World News Insights: Opinion Articles

When the Chinese government abruptly eased its draconian Covid-19 policies in December, I felt an uncanny combination of abject horror and relief. After three years of endless PCR tests and lockdowns — “zero Covid,” which has gripped China like a vise, was finally brought to a close. Overseas…

The centennial anniversary of the birth of former United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali was last December. This provides an occasion to reflect not only on the career of a public figure with a unique experience at the national, regional, and international levels but also on the…

At first, Donald Trump’s strategy for dealing with the US media was intelligent. He considered it part of the coalition of corrupt elites that he promised to get rid of. Seeking to undermine the media and its credibility, called it fake news and said that journalists are corrupt, giving them a long…

For the first time in nearly a century, we have witnessed the stunning spectacle of a Republican Party so fractured, it has struggled in multiple rounds of balloting to choose a speaker of the House. This Washington drama reflects larger structural forces that are changing American democracy. …

The trilateral meeting between Russia, Türkiye, and Syria may have been the most significant event towards the end of 2022. Iran did not take part in the discussions on this sensitive strategic matter. This meeting was not without preludes but was rather preceded by several meetings and statements,…

There are phrases that as a student of history in the making I never thought I would read let alone write. Now, however, such a phrase is in full circulation and I feel no qualms about repeating it: Benjamin Netanyahu is a moderate politician! The “comeback kid” of Israeli politics certainly cuts a…

The questions in the US about the country’s “historical” relationship with Israel have not gone as far as forcing Washington to radically and comprehensively rethink its deep ties with Tel Aviv, which is unlike any of the United States’ relationships with another country. Talk on how the costs…

The great. The giant. The wonder. Stature... And decades ago, we used to say: “The prince of the poets,” “the prince of eloquence,” “the landmark scholar,” and “the understander of understanders”... Anyone who stands out in a profession or the role he plays, especially in the arts, the media, and…

“What are Putin’s red lines?” This question, asked with growing urgency as Russia loses its war in Ukraine but does not relent in its aggressions, is intended to offer analytical clarity and to guide policy. In reality, it is the wrong question, because “red line” is a bad metaphor. Red lines…

In 2007, former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attended the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit (28) for the first time. It was held in Doha, and Qatar had invited him to be the guest of honor. During the summit, one picture drew particularly strong attention. It was a picture of the late…

It is difficult for anyone following the celebrations of the new year in Saudi Arabia to believe what they see is happening in the Kingdom. In the capital alone, the Trio Talent concert in Mohammed Abdo Arena (a Riyadh Season event) saw 12 music artists of both genders from across the Arab world…

I wrote a book in praise of failure, which is like a fish praising water. I’ve been swimming in failure for as long as I can remember — even before that. Quite a lot of who we are, what we do and especially what we cannot do is determined well before we are born, by history, geography, the rise and…