Category: Middle East

By J Nastranis Fourteen million civilians are on the edge of famine in Yemen. Starvation is on the horizon, warns WFP‘s chief David Beasley. What he has seen during a recent visit to the country is “the stuff of nightmares, horror, deprivation and misery”. UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy Martin Griffiths is therefore at pains to […]

By Mortezagholi Raissi BERLIN (IDN) – With  new sanctions, the U.S. wants to make breathing difficult, if not impossible, for Iranians. The sanctions were threatened in May, when President Donald Trump announced that the United States was withdrawing from a 2015 deal, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA), aimed at limiting Iran’s nuclear programme. […]

By Jamshed Baruah GENEVA (IDN) – For the second time since July 31, UN human rights experts are calling on Saudi Arabia to “immediately and unconditionally” release all women human rights defenders, including six imprisoned on charges relating to their peaceful defence of human rights. The detained have been charged for being involved in pro-democracy […]

By Jaya Ramachandran GENEVA (IDN) – A new United Nations report has called for completely lifting the ongoing Israeli land, air, and sea blockade which has reduced the Gaza Strip to “a humanitarian case of profound suffering and aid dependency”. The blockade is now in its eleventh year. The report by the United Nations Conference […]

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) – The evidence that has come out from the UN and NGOs makes clear, without any reservation or ambiguity, that on August 9, 2018 dozens of school children on a bus in Yemen were killed by a Saudi Arabian air-strike, and that American supplied weapons had been used, […]

By Julia Payne MARRAKECH (IDN) – As a society, we have hopes and dreams for the future; for our children, our countries, and the global community. These aspirations rest on the shoulders of the young generation. August 12, 2018 marked the 18th celebration of the UN’s annual International Youth Day. This awareness day was a […]

By Ramesh Jaura UNITED NATIONS (IDN) – The outgoing UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, has expressed “acute concerns” over the human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, which in recent months has escalated dramatically, with the potential to generate threats to […]

Viewpoint by Katherine O’Neill* MARRAKECH (IDN) – The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has the lowest female employment rate of anywhere in the world. Though most countries in the MENA region, including Libya and Iran, have seen gradually increasing rates of working women, Morocco’s female labour force participation (FLFP) rate has actually decreased since […]

By Mortezagholi Raissi BERLIN (IDN) – Plagued by domestic turmoil and the Trump Administration threatening regime change, not only the government in Iran but the entire theocratic regime too are faced with a far from envious situation, according to political observers. What started off as protests spurred on by the deteriorating economic conditions in Iran […]

By Abderrahim Ouarghidi* MARRAKECH (IDN) – The Moroccan proverb ‘New things have a charm and old ones should be preserved’ has wide applicability in current Moroccan agricultural practices and attitudes toward conventional and local crop varieties. The revealing adage is part of the Moroccan identity and way of life. Moroccan people are committed to establishing […]