Middle East

Flung Into Mosul, Stopping the Bleeding, Slowing Death

June 27, 2017

MOSUL, Iraq — For two weeks in early April and again in June, I was embedded in Mosul with an emergency-response division of the Iraqi army, which is fighting to retake the city from ISIS. The nonprofit organization I work for, NYC Medics, was contracted by the World Health Organization to run a trauma …

Humanitarian Aid, Middle East, Terrorism, WORLDVIEWS

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GEOPOLITICS

As the UN Chief Goes to Washington, He Reiterates Plight of Refugees

June 20, 2017

by Dulcie Leimbach

On International Refugee Day, António Guterres reiterated the plight of refugees and displaced people worldwide — a phenomenal 65.5 million people — in his first media briefing at United Nations headquarters in months. He let drop that he is traveling to Washington, D.C., from June 27-29 to lobby Congressional members on UN budget matters. …

Africa, Geopolitics, Middle East, Refugees, Secretary-General, US-UN Relations

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TOPIC: WOMEN

Rape by Terrorists: A UN Report Documents Sexual Attacks in War

May 2, 2017

by Dulcie Leimbach

Moving away from strictly categorizing rape and other sexual abuse against women as a weapon of war, a new report from the United Nations addresses the increasing use of rape as a weapon of terrorism. The report also documents how mass migration has led to further sexual violence against women through human trafficking by …

Gender-Based Violence, Human Trafficking, Libya, Middle East, Peace and Security, Women

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WORLDVIEWS

Was America’s Attack on Syria Legal? An Asian Expert’s View

April 26, 2017

by Yasuhiro Ueki

The images of civilians, particularly children, being asphyxiated by chemical substances and dying in Idlib Province of Syria on April 4 were a game changer. Judging that the chemical attack was carried out by the Syrian government, the United States, two days later, attacked Syria’s Shayrat airbase with 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles. The US …

Disarmament, Middle East, Security Council, Syria, US Foreign Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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UN-Scripted: PassBlue's exclusive podcast series

Master of Science in Humanitarian Studies at Fordham University

GEOPOLITICS

Jerusalem Has Always Been a Contested City

March 7, 2017

by Irwin Arieff

The long-simmering dispute over the fate of Jerusalem stands at the center of the Middle East conflict. Israelis and Palestinians, divided on many points, become most emotional when discussing the future of the walled, ancient crossroads city that is holy to three world religions. So international diplomats took notice when foreign policy neophyte Donald …

Geopolitics, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, Security Council, US Foreign Relations, US-UN Relations

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GEOPOLITICS

Seeking a Path for Jerusalem: A Chronology

March 7, 2017

by Irwin Arieff

Here is a brief political history of Jerusalem, in timeline format, dating from the earliest human settlement to the present. The chronology is selective, focusing primarily on the development of competing visions over the years of the ancient city’s past and future. The timeline accompanies a separate article, “Jerusalem’s Fate: Myth Versus Reality,” by …

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

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GEOPOLITICS

Feelings Hurt, Yemeni-Americans in New York City Protest the Trump Immigration Ban

February 2, 2017

by Dulcie Leimbach

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Thousands of Yemeni-Americans in New York City turned out to peacefully — if not passionately — protest the White House ban on immigrants entering the United States from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Yemen. The protesters waved American and Yemeni flags, shouting slogans like “United we stand against the Muslim ban.” Held …

Geopolitics, Libya, Middle East, Migration, Refugees, Syria, US Foreign Relations

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GEOPOLITICS

Take a Look: Global Refugee Law and US Areas Affected Most by Trump Ban

January 31, 2017

by Barbara Crossette

The public furor and enormous protests by many thousands of Americans nationwide have led experts to try to explain where the decisions made by Donald Trump fall short of legality in both national and international law. From Hollywood to the world of sports to the corridors of the United States Congress, people are saying …

Cities, Geopolitics, Human Rights, Middle East, Migration, Refugees, Syria, US Foreign Relations

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Educators on the UN Denounce Trump’s Crackdown on Refugees

