Afghan clowns raise laughs in war-torn Kabul
Two Afghan policemen stand paralyzed by fear in front of a plastic cup. But this is not some farcical scene from the battle against the Taliban — it is a…
No to a bloody future for Egypt
By Amira Salah-Ahmed CAIRO: Al-Qeddesine Church (Church of the Two Saints) is just blocks away from my family's home in Alexandria, Egypt, where I spent endless days and nights among relatives…
India’s elites in crisis
By Sanjeev Sanyal NEW DELHI: For a country with 1.2 billion people, India is ruled by a surprisingly small elite, which runs everything from the government to large companies and even…
Independence or war
By Charles Tannock STRASBOURG: In the 1990s, the world averted its eyes to genocide in Rwanda, and to the “Great Lakes War” in eastern Congo, which claimed upward of five million…
US shift may mean end of bilateral approach
By Ghassan Khatib The recent shift in the American approach for running the peace process left the Palestinians with different and sometimes contradicting reactions. Initially, the Palestinians were very worried after…
Prosecutor General releases remaining 23 Omraneya defendants
GIZA: Giza Prosecutor General Abdel-Meguid Mahmoud ordered on Tuesday the release of the remaining 23 Coptic defendants who were arrested amid clashes with security forces in Omraneya last November. Lawyer…
Copts in Canada step up security after Egypt attack
MONTREAL: Copts in Canada have hired private security contractors to protect churchgoers during this week's Christmas period after an attack in Egypt and radical Islamist threats, the national association said…
Israel focuses its energy on clean technologies
By Aron Heller/ AP JERUSALEM: After a successful run of high-tech and computer-related innovation, Israel is focusing its ambitions on the next big thing — preparing the world for life without…
Syria makes low-key opening of casino
DAMASCUS: A casino opened without fanfare near the Syrian capital on Christmas Eve, in a bending of the rules in a secular country seeking to lure tourists but where gambling…
Jordan: Healthy growth
By Oxford Business Group Jordan is fast turning medical tourism into a mainstay of the kingdom’s economy, with the sector likely to soon turn a healthy profit thanks to the high…