Ivy League universities and the legacy of racism

Ivy League universities and the legacy of racism

    Friday, November 20, 2015   No comments

A 32-hour protest about the racial climate at Princeton ended Thursday night when the president and students reached an agreement that included consideration of the idea of renaming the university’s storied Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

Soon afterward, the university announced an anonymous threat of violence that referenced the protest.

The debate came in the midst of a national escalation of the topic of race on campus, with students at dozens of colleges confronting administrators and other students and presenting demands — and anonymous threats surfacing, as well.

The Black Justice League at Princeton had demanded that the president acknowledge the racist legacy of Woodrow Wilson and remove his name from buildings on campus, mandate “cultural competency” courses for all faculty and staff, and provide cultural space for black students on campus.

President Christopher Eisgruber immediately agreed to the idea of a cultural space Wednesday night, but declined to sign the demands and promised to continue talking with students about the other ideas.

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Wilson, an alumnus and president of the university who went on to become the 28th president of the United States, advocated for separation of races and opposed efforts by civil rights leaders to combat discrimination against black people. Students asked that his name be removed from a residential college, the university’s school of public and international affairs, and that a mural of him be removed from a dining hall.

Eisgruber agreed that in his opinion the mural should not be there, and the process began to consider its ultimate removal.

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US Republican Senator for the State of Virginia Richard Black sent letter to Syrian president praising his 'dramatic strides against terrorists'

US Republican Senator for the State of Virginia Richard Black sent letter to Syrian president praising his 'dramatic strides against terrorists'

    Thursday, November 19, 2015   No comments

US Republican Senator for the State of Virginia Richard Black sent a letter Tuesday to President Bashar al-Assad praising the Syrian leader and his army, while criticizing the US.

“I was pleased by the Russians’ intervention against the armies invading Syria," Black wrote. "With their support, the Syrian Army has made dramatic strides against the terrorists.”

Blacks letter came as Russian and French raids struck arms depots, barracks and other areas in Raqa city, the bastion of the Islamic State terrorist group in northern Syria.

Moscow began an air war in Syria, in coordination with embattled President Bashar al-Assad, on September 30. On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed his military to work with France "as allies," and agreed in a phone call with French President Francois Hollande on "closer contact and coordination" of operations in Syria.


The US and France have been firm backers of Syria's uprising, while Russia and Iran have remained staunch allies of Assad.

Last week, Syrian government forces broke a siege by Islamic State of the Kuwairis airbase, east of Aleppo.

“I was delighted by Syria’s resounding victory over ISIS at the Kuwairis Airfield. My compliments to those who heroically rescued 1,000 brave Syrian soldiers from certain death. I am convinced that many such victories lie ahead,” Black said in his letter.

Black said that the war on Syria was not caused by domestic unrest, saying “It was an unlawful war of aggression by foreign powers determined to force a puppet regime on Syria. General Wesley Clark, former Supreme Allied Commander Europe, revealed that by 2001, Western powers had developed plans to overthrow Syria. Yet after fifteen years, of military subversion, NATO, Saudi Arabia and Qatar still cannot identify a single leader who enjoys popular support among the Syrian people.”

“Foreign powers have no right to overturn legitimate elections and impose their will on the Syrian people. Syrians alone must determine their destiny, free of foreign intervention. I am disappointed that the UN has turned a blind eye to the unlawful interference in Syria’s internal affairs,” the Senator wrote in his letter to Assad.

Black said that before the war began, Syria had the greatest religious freedom and women’s equality of any Arab people.

"Many Americans are surprised to learn that the Syrian Constitution provides for free elections, religious freedom, women’s rights, and the Rule of Law," he wrote. "Before criticizing Syria, the US might first insist that our allies – Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and Kuwait – grant similar freedoms to their own people.”

This is not the first time Black has written to Assad. In April 2014 Black sent an official letter to the Syrian president thanking "the Syrian Arab Army for its heroic rescue of Christians in the Qalamoun Mountain Range." He also praised Assad for "treating with respect all Christians and the small community of Jews in Damascus".

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What about Beirut? Is there a double standard in Western media?

What about Beirut? Is there a double standard in Western media?

    Wednesday, November 18, 2015   No comments

Terrorists attack Beirut

The terrorist attacks in Paris have incited global support. But that has left some Lebanese, who suffered their own terror attack last week, asking: What about us?
The deadly terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday night happened one day after similar terrorist attacks in Beirut, prompting some to see a double standard in the media's coverage of the two events.

Forty-three people died and dozens were injured in the Beirut attack on Thursday. In Paris, at least 129 people died and more than 350 were injured.

Lebanon's capital is no stranger to terror. While Thursday’s twin bomb blasts were the deadliest in Beirut since 1990, the country has long been a terror target, with 14 bombings between July 2013 and June 2014 that killed almost 100.

But the Lebanese may have reason to feel slighted. #PrayforParis was mentioned about 6.6 million times on Twitter, compared to 273,000 mentions of #Beirut and #PrayforBeirut combined. Facebook activated Safety Check after a terrorist attack for the first time after the Paris attacks, with no similar feature activated the day before for Beirut, The Christian Science Monitor reported.

