U.S. Jews Less Hawkish on Iran

by Jim Lobe via IPS News Despite renewed calls in Congress for increasing pressure on Iran, support for a U.S. attack against the Islamic Republic has declined markedly over the past year, according to the latest in an annual series… Continue Reading

Kerry Gaffe on Syria Takes on Life of its Own

by Jasmin Ramsey You’re no doubt aware by now of a proposal by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for Syria to hand over its (still only accidentally acknowledged) chemical weapons to international control, which his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moualem said Syria “welcomes”. Syrian… Continue Reading

Obama Increasingly Isolated on Syria Military Action

by Jim Lobe via IPS News With a week of intense lobbying behind him, U.S. President Barack Obama looks increasingly beleaguered – both at home and abroad – in his effort to rally support for a military strike against Syria… Continue Reading

Is The Supreme Leader Really So Supreme?

by Gary Sick With the surprising Iranian election over, and the moderate Hassan Rouhani elected by a clear majority, a new narrative is emerging. It asserts that absolutely nothing has changed, that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, let the… Continue Reading

Syria Hawks Can’t Get No Traction

by Jim Lobe via IPS News With Syrian government forces and their allies scoring a major victory over Western- and Gulf Arab-backed rebel forces this week, neo-conservatives and other anti-Damascus hawks are trying hard to turn up the pressure on… Continue Reading