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The End of the myth of "resistance" for Hezbollah, Iran and Syria

Hezbollah is preparing itself to face the greatest challenge in its history, when the Special Tribunal for Lebanon [STL] reveals the truth behind the assassination of [former Lebanese Prime Minister] Rafik Hariri live on air all across the world. Following this, the image that Hezbollah has created for itself – as a representative of the resistance which defends Lebanon against Israeli aggression – will collapse. Rather than defending the people of Lebanon from others, the STL evidence may reveal that Hezbollah collaborated with a foreign state to kill the greatest Lebanese statesman, in order – ultimately – to seize power and control the country.

Boykottiert Durban 3!

Auf der Durban-Konferenz kurz vor dem 11. September 2001 wurde Israel im Namen des Antirassismus für alle Übel der Welt verantwortlich gemacht. Die UNO droht zum Jahrestag mit einer neuen Durban-Konferenz - unweit von Ground Zero. Demokratische Länder sollten sie boykottieren.

Iraqi Leader Backs Syria, With a Nudge From Iran

As leaders in the Arab world and other countries condemn President Bashar al-Assad’s violent crackdown on demonstrators in Syria, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki of Iraq has struck a far friendlier tone, urging the protesters not to “sabotage” the state and hosting an official Syrian delegation. Mr. Maliki’s support for Mr. Assad has illustrated how much Iraq’s position in the Middle East has shifted toward an axis led by Iran. And it has also aggravated the fault line between Iraq’s Shiite majority, whose leaders have accepted Mr. Assad’s account that Al Qaeda is behind the uprising, and the Sunni minority, whose leaders have condemned the Syrian crackdown.

Analysis: Mubarak’s trial is about the future of Egypt

The big question is what “new Egypt” is going to emerge from the events of the January 25 Revolution. Will it be a country willing to go to the roots of the problem and to tackle the main obstacles to its progress? This would be a painful process, lengthy and convoluted, fraught with controversies and perhaps difficult conflicts. A process that may seem impossible in the foreseeable future, though it is the only one that can save this great and important country. If, on the other hand, as all the politicians said, the trial of Hosni Mubarak – the image of an old and ailing leader on a stretcher in a cage – becomes the defining event setting Egypt on a new path, then there is nothing to hope for.

Geld für den Diktator: Wie die Bundesregierung Syrien half

Video: Deutschland hat den syrischen Diktator Assad jahrelang unterstützt.

Syria’s Struggle

Washington and Europe have talked for weeks about expanding existing sanctions that include travel bans and asset freezes for certain regime members. They need to act. Germany, Italy, France and the Netherlands — the top consumers of Syrian oil — should stop buying it. The exports are small enough that a suspension would have little effect on world prices but a big impact on Damascus.

Syria: Secret journey around a nation in revolt finds protesters are not flagging

Using pseudonyms, booking diversionary journeys, slipping quietly into blockaded towns and hiding with protesters, The Sunday Telegraph criss-crossed the nation and witnessed a Syria of "freed" towns, vast anti-regime demonstrations, violent melees and angry gunfights. It is the Syria that President Assad wants no one see, and it is the reason why he has sought to arrest, censor or ban foreign journalists.

Jonathan Spyer: "Der Westen hat Angst vor dem Iran"

Die Frage, ob der arabische Frühling an den Grenzen des iranischen Blocks halt macht, wird sich in Syrien entscheiden. Wenn das Assad-Regime überlebt, würde das ein problematisches Signal senden, nämlich: Die Zugehörigkeit zum iranischen Block bewahrt autokratische Führer vor dem gerechten Urteil ihres Volkes. Der Westen sollte zunächst einmal ganz offiziell Assads Abgang fordern, das ist bislang noch nicht erfolgt. Als weiteren Eskalationsschritt könnten Diplomaten abgezogen werden. Ein militärisches Eingreifen des Westens zugunsten der Opposition ist sehr unwahrscheinlich - zumal die Regimegegner über kein eigenes Territorium verfügen, wie beispielsweise die Rebellen in Libyen. Was man also bisher vom Westen sieht, ist Zögerlichkeit, einen Schlag gegen den Feind zu führen, wenn dieser zurückschlagen könnte.

Egypt's New Political Alliance Could Boost the Islamists

June 21 saw the second meeting of the National Democratic Alliance for Egypt, with fourteen smaller parties agreeing to join the coalition's founders, the MB's newly formed Freedom and Justice Party and the liberal Wafd Party. Although the alliance is unsustainable in its current form, its mere existence points to two disturbing trends in Egyptian politics: first, parties are negotiating over the distribution of candidates to predetermine electoral outcomes and, second, anti-Western foreign policy views are uniting parties with wildly divergent views on domestic issues.

Audio: Einschätzungen des Oberstaatsanwalts Mehlis zu Syriens Präsident Assad

Er ist in die syrischen Machtverhältnisse eingetaucht, als er 2005 den Mord am libanesischen Ministerpräsidenten Rafiq Hariri untersuchte: der Berliner Leitende Oberstaatsanwalt Detlev Mehlis. Für ihn ist klar: Syriens Präsident Baschar al-Assad ist kein Getriebener, sondern "eindeutig Teil dieses finsteren Systems".

Saudis und Mullahs ringen um Macht

Für Teheran ist Syrien zum entscheidenden Schlachtfeld im Ringen um die Vorherrschaft in der Region geworden. Fällt das Regime von Diktator Assad, verlieren die Mullahs einen wichtigen Brückenkopf im Kampf gegen den Erzfeind Israel. Über Syrien versorgt der Iran die Schiiten-Miliz Hisbollah mit Waffen und Geld. In Damaskus hat außerdem das Politbüro der im Gazastreifen herrschenden radikal-islamischen Hamas Unterschlupf gefunden. Nur mit syrischer Duldung konnte Teheran diese anti-israelischen Organisationen sowie diverse Splittergruppen bisher steuern.

The Syrian opposition: Political analysis with testimony from key figures

An in-depth look at 12 weeks of Syrian protest and repression by the Ba'athist dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad, the report includes original interviews with six oppositionists in the major cities and towns caught up in the Syrian revolution. It also draws on exclusive interviews with Ammar Abdulhamid, a leading US-based spokesperson for the opposition, and with Radwan Ziadeh, author of the National Initiative for Change statement of principles, which provides the a sophisticated "roadmap" for for a post-Assad transitional government.

23.6.2011: Video der Diskussions-Veranstaltung "Brennpunkt Syrien" mit Jonathan Spyer (GLORIA-Institut, Israel)

Palästina, und was dann?

Machmud Abbas, Präsident der Palästinensischen Autonomiebehörde, drängt auf die Anerkennung eines Staates Palästina durch die Vereinten Nationen im September. Doch weder würde damit der Kernkonflikt gelöst noch könnten die Palästinenser einen Vorteil für sich verbuchen. Ganz im Gegenteil.

We’ve Never Seen Such Horror: Crimes against Humanity by Syrian Security Forces

Since the beginning of anti-government protests in March 2011, Syrian security forces have killed hundreds of protesters and arbitrarily arrested thousands, subjecting many of them to brutal torture in detention. The security forces routinely prevented the wounded from getting medical assistance, and imposed a siege on several towns, depriving the population of basic services. Some of the worst abuses took place in Daraa governorate in southwestern Syria. The nature and scale of abuses, which Human Rights Watch research indicates were not only systematic, but implemented as part of a state policy, strongly suggest these abuses qualify as crimes against humanity.