Syria: Important insights into what is happening.

Christmas Bells falling silent in Syria - Was Obama correct in what he said?

Syria's civil wars explained. Read more.

Jordan's Syrian blacklist is blasted by Turkey and Saudi Arabia Read the article.

ISIL Massacre reported in Deir Az Zor - 80 killed and more than 300 abducted: Read more.

The "end-Game" in Syria could come with a government victory in Aleppo. Read more.
Aleppo, therefore, represents the failed promise of the terrorist and armed groups that have offered little more than Islamic law and criminality. Aleppo, which is mostly Sunni, was sold a sectarian bill of goods by the opposition. And it has been a disaster for the people of Aleppo. The Syrian government’s barrel bombs and relentless sieges added to an unbearable existence.
The tide may be turning. If the Syrian army, backed by its Iranian and Russian allies, retakes Aleppo, the city’s liberation will come by directly defeating terrorists and armed groups that are already deserting the battlefield. A government victory would be of a different order and have a different impact than the negotiated departures of besieged armed opposition forces in Homs and around Damascus. The people of Aleppo would experience a flat-out victory by the government and a defeat, and exodus, by the armed groups.

85% of Syrian refugees presently living in Turkey don't want to return to Syria. Read more.

How Canada can help Syria's neighbors: Read more.

Aegean Sea crossings rise 35 fold year-on year. And, 52,000 last July and 54,000 this January

The plight of refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan is becoming unbearable. More are crossing the dangerous Aegean Sea in the winter, than during the calm summer waters of last July. The implications for Europe are disheartening: Unable to process such large numbers and with no place for this large number of refugees to be taken in adequately, European countries are on the verge of taking "self-protection" action. Read more.

Turkey: 10 events in the last two months and their crucial significance

Turkey is running out of USA dollars and nothing seems to be improving the situation.

Turkey's conservative Muslim leaders bemoan the dangers of Christmas. Read more

Turkey seems greater regional influence, but wait! Now Saudi Arabia and Iran are squabbling in a dangerous region, where there are already too many wars. Read more.

Ankara's colorful mayor declares the USA Ambassador, "persona non grata". Read more.

What's behind the massive exodus of refugees from Turkey? answer: human smugglers. Read more.

Why Erdogan decided to shoot down a Russian jet. Read more.

What reporters saw in three Turkish trucks and why they are now in jail for telling you about it. Read more.

Turkey's dangerous ambitions. Another award-reading article by Burak Bekdil. Read more.

Turkey and Israel: A rickety handshake. Read more.

German Human Rights Chief: Turkey does not belong in the EU. Read more.

"EU has only two months to solve the Refugee Crisis at its borders" - Donald Tusk, EC President

Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council has issued the starkest warning yet. The European Union has only two months left to figure out how to handle the refugee crisis. If there is no decision by the end of March, countries across Europe will begin to close their borders.
Read more.

The gap between Western Civilization and Islamic teachings and practice

The Logic behind Islamic Intolerance includes this comment: If, as Munajjid points out, a Muslim truly believes that Islam is the only true religion, and that Muhammad is its prophet, why would he allow that which is false (and thus corrupt, cancerous, misleading, etc.) to exist alongside it?  Such gestures of “tolerance” would be tantamount to a Muslim who “wants to equate between right and wrong,” as the sheikh correctly deplores.

Problems with Islam in France:

Are there "No go zones" in France? This is a burning political question and just talking about the situation of immigrants to zones around the large cities, especially Paris, is likely to get a very hot discussion going.

Is it wrong to favor the arrival of Christian refugees from places of war?

Raymond Ibrahim argues that Christian refugees need to be treated differently from Muslim-background refugees when considering them for arrival in the USA. Read more.

"The Battle for Libya's Oil" - El Jazeera

An important set of graphs and observations about the importance of oil to Libya sets the scene for political agitation in a nation gripped by the horrors of instability. Read more.

Pakistan Army Chief: "If Iran attackes Saudi Arabia, we'll wipe it off the map."

Not good news from Pakistan today. Things are beginning to get a little out of control, perhaps a bit exaggerated, but still, nobody likes to hear, "We are going to wipe your country off the map." No, that isn't Israel trembling in its boots; it's a threat from Pakistan against Iran.

The presenting issue? Iran doesn't care for Saudi Arabia's internal or external policies.
"Meanwhile, in the Sunni nation of Pakistan, the chief of the army announced that any threat to the territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia would provoke a sharp response from Pakistan.
He said they would "wipe Iran off the map." Read more.

Fire Sparked by ISIL destroys over 2,000,000 barrels of oil in Libya- Huge Flames

The destructive power of ISIL knows no bounds. Now, huge storage tanks have been set on fire after attacks at two large depots in Libya. Read more.

"The Saudi-Iranian Crisis - What it means for Turkey" - Al Monitor

The crisis is real for Saudi Arabia and Iran, but the spill over into Turkey is going to have some very distinct "Turkish" flavors.
Read more.

"Tensions flare between Iran and Saudi Arabia over execution of cleric" - National Post

Just what was needed. Further reasons for increased tension in the Middle East.

"RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Saudi Arabia’s execution Saturday of 47 prisoners, including an influential Shiite cleric, threatened to further damage Sunni-Shiite relations in a regional struggle playing out across the Middle East between the kingdom and its regional foe Iran."

Read more.

And Bahrain has cut diplomatic ties with Iran. Read more.

"Was the Arab Spring worth dying for?" - Al Jazeerah

A Tunisian vendor set himself on fire in protest against the injustices of the government and society, but especially because of police corruption. That was five years ago. How does his family feel about the self-sacrifice today, and the results achieved so far? Read more.

"Diyarbakir's Christians suffer in the margins of Turkey's war with PKK Separatists" - Al Monitor.

In Sur, Turkish special forces teams backed by tanks, helicopter gunships and armored personnel carriers have laid virtual siege to the district, which now lies in ruins.

The youths remain dug in, but over half of Sur’s residents have fled. And while their suffering has been well-documented, little has been said about the clutch of Christians who have been quietly toiling to resurrect Sur’s once vibrant multi-faith community. It was brutally destroyed in 1915, when Ottoman forces and their Kurdish collaborators slaughtered hundreds of thousands of Christians (most of them Armenians) and other non-Muslims in what many respected scholars call genocide.
Read more.