who had agreed to sell a 100-year-old […]
The Significance of The Enemy States Clause for Germany
By Michael von der Schulenburg BRUSSELS | 16 September 2026 (IDN) — When the Allies of the Second World War drafted the United Nations Charter, they sought to establish a global system of collective security. Its aim was to “save succeeding generations from the scourge of war”. With the adoption of the UN Charter, all […]
Crisis of Governance as UN Commemorates Day Of Democracy
By Simone Galimberti* KATHMANDU, Nepal | 11 September 2026 (IDN) —What does it mean, these days, holding a special day commemorating democracy? As the 15 September is celebrated internationally as the International Day of Democracy, finding answers to this question must be a priority. As democracy as it has been practiced and experienced since the […]
The Greater Israel Delusion May Undo Israel
By Alon Ben-Meir* Israel’s accelerating drive toward a biblical “Greater Israel” is not a deviation but the culmination of decades of creeping annexation and global indulgence. If unchecked, it will entrench permanent occupation, inflame the region for generations, and may ultimately undo Israel as a viable state. NEW YORK | 11 September 2026 (IDN) — […]
Real History: After 9/11, the “War on Terror” Was a War of Terror
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO | 11 September 2026 (IDN) — Three days after terrorists killed almost 3,000 people in the United States on September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush stood behind a pulpit at the Washington National Cathedral and spoke to a nation in shock. “Our responsibility to history is already clear,” he proclaimed, […]
Labor Day and the Democracy We Deny Workers
By Sam Ben-Meir* NEW YORK | 9 September 2026 (IDN) — Every Labor Day, Americans perform a familiar ritual. Politicians praise the dignity of work. Corporations thank their employees. Newspapers recall the struggles of the labor movement. Families mark the unofficial end of summer with barbecues and a final long weekend. Then Tuesday arrives, and […]
25 Years of War Was the Wrong Response to 9/11
By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S.Davies* NEW YORK | 9 September 2026 (IDN) — The lesson of 9/11 should be that war is not the answer to any of the problems facing the United States. After inflicting violence and chaos on country after country for twenty-five years in a “global war on terror” that […]
The Limit Of Coercion: Israel’s Strategic Delusion
By Alon Ben-Meir* NEW YORK | 4 September 2026 (IDN) — Comparative conflict analysis reveals clear conditions under which weaker actors concede. The Palestinian case meets none of them, underscoring Israel’s strategic futility in expecting capitulation in the absence of a political settlement. The asymmetry of power between states and non-state actors—or between dominant governments […]
25 Years Ago, 9/11 Triggered a U.S. Crusade of Torture
By Norman Solomon* SAN FRANCISCO | 3 September 2026 (IDN) — A quarter-century has passed since the terrorist attack that killed almost 3,000 people in the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. During the first seven years after that mass atrocity, Pentagon spending doubled. The aftermath of 9/11 was also a huge boost for “the […]
Rushed UN Resident Coordinator Restructuring Risks Guterres’s Legacy
By Mohammed Chiraz Baly The writer is a staff representative and former General Secretary of the CCISUA staff union federation. He is also a data analyst at UNCTAD focusing on investment financing in developing countries. GENEVA, Switzerland | 3 September 2026 (IDN) — At the end of a Secretary-General’s term, questions are asked about legacy. […]