Lebanese critics complained that the West values Arab lives less than European lives, and that their country is depicted as a place where such violence is the norm.


“When my people died, no country bothered to lit up its landmarks in the colors of their flag,” Elie Fares, a Lebanese doctor, wrote on his blog A Separate State of Mind. “When my people died, they did not send the world in mourning. Their death was but an irrelevant fleck along the international news cycle, something that happens in those parts of the world.”

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Russian President Vladimir Putin: 40 countries, including those among the G-20, finance ISIL

Russian President Vladimir Putin: 40 countries, including those among the G-20, finance ISIL

    Monday, November 16, 2015   No comments

Russian President Vladimir Putin has blamed some 40 countries, including those among the Group of 20 nations, for financing Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants, Russia Today reported Nov. 16.

“I provided examples based on our data on the financing of different Islamic State [ISIL] units by private individuals. This money, as we have established, comes from 40 countries, and there are some of the G-20 members among them,” Putin told the journalists during a briefing on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Turkey’s Mediterranean city of Antalya.

“I’ve shown our colleagues photos taken from space and from aircraft which clearly demonstrate the scale of the illegal trade in oil and petroleum products,” the Russian leader was quoted as saying.

“The motorcade of refueling vehicles stretched for dozens of kilometers, so that from a height of 4,000 to 5,000 meters they stretch beyond the horizon,” Putin said, comparing the convoy to gas and oil pipeline systems.

“I can confirm that we have established contacts with... Syrian opposition on the battlefield which asked us to conduct air strikes,” Putin also said.

The Russian leader’s harsh criticism came one day after his brief meeting with his U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama, on the sidelines of the summit.  

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Saudi King Salman makes extravagant entrance to Antalya, Turkey, to attend G-20 Summit: Some 400 luxury cars and 546 rooms

Saudi King Salman makes extravagant entrance to Antalya, Turkey, to attend G-20 Summit: Some 400 luxury cars and 546 rooms

    Friday, November 13, 2015   No comments

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud was welcomed by a convoy of luxury cars on Nov. 12 to attend the G-20 Summit on Nov. 15-16 in Antalya, where 546 rooms have been booked for him.

Saudi Prince El Velid Bin Telal, Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci, and Antalya’s leading civil authorities, were waiting to welcome the king to Turkey’s Mediterranean resort city, where he will stay at the exclusive Mardan Palace Hotel.

During his trip to the hotel, special security forces and local police forces took intense security measures to guard his convoy.

Some 400 luxury cars have also been reserved for King Salman, who is expected to stay in Antalya for over two weeks after the G-20 Summit.

One week before the Summit, the personal belongings of the Saudi king and the Saudi prince were transferred to the hotel in 16 trucks. A total of 65 armored Mercedes cars were also brought to the city for King Salman and his special guards.

A total of 546 rooms at the Mardan Palace Hotel have been reserved for the Saudi delegation headed by King Salman, at a cost of between 800 euros and 15,000 euros per night.
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Saudi execution toll highest in two decades, according to Amnesty International report

Saudi execution toll highest in two decades, according to Amnesty International report

    Tuesday, November 10, 2015   No comments

Saudi Arabia has executed at least 151 people so far this year, the highest number since 1995. Rights group Amnesty International says it ranks after China and Iran for the number of executions carried out. 

 According to an Amnesty International report released on Monday Saudi Arabia is one of the top five countries for executing people. It ranked third in the world in 2014, after China and Iran and ahead of Iraq and the United States, according to Amnesty International figures.

"So far in 2015, on average, one person has been executed every other day," the Amnesty report stated. The recent annual figure rarely exceeded 90 executions.

The latest execution to take place in the Gulf state was on Monday. It involved a Saudi national convicted of killing a policeman who had tried to arrest him for smuggling drugs, according to the interior ministry.

Out of the 151 people executed so far this year in Saudi Arabia, 71 were foreign nationals, Amnesty said. It added that foreigners, who are mostly guest workers from poor countries, are particularly vulnerable as they typically do not understand the Arabic language and are denied adequate translation in court.

"The use of the death penalty is abhorrent in any circumstance but it is especially alarming that the Saudi Arabian authorities continue to use it in violation of international human rights law and standards, on such a wide scale, and after trials which are grossly unfair and sometimes politically motivated," Amnesty's Middle East and Northern Africa region program deputy director, James Lynch said.

'Appalling abuse of power'

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Contrary to Erdogan wishes, 57% of Turkish citizens prefer parliamentary system

Contrary to Erdogan wishes, 57% of Turkish citizens prefer parliamentary system

    Thursday, November 05, 2015   No comments

More than half of all Turkish citizens prefer Turkey’s current parliamentarian system instead of imposing a presidential system on the country, according to a survey conducted a day after the Nov. 1 snap elections by the Ipsos surveying company.

Some 57 percent of respondents said “Turkey should continue to have the current parliamentarian system,” while only 31 percent said “Turkey should introduce a presidential system.”

