By Michele Zaccheo* DILILI, Timor-Leste | 2 September 2024 (IDN) — UN Secretary-General António Guterres told parliamentarians in Timor-Leste on 30 September the world has much to learn from their inspirational struggle for self-rule, 25 years to the day since the historic referendum which paved the way for independence in 2002. In a surprise move, […]
A Sign that Beckoned Coming Sustainable Development
By Yossef Ben-Meir* MARRAKECH | 28 August 2024 (IDN) — I do not know if it is a rule or commonplace as to whether a small act in the area of social development can launch thousands, even countless, small and large acts of sustainable change and growth. In Morocco, there may have been such a […]
Reading The Tea Leaves in Hong Kong
By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden | 27 August 2024 (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 take-over of Hong Kong to the case of a lady who had agreed to sell a […]
Ukraine Blackmails Hungary and Slovakia
By Peter G. Feher* WASHINGTON, D.C. | 26 August 2024 (IDN) — Ukraine blackmails Hungary and Slovakia in a vile way. The quarrel between Hungary and Slovakia, as well as Ukraine, has been going on for more than two months. Indeed, on June 24, without any prior warning, Kyiv prohibited the privately owned Russian oil […]
World’s Largest Regional Security Organization Launches New Initiative
By Jane Kinninmont and Maria Branea* LONDON | 24 August 2024 (IDN) — The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world’s largest regional security organization, with 57 participating states in Europe, Asia, and North America. This year, the OSCE launched a new initiative—The Expert Networks on the Organization for Security and […]
Genocide is Genocide is Genocide
By James E. Jennings* ATLANTA | 24 August 2024 (IDN) — There’s an ongoing dispute about the meaning of Genocide, which is important because the case against Israel’s war in Gaza is scheduled to be decided soon by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). It’s actually not that complicated. Confucius allegedly said, “The naming of […]
Iran: Neutralizing Nuclear Threat Without Force or Sanctions
By Dr Alon Ben-Meir* NEW YORK 22 August 2024 (IDN)— All past efforts to block Iran’s march toward becoming a nuclear power have failed. It is time for the US and Israel to develop a new strategy that factors in the possibility that Iran will become a nuclear power but renders it futile without using […]
The US Democratic Convention Fiddles While the World Burns
By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies* NEW YORK | 22 August 2024 (IDN) — An Orwellian disconnect haunts the 2024 Democratic National Convention. In the isolation of the convention hall, shielded from the outside world behind thousands of armed police, few of the delegates seem to realize that their country is on the […]
Gaza War: Israel Should Declare Victory and Go Home
By David L. Phillips* WASHINGTON DC | 21 August 2024 (IDN) — “Declare victory and go home” typically refers to US engagement in the Vietnam War. It is also relevant in other intractable conflicts, such as today’s war in Gaza. With the Gaza war entering its 11th month, Israel has achieved 90 percent of its […]
Youth-led Protests: The Start of an African Spring?
By Henrik Maihack, IPS-Journal.EU* BERLIN | 20 August 2024 (IDN) — People are taking to the streets in Africa. Following a wave of protests and an election, a millennial president has come to power in Senegal, who just a few weeks earlier was a political prisoner. In Kenya, street protests led by Gen Z students […]