Middle East

Why Poland Could Master Mideast Issues in the UN Security Council

August 6, 2019

Even though many people think of August as vacation time, Joanna Wronecka, Poland’s ambassador to the United Nations, is not taking off anytime soon, as she is presiding over the Security Council for the month. As the Security Council is going to tackle issues affecting the Middle East and other parts of the world, …

Child Soldiers, Middle East, Security Council Presidency

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The UN Palestinian Refugee Agency Is in Hot Water, Again

August 5, 2019

by Thalif Deen

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency, which has been undermined by a sharp cut in United States contributions, has been embroiled in a scandal that threatens to jeopardize its very future. A report from the agency’s Ethics Office has found “credible and corroborated” evidence that the senior management of Unrwa engaged in “sexual …

Middle East, Secretary-General, UN Agencies, US-UN Relations

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President Trump’s Goal for Financing Palestinians Is a Guessing Game

June 30, 2019

by Evelyn Leopold

The United Nations refugee agency for Palestinians is vastly short of funds for 5.4 million people, while the Trump administration is doing its best to shut down the program and initiate new, albeit controversial financing. At issue was a “workshop” in Bahrain, held last week and organized by Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of President …

Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

Kuwait’s Priority for the UN Security Council Presidency: Iraq and the Mideast

June 3, 2019

by Stéphanie Fillion

Still, this small oil-rich Arab country has an agenda of its own that it wants to fulfill as it ends its last presidency on the Council — in probably decades — on a strong note. For June, Kuwait plans to work on the topic of missing persons in armed conflict, an issue that touches its …

Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, Security Council Presidency

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WORLDVIEWS

The Gains of LGBTQ Rights in Some Mideast-North African Nations May Be a Game-Changer

May 27, 2019

by Suraj Girijashanker

Progress in recognizing the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people at the United Nations in New York and in Geneva may seem detached from the realities faced by LGBTQ people in the Middle East and North Africa, or Mena, region. Activists there, however, are navigating the UN human-rights system as …

Africa, Human Rights, Middle East, WORLDVIEWS

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GEOPOLITICS

Trump Nominates the Current UN Envoy as Ambassador to Egypt

April 12, 2019

by Dulcie Leimbach

Just days after President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt met with President Trump in the White House, receiving an effusive reception, Trump nominated Jonathan R. Cohen, the acting permanent representative of the United States to the United Nations, as ambassador to Egypt. Cohen, who has been a Foreign Service officer since 1986, is from …

Geopolitics, Middle East, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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In Numbers, Africa May Be a Force in the Christian World by 2060

April 8, 2019

by Barbara Crossette

New projections from a leading American research group suggest that the number of Christians in various denominations and sects is steadily rising in Africa and could dominate the faith numerically worldwide for decades to come. In 2015, according to the Pew Research Center, only three African countries were included in the top 10 in …

Africa, Health and Population, Latin America, Middle East

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For These Muslim-Americans, the ‘Siege’ Has Not Lifted

January 7, 2019

by Dulcie Leimbach

CLEVELAND, Ohio — In this city of immigrants, as one Moroccan-American called his hometown, the Muslim community keeps a low profile amid the Islamophobia that has reared its head in the United States in recent times. As one of the largest Muslim communities in the country, including a large Palestinian component, the repercussions against …

Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, Security Council

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GEOPOLITICS

As His Country Wages War, President Hadi of Yemen Still Travels to US for Health Care

December 31, 2018

by Dulcie Leimbach

CLEVELAND, Ohio — On the main drag of Euclid Avenue in this Midwestern city sprawls the main campus of the Cleveland Clinic, the renowned hospital that attracts an estimated 2.5 million patients nationwide and abroad, including from the Middle East. That includes President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi of Yemen, who has heart troubles and …

Geopolitics, Middle East, US Foreign Relations

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GEOPOLITICS

The US, Reversing Course on Cluster Bombs, Is Testing New Ones in Israel

December 28, 2018

by Stéphanie Fillion

TEL AVIV — Every day in some provinces of Vietnam, the simple act of walking can be deadly, as people risk stepping on unexploded ordnances, remnants from America’s war there that ended more than 40 years ago. The United States dropped 14 million tons of explosive devices during the war in Vietnam as well …

Disarmament, Geopolitics, Middle East, US Foreign Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

Where Does the UN Security Council Stand on Yemen?

November 7, 2018

by Kristine Beckerle

BEIRUT — A Yemeni father’s voice, proudly telling us about his son, was nevertheless infused with sorrow: Ahmed was about 12 and smart. He lived with his father, his mother and his eight siblings until “the war came.” The Saudi-led coalition bombed their home about a year ago. The Houthi armed group that had …

Middle East, Security Council, WORLDVIEWS

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GEOPOLITICS

Europe and Others Help Fund the UN Palestinian Agency, Filling US Void

September 27, 2018

by Stéphanie Fillion

The European Union, Germany, Norway, Ireland and Kuwait stepped in this week to donate a total of $118 million in financing to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa), after the United States cut $304 million of its annual support to the agency for this year. …

Climate and Environment, Geopolitics, Middle East, Refugees, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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WORLDVIEWS

The UN Mission in Lebanon, Saved From the US Ax for Another Year

September 11, 2018

by Karim Makdisi

BEIRUT — In late August, the United Nations Security Council unanimously renewed its peacekeeping operation in southern Lebanon, called Unifil. The less confrontational tone around the negotiation of Resolution 2433, contrasting with the heated debate on the renewal a year ago, can be read as a positive sign for Lebanon and the UN. It …

Middle East, UN Peacekeeping, US-UN Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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WORLDVIEWS

The US vs. Unrwa: Who Really Loses?

September 6, 2018

by Mona Ali Khalil

It is entirely the United States’ prerogative to cut off its voluntary contributions to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, or Unrwa. In her statements about why the Trump administration has decided to do so, however, Ambassador Nikki Haley misses the mark on who should be grateful …

Human Rights, Middle East, US Foreign Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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GEOPOLITICS

In Hodeidah, the Norwegian Refugee Council Hangs On to Save Yemenis

June 20, 2018

by Dulcie Leimbach

As the attack on Hodeidah, a major port in western Yemen on the Red Sea, moves into its second week, led by the coalition of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the rest of the world seems to be sitting and watching the destruction. The Norwegian Refugee Council, an independent nongovernmental organization, has …

Geopolitics, Middle East, Secretary-General, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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Middle East

Why Poland Could Master Mideast Issues in the UN Security Council

The UN Palestinian Refugee Agency Is in Hot Water, Again

President Trump’s Goal for Financing Palestinians Is a Guessing Game

Kuwait’s Priority for the UN Security Council Presidency: Iraq and the Mideast

The Gains of LGBTQ Rights in Some Mideast-North African Nations May Be a Game-Changer

Trump Nominates the Current UN Envoy as Ambassador to Egypt

In Numbers, Africa May Be a Force in the Christian World by 2060

For These Muslim-Americans, the ‘Siege’ Has Not Lifted

As His Country Wages War, President Hadi of Yemen Still Travels to US for Health Care

The US, Reversing Course on Cluster Bombs, Is Testing New Ones in Israel

Where Does the UN Security Council Stand on Yemen?

Europe and Others Help Fund the UN Palestinian Agency, Filling US Void

The UN Mission in Lebanon, Saved From the US Ax for Another Year

The US vs. Unrwa: Who Really Loses?

In Hodeidah, the Norwegian Refugee Council Hangs On to Save Yemenis

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