September, 2021

• 16 September

  Who do they think they are? Israel tells US to ease off Saudi, Egypt human rights

  

  They need not worry, as the Biden administration is still selling arms to the biggest violators in the Gulf. Israeli officials warned the United States not to hold Saudi Arabia and Egypt accountable for human rights abuses, or else risk driving them into the arms of China, Russia, and Iran. …

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• 16 September

  The True Lessons of the Afghan War

  Disagreements over how to assess the American exodus from Afghanistan have kept the pundits busy these last weeks, even though there wasn’t much to say that hadn’t been said before. For some of them, however, that was irrelevant. Having overseen or promoted the failed Afghan War themselves, all the while …

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• 16 September

  Bitcoin the Messiah: El Salvador Goes Crypto

  In a particular deli store in South Melbourne, a tongue-and-cheek message is attached to the cash register. “Bitcoin accepted there,” it proclaims brightly. Naturally, it is nothing of the sort, a teasing ruse for the punters and those casting an eye in the direction of the store. Cold hard cash …

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• 16 September

  By Letting Saudi Arabia Off the Hook Over 9/11, the US Encouraged Violent Jihadism

  Two decades after 9/11, the role of Saudi Arabia in the attack remains in dispute despite unrelenting efforts by the US and Saudi governments to neutralise it as a live political issue. The Saudi Arabia embassy in Washington this week issued a statement detailing its anti-terrorist activities and ongoing hostility …

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• 15 September

  Afghan Pilots in Uzbekistan to Get Flown to US Base in Doha – Reports

  A group of Afghan pilots are expected to be transferred to a US military base from Uzbekistan this weekend, under a new agreement between the US and Uzbek governments, The Wall Street Journal reports citing people familiar with the matter. The Afghan Air Force pilots, who fled to Uzbekistan after …

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• 15 September

  The Winner in Afghanistan: China

  

  The collapse of the American project in Afghanistan may fade fast from the news here, but don’t be fooled. It couldn’t be more significant in ways few in this country can even begin to grasp. “Remember, this is not Saigon,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a television audience on …

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• 15 September

  Afghan crisis exposes rifts across Iran’s political spectrum

  

  At the two ends of Iran’s political spectrum angry voices are being heard in a fierce battle over the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan, and especially the question of support for resistance forces in Panjshir Valley. Iran’s Reformists woke up to a stinging editorial Sept. 9 by the hard-line daily Kayhan …

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• 15 September

  Amid escalation in Idlib, residents fear renewed Russian-backed offensive

  

  Syrian government forces have stepped up their attacks against Idlib, causing civilian casualties as Russian warplanes continue to raid different areas of northwestern Syria on an almost daily basis. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Sept. 7 that “a woman succumbed to her wounds sustained in artillery shelling carried …

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• 15 September

  Sudan, South Sudan resume trade activity

  

  Following a 10-year hiatus, since the secession of South Sudan on July 9, 2011, the governments in Juba and Khartoum agreed to resume trade activity and cooperate on transport and security beginning in early October. As part of efforts to bolster peace between Sudan and South Sudan, the two governments …

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• 15 September

  Lebanese energy plan includes Syria

  

  A meeting of Jordanian, Egyptian, Lebanese and Syrian ministers seems to have cracked Syria’s isolation. Four Arab countries have agreed on a road map to supply Egyptian natural gas to Lebanon through Jordan and Syria during a ministerial meeting in Amman on Sept. 8. They also approved a plan to …

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