Monthly archive : "February, 2016"

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Tensions Between Riyadh, Tehran Detrimental to Arab World: Prof. Madawi Al-Rasheed

Tensions Between Riyadh, Tehran Detrimental to Arab World: Prof. Madawi Al-Rasheed

Kourosh Ziabari - Iran Review: More than a month ago, the Saudi government executed 47 prisoners in a day, sending strong tremors across the Middle East. The prisoners were claimed to be al-Qaeda affiliates and terrorists behind the killing of Saudi and foreign citizens between 2003 and 2006. Among those put to death row was Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a noted Shiite cleric known for his outspoken advocacy of the rights of the underrepresented Shiite minority in the kingdom. The execution of Sheikh Nimr sparked tensions in the region, and ignited protests in Iran that culminated in a violent attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran and its consulate in the northeastern city of Mashhad. In response to the embassy rampage, Saudi Arabia severed its...

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The Refugee Crisis Threatens Euro-American Economic Domination: Prof. Serena Parekh

The Refugee Crisis Threatens Euro-American Economic Domination: Prof. Serena Parekh

Kourosh Ziabari - Truth NGO: While the European Union grapples with the biggest refugee crisis since the World War II, there’s a heated debate going on as to whether taking in asylum-seekers and helping them resettle is a moral and legal responsibility which the EU countries should assume. According to the UN estimates, more than 15.5 million people have been displaced as a result of the five-year-long civil war in Syria. The refugees fleeing war and turmoil at home embrace the extreme hardships of getting to the EU borders by all means at their disposal, including through boarding on unsafely overloaded, jammed boats whose riders charge the refugees several thousand dollars, promising to take them to EU securely. However, many of...

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Iran and Britain: Bracing for a New Era of Redefined Relations

Iran and Britain: Bracing for a New Era of Redefined Relations

Kourosh Ziabari - The Huffington Post: On July 14, 2016, precisely one year following the conclusion of the landmark nuclear accord between Iran and the six major world powers, dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, British Airways, will be re-launching direct flights between London and Tehran. The service was suspended in October 2012 as the company officials believed the route was "no longer commercially viable." The decision by the British airliner to resume return flights to the Iranian capital comes on the heels of new steps taken by the governments of Iran and Britain to normalize and improve their precarious relations, which plummeted to an all-time low after the British...

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Rouhani’s charm offensive pays off in Europe and Iran

Rouhani’s charm offensive pays off in Europe and Iran

Kourosh Ziabari - Middle East Eye: Iranian President Hassan Rouhani kicked off his first official trip to Europe – excluding his journey to Davos in January 2014 to participate in the World Economic Forum – on 25 January by visiting Italy and concluded it on 29 January with the second leg of his European tour ending in France. He received a warm welcome and inked multi-billion dollar deals in both countries, making the headlines worldwide and blowing minds both at home and abroad. Visiting Europe is not by definition something unconventional or far-fetched for a foreign head of state. But for the president of a country besieged by more than a decade-long of grueling economic sanctions and inevitably ensuing political...

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