For Saudi Women, A Weighty Development

by Thomas W. Lippman Jeddah, Saudi Arabia—On Palestine Street, in the heart of this steamy port city, the Baskin Robbins store and Dunkin’ Donuts have a new neighbor, Gold’s Gym. Inside, the gym is presumably similar to others in the… Continue Reading

The Unthinkable Targets

by Thomas W. Lippman Riyadh, Saudi Arabia—An anonymous posting on an extremist website has exposed a new area of concern about the security of Americans and other westerners throughout the Middle East—their children’s schools. Diplomatic and military installations have been… Continue Reading

Mecca, Money and Monotheism

by Thomas W. Lippman One of the pleasures of visiting Jeddah, the historic Red Sea port of entry for Muslims traveling to Mecca, is visiting the awe-inspiring home of Sami Angawi, Saudi Arabia’s most renowned architect. Everything about it is… Continue Reading

Saudi Arabia: Champion of Human Rights?

by Thomas W. Lippman Imagine hearing news that North Korea was planning to organize an international conference on criminal justice reform, or being invited by Cuba to a conference promoting political freedom. The likely reaction would be incredulity, followed by… Continue Reading

Building an Unlikely Coalition Against ISIS

by Thomas W. Lippman Throughout the Middle East, television news broadcasts on state-owned channels have always featured what Western journalists ridicule as “coming and going stories”—a delegation from some country or organization arrives, the delegation meets the king or president,… Continue Reading