This week marks 65 years since the Suez Crisis, which catapulted the popularity of Egyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser — and became symbolic of his large and complicated legacy of Arab nationalism, Arab socialism, and anti-imperialism.
The drowning of 27 migrants in the English Channel this Wednesday was a record death count — prompting expressions of regret in both Britain and France. The governments that lamented the tragedy are implementing policies that make sure it’ll happen over and over again.
Serious consideration of the archaeological record puts to bed the myth that human history follows an evolutionary arc from simple and egalitarian to complex and hierarchical, challenging the assumption that democracy can work in small groups while scaling up requires domination.
Yemen’s rich and complex history was upended by its catastrophic civil war beginning in 2014. A peace agreement could help Yemenis recover the frustrated hopes of the 2011 uprising — if Saudi Arabia stops demanding victory for its allies.
The author of Black Reconstruction was also one of the pioneers of Pan-African socialism. Working with and influencing figures like George Padmore, C. L. R. James, and Kwame Nkrumah, Du Bois sowed the seeds of global revolt against racism and capitalism.
The Abraham Accords have cemented a counterrevolutionary bloc in the Middle East of Israel, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia. US intervention in the region is assuming a different form, but Washington’s support for authoritarian regimes is as brazen as ever.
The sell-off of the Port of Haifa looks like a takeover by corporate interests. Yet the acquisition was led by a close ally of Indian premier Narendra Modi — showing its ties to Israel’s strategy of finding autocratic allies abroad.
Rich in resources that it exports to the West, Nigeria today is blighted by shocking rates of inequality. With an elite working in the service of foreign capital, Nigerian workers and raw materials are a key site of exploitation for global capitalists.
From the Cold War to the war on terror, Washington has backed a series of Ethiopian governments while turning a blind eye to their human rights abuses. The Biden administration’s appeasement of Abiy Ahmed’s government is the latest example of this shabby record.
The Irish scholar Fred Halliday covered an extraordinary range of subjects in his work, from Middle East revolutions to the Cold War. Halliday brought a Marxist perspective to the study of global politics and left behind a rich intellectual legacy.
The US promised to bring freedom to Iraqis, but its eight-year occupation resulted in death and destruction on a horrifying scale. It left behind a corrupt, sectarian political order that has responded to popular protests with brutal repression.
EU leaders fearmonger about immigration while neglecting the real and deadly threats posed by climate change. The entire Euro-Mediterranean region should collaborate on behalf of displaced persons, against fossil fuel giants, and toward decarbonization.
Saudi Arabia and its Western allies, including the US, spent vast sums on a war that has reduced Yemen to abject poverty. They must not be allowed to shirk responsibility for the reconstruction work that is essential for the future of all Yemenis.
Rather than bolster Benjamin Netanyahu in a “rally around the flag” effect, the October 7 attack on Israel has destroyed his standing with voters. Netanyahu's political career, which has fundamentally reshaped Israeli society, may be effectively finished.
The United States’ 20-plus-year War on Terror has led to disasters throughout the Middle East. But the greatest failure of US counterterrorism operations may be in Africa, where they have destabilized multiple governments and led to a huge spike in violence.
Israel’s war on Gaza has sent shock waves echoing throughout the Middle East. Mohamed Naeem, an Egyptian socialist activist, talks about the war’s impact and the way countries like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Iran are likely to respond.
During the Yom Kippur War in 1973, Arab oil producers cut off exports to Israel’s allies. But faced with today’s Israeli war on Gaza, Gulf states dismiss the idea of using the “oil weapon” — an index of how much they have abandoned the Palestinian cause.
“La Familia” is a group of fans that supports Beitar Jerusalem, one of Israel’s most popular football clubs. The quasi-criminal, virulently anti-Arab group has fashioned themselves into political street fighters for the Israeli far right.
The US is threatening military action in the waters off Yemen to protect international shipping routes. The people of Yemen have already borne the brunt of a US-sponsored war that has caused devastation similar to the horrific scenes in Gaza.
Israel has made no secret of it: it has embarked on a genocidal plan to “create conditions where life in Gaza becomes unsustainable.” And Joe Biden is its accomplice.