IPS brings you independent perspective on what is happening in Iran, Iraq and across the Middle East.

MIDDLE EAST – Peace?

Much Ado About Annapolis
Ali Gharib
ANNAPOLIS, Maryland – The Middle East peace conference that began and ended here on this crisp, sunny Tuesday was lean on specifics for a lasting peace deal between Israel and Palestine and the formation of a Palestinian state.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40243

Christians and Muslims Coexist in Gaza
Mohammed Omer
GAZA CITY – As Sunday dawns in Gaza City the traditional Islamic call to prayer mingles melodically with church bells.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40241

LEBANON: Violent Politics Play Out in Packed Refugee Camps
Mona Alami
BEIRUT – On the edge of Beirut’s suburbs lies Bourj al-Barajneh, a Palestinian enclave located at the heart of a Shiite neighbourhood, traditionally the domain of Iran-backed Hezbollah. Here, 17,000 Palestinian refugees are amassed on a minuscule swath of land, co-existing in a fragile truce among run-down buildings and muddy streets.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40239

Demolition Decimating Palestinian Village – By Ramsey Ben-Achour
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40169

Soldiers of (Mis)Fortune
Thalif Deen
UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations is increasingly critical of the use of deadly force, including indiscriminate shooting of civilians, by private security guards in some of the world’s battle zones.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40233

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IRAQ: Detentions Escalate in Diwaniyah
Ali al-Fadhily*
DIWANIYAH – Detentions have become commonplace in Iraq, but now more than ever before people are being detained after being accused of membership in “militias supported by Iran.”
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40234

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AFGHANISTAN: Teaching Counterinsurgency – Too Little, Too Late
Fawzia Sheikh
KABUL – The Afghanistan Counterinsurgency Academy is a work in progress — the clamour of construction, the bulldozing of garbage and the sparse staff are all clear signs.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40222

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IRAN: Attack on Sufis Reveals Intolerance of Muslim Sects
Kimia Sanati
TEHRAN – The destruction of a monastery belonging to the Gonabadi Sufi order in Boroujerd town of Luristan province, this month, has once again highlighted the hostile environment in which Iran?s many religious minorities and non-conformist sects exist.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40187

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MIDDLE EAST: Economic Diversification Follows the ‘Copycat’ Route
Meena Janardhan
DUBAI – At the beginning of the century, there were few reputed airlines, tourist destinations, investment opportunities and educational institutions to choose from in the Gulf region. Those that existed were unique and faced little or no competition.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40249

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U.S.: No Second Acts, Except in Iraq
Bill Berkowitz*
OAKLAND – Earlier this decade, Manuel Miranda spent a good deal of time figuring out how to pilfer documents related to the Democratic Party’s strategy for dealing with President George W. Bush’s judicial appointments.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40212

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U.S. Gen. Petraeus Sought to Prevent Release of Iranians
Analysis by Gareth Porter*
WASHINGTON – Recent statements by the U.S. military that Iran had pledged to stop supplying weapons to Shiite militias in Iraq and that this alleged flow of arms may have stopped in August were part of a behind-the-scenes struggle over whether the Bush administration should make a gesture to Iran by releasing five Iranian prisoners held since January.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40214

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Q&A: “U.S. Politics Turning Communities Against Each Other”
Interview with Gilbert Achcar
ATHENS – “As long as the U.S. troops stay in Iraq there will be violence,” warns Gilbert Achcar, professor of development studies and international relations at the University of London?s School of Oriental and African Studies.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40196

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IRAQ: Infighting Increases Instability
Ali al-Fadhily*
BAGHDAD – Increasing conflict and finger pointing between leading Shi’ite political blocs are heightening instability in war-torn Iraq.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40165

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U.S. Gitmo Policy Faces Another Supreme Court Test
William Fisher
NEW YORK – The Bush administration’s legal justification for continuing to hold prisoners without charges at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will be back in the U.S. Supreme Court — yet again — early next month.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=40161

LobeLog.com
IPS Washington bureau chief Jim Lobe’s take on U.S. foreign policy and the story behind the story. www.ips.org/blog/jimlobe/

For more IPS reporting on the Middle East – www.ipsnews.net/middle.asp

Iraq: Beyond the Green Zone – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/iraq/index.asp

Iran: The Parthian Shot – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/iran/index.asp

Holy Land/Unholy War – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/israel_palestina/index.asp

Afghan Divide – www.ipsnews.net/afghanistan/index.asp

View From the U.S.: Bush at War – www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/warII/index.asp

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