Twelve percent, however, said they had no idea or response to the question over the country’s administrative system. The survey was conducted among 1,614 respondents from 81 provinces who were eligible to cast votes in the Nov. 1 elections between Nov. 2 and 3.

The survey, which was conducted immediately after the elections, also revealed that a majority of respondents believe that the constitution should change.

Some 63 percent of respondents said political parties should come together to change the constitution. Only 28 percent said the country should continue with the current constitution. Nine percent said they had no idea or response to the question regarding the governing charter.

With the opposition parties’ share of the vote falling on Nov. 1 compared to the June 7 general elections, respondents were also asked whether they believed the leadership of the political parties should change.

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Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's priorities: make me king

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's priorities: make me king

    Wednesday, November 04, 2015   No comments

ISR comment: Revealing the real reason for calling for snap elections after his party had failed to win the June 7 one, the Turkish president asked leaders of his party to start work immediately on amending the constitution. Simply put, he wants to be a president with sultan powers and he will do whatever is necessary to make that happen.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has overtly presented the creation of a new constitution that would pave the way for a transition to a presidential system as the number-one item on the agenda of the newly elected legislature.

“Turkey’s need to solve the issue of a new constitution was one of the most important messages of Nov. 1. The nation is waiting for this,” Erdoğan said Nov. 4, during a group of neighborhood and village heads (muhtars) at the first of such regular meetings held at his presidential palace since the Nov. 1 snap elections.

Although Erdoğan this time did not directly referred to his long-held, naked ambition to create an executive presidential system, earlier in the same day, his presidential spokesperson, İbrahim Kalın, said Turkey was considering holding a referendum on changing from a parliamentary to a presidential system.


“I hope that they won’t fail to make contributions for preparations for a new constitution in the new period and sit down at the table and solve this issue,” Erdoğan said, calling on all political parties that will be represented in parliament after the Nov. 1 snap elections.

Erdoğan also noted that he had already discussed the issue at a meeting with Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu on Nov. 3.

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Kuwait Court Jails Five over ISIL Fundraising

Kuwait Court Jails Five over ISIL Fundraising

    Monday, November 02, 2015   No comments

A lower court in Kuwait on Monday sentenced five men to 10 years in jail each for raising funds for the ISIL group.

Three of those convicted were Kuwaiti citizens, according to the court ruling.

The court ordered that the remaining two, who were foreigners, be deported after serving the jail term. Their nationalities were not immediately clear.

It also acquitted two others, AFP reported on Monday.


The men were charged with raising about 400,000 Kuwaiti dinars ($1.3 million) and transferring the funds to ISIL, which has seized control of large parts of Syria and Iraq and carried out attacks throughout the Middle East.

Over the past year, Kuwaiti courts have issued several rulings against ISIL supporters.

In September, a lower court sentenced seven people, including five in absentia, to death for helping a Saudi suicide bomber carry out an attack on a Shiite mosque in Kuwait that killed 26 worshipers and wounded hundreds.

 Dozens of Kuwaitis have fought alongside armed groups operating in Syria, and a number have been killed in the conflict.

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JOINT STATEMENT: Final declaration on the results of the Syria Talks in Vienna as agreed by participants

JOINT STATEMENT: Final declaration on the results of the Syria Talks in Vienna as agreed by participants

    Saturday, October 31, 2015   No comments

Meeting in Vienna, on October 30, 2015, China, Egypt, the EU,

The Participants in the Vienna Talks on Syria (Photo: U.S. State Department)

France, Germany, Iran, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United Nations, and the United States [“the participants”] came together to discuss the grave situation in Syria and how to bring about an end to the violence as soon as possible.

The participants had a frank and constructive discussion, covering major issues. While substantial differences remain among the participants, they reached a mutual understanding on the following:

1.     Syria’s unity, independence, territorial integrity, and secular character are fundamental.
2.     State institutions will remain intact.
3.     The rights of all Syrians, regardless of ethnicity or religious denomination, must be protected.
4.     It is imperative to accelerate all diplomatic efforts to end the war.
5.     Humanitarian access will be ensured throughout the territory of Syria, and the participants will increase support for internally displaced persons, refugees, and their host countries.
6.     Da'esh, and other terrorist groups, as designated by the U.N. Security Council, and further, as agreed by the participants, must be defeated. 
7.     Pursuant to the 2012 Geneva Communique and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2118, the participants invited the U.N. to convene representatives of the Government of Syria and the Syrian opposition for a political process leading to credible, inclusive, non-sectarian governance, followed by a new constitution and elections.  These elections must be administered under U.N. supervision to the satisfaction of the governance and to the highest international standards of transparency and accountability, free and fair, with all Syrians, including the diaspora, eligible to participate.
8.     This political process will be Syrian led and Syrian owned, and the Syrian people will decide the future of Syria. 
9.     The participants together with the United Nations will explore modalities for, and implementation of, a nationwide ceasefire to be initiated on a date certain and in parallel with this renewed political process.

The participants will spend the coming days working to narrow remaining areas of disagreement, and build on areas of agreement.  Ministers will reconvene within two weeks to continue these discussions.