January 28, 2017

by Irwin Arieff

More than 700 educators and students, meeting at United Nations headquarters in New York recently, called on the international community to protect refugees’ lives, encourage countries to take in “large numbers of refugees and migrants” and do more to ensure they get an education and are protected from sexual and gender-based violence. Acting as …

Education, Human Rights, Middle East, Migration, Refugees, Syria, US Foreign Relations

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GEOPOLITICS

Gas Discovery Could Solidify UN-Led Cypriot Peace Talks

January 25, 2017

by Omar H. Rahman

As Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots have returned this month to try to settle their 42-year conflict once and for all, a powerful new economic incentive — a significant natural gas discovery — could provide the decisive chance for success to the peace talks on Cyprus. The background to the natural gas discovery and …

Asia, Geopolitics, Middle East

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GEOPOLITICS

Top Sellers of Weapons to the Developing World in 2015? US and France

January 18, 2017

by Julie Vanderperre

A responsibility to promote worldwide cooperation toward peace and security is not the only role that the permanent-five veto-wielding powers in the United Nations Security Council have in common. Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States are also the world’s largest exporters of conventional weapons to developing countries. The export of weapons by …

Disarmament, Geopolitics, Middle East

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In a Single Day, US Congress Castigates Both the UN and Obama Over Israeli Vote

January 6, 2017

by Barbara Crossette

While Washington is caught up in the unfolding drama about the extent and motives of Russian hacking and possible attempted manipulation of the 2016 American presidential election, another story is playing out around threats to “punish” the United Nations. On Jan.5, the United States House of Representatives voted to repudiate the Security Council resolution …

Health and Population, Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Middle East, Security Council, UN Agencies

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Defying Trump in Momentous Vote, UN Security Council Condemns Israeli Settlements

December 23, 2016

by Dulcie Leimbach

In last-minute drama before the Christmas holiday, a vote by the United Nations Security Council on a resolution condemning illegal Israeli settlements boiled down to one country’s tacit approval: the United States. In an intensely watched vote on Dec. 23 at the UN, 14 elected and permanent members of the council voted yes …

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

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WORLDVIEWS

The Syrian War and the Refugee Crisis: Spawning the Rise of the Far Right

December 21, 2016

by Irwin Arieff

The butterfly effect teaches us that seemingly insignificant actions can have enormous future consequences. A tiny pair of fluttering wings can disturb the air in a way that helps trigger a hurricane halfway around the world. Witness Syria, where the Arab Spring made its debut in 2011 in the form of a tame wave …

Middle East, Peace and Security, Security Council, Syria, US Foreign Relations, WORLDVIEWS

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A Poverty-Easing Plan to Help Displaced People and Their Host Countries

December 9, 2016

by Tino Calabia

WASHINGTON, D.C. — One year ago, almost 1 percent of the world’s population, about 65 million people, had been forcibly displaced from their homes. That is a population size that would constitute a nation larger than Britain or would be the world’s 21st-largest country. But instead of creating their own country, the majority of the …

Development, Humanitarian Aid, Middle East, Migration, Refugees, World Bank

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Middle East

Flung Into Mosul, Stopping the Bleeding, Slowing Death

As the UN Chief Goes to Washington, He Reiterates Plight of Refugees

Rape by Terrorists: A UN Report Documents Sexual Attacks in War

Was America’s Attack on Syria Legal? An Asian Expert’s View

Jerusalem Has Always Been a Contested City

Seeking a Path for Jerusalem: A Chronology

Feelings Hurt, Yemeni-Americans in New York City Protest the Trump Immigration Ban

Take a Look: Global Refugee Law and US Areas Affected Most by Trump Ban

Educators on the UN Denounce Trump’s Crackdown on Refugees

Gas Discovery Could Solidify UN-Led Cypriot Peace Talks

Top Sellers of Weapons to the Developing World in 2015? US and France

In a Single Day, US Congress Castigates Both the UN and Obama Over Israeli Vote

Defying Trump in Momentous Vote, UN Security Council Condemns Israeli Settlements

The Syrian War and the Refugee Crisis: Spawning the Rise of the Far Right

A Poverty-Easing Plan to Help Displaced People and Their Host Countries

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