Assad’s Downfall and the Regional Balance of Power

The remaining advocates of Bashar Assad are working overtime to portray a vision of a completely chaotic Middle East if and when the Alawite regime finally collapses.

Suicide blast targeting Shiite pilgrims in Iraq kills 43

A SUICIDE bomber has killed 53 people in an attack on Shiite devotees at a pilgrimage in Iraq.

The apparent sectarian attack in southern Iraq yesterday cast a pall over the climax of a Shiite pilgrimage that draws hundreds of thousands from around the world. (more…)

Maliki credits Iraqis with the overthrow of Saddam Hussein

Iraq’s prime minister hailed the end of the American military presence in Iraq as a new dawn for his country and urged Iraqis to preserve the unity of a nation still under attack by insurgents and beset by sectarian divisions.

At a televised celebration in Baghdad on Saturday, Nouri al-Maliki declared Dec. 31 a national holiday (more…)

Al-Sadr’s bloc calls for dissolution of Iraqi parliament

A political crisis that threatens more sectarian strife in Iraq took another twist Monday as the bloc loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr called for the dissolution of Parliament and early elections. (more…)

Iraq’s Shiite cleric proposes ‘peace code’ as way out of crisis

Iraq’s anti-American Shiite cleric launched Saturday an initiative calling for peaceful coexistence among all Iraqis after the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country.

Muqtada al-Sadr, whose militiamen were blamed for sectarian killings during the worst years of Iraq’s violence, is seeking to assert his political weight in post-U.S. troops Iraq. (more…)

Analysts: Iraq’s Syria stance is Sunni-Shiite related

Iraq’s refusal to back Arab measures against Syria, which has since March been trying to crush a popular uprising, has confessional overtones and may boost sectarian division here, analysts say.

Syrian forces kill 9 factory workers near Homs: activists

Syrian security forces shot dead at least 9 villagers they had stopped at a roadblock northwest of the city of Homs, local activists said on Wednesday. (more…)

Minorities have nothing to fear in post-Assad Syria, Interview

In this interview the secretary-general of Syrian Salafist group Al-Muamineen al-Yousharikoun (The Believers Participate), insists that minorities having nothing to fear in a post-Assad Syria…all should be allowed to play a role.

Nasrallah’s statement aimed at ‘provoking Sunnis’, says MP Hout

MP Imad al-Hout who represents Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya in the parliament said on Saturday that Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s recent statements in which he transferred the accusation of the four Hezbollah members to the entire Shiite sect, are aimed at provoking the Sunni sect . (more…)

Arab countries declare Monday as first day of Ramadan

Religious authorities in Egypt and Saudi Arabia have declared that Monday will be the start of the holy month of Ramadan – a period devoted to dawn-to-dusk fasting, prayers and spiritual introspection. (more…)