Middle East - Syria: International community has failed completely' in Syria - by Niels Melzer

Nils Melzer: What worries me most right now is a general trend towards the erosion of the international human rights system. We can see that in China, Hong Kong, Russia, Brazil, the United States, Syria — it is impossible to name them all. In every country affected by the migration crisis, there are serious issues. What we are seeing is a strong erosion of human rights standards and of the readiness of states to be held to account for violations of human rights.

Read more at:
International community has failed completely′ in Syria | World| Breaking news and perspectives from around the globe | DW | 25.06.2020

Saudi Arabia: It's been a year since Khashoggi's murder. Trump has stopped pretending to care - by Mohamad Bazzi

Saudi Arabia’s dismal record isn’t deterring Mnuchin, Kushner and a flock of executives from attending ‘Davos in the desert’

Read more at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/oct/29/saudi-arabia-trump-administration-jamal-khashoggi-prince-mohammed?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Add_to_Firefox

US-Saudi Relations: U.S. sanctions 17 for role in hideous murder of Saudi journalist Khashoggi - a US smokescreen to protect business interests with Saudis?

Khashoggi murder:  Business as usual between US and Saudi Arabia

The U.S. Treasury will announce today 11/15/2018 sanctions on 17 Saudis for their role in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, according to a source familiar with the administration's plans.

Those to be sanctioned include Saud al-Qahtani, a former top aide to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as well as the Saudi Consul General Mohammed Alotaibi, the source said.

The sanctions will be implemented under the Global Magnitsky Act, which imposes sanctions over human rights abuses, the source said.

Among others facing sanctions are Maher Mutreb, an aide to Qahtani who has appeared in photographs with Prince Mohammed on official visits this year to the United States and Europe.

Note EU-Digest: The US sanctions announced by the Trump Administration are an indication the US Administration "has accepted the confusing explanations and statements" about the hideous murder of Saudi journalist Khashoggi by the Saudi Government in the Saudi Istanbul consulate", and as such concludes, "case closed and business as usual",  between the US and Saudi Arabia . 

U.S. sanctions 17 for role in killing of Saudi journalist Khashoggi

Weapons Industry: A vicious Circle, as US, Russia,China, EU create wars in Middle East and arms sales there soar amid widespread conflict

Arms imports by Middle East countries mired in violent conflict have doubled in 10 years — and the US, Russia and Europe remain the major suppliers, according to latest research.

Arms imports by Middle Eastern states have more than doubled over the past decade, with the US and European countries the main suppliers of weapons to the region. This is one of the main conclusions of the latest report by SIPRI — the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

The independent think-tank dedicated to arms control and disarmament says the volume of international major weapons shipments rose by 10 per cent between 2013-2017 compared to the previous five-year period — largely due to an increase to the far east and the Middle East.

Five countries — the United States, Russia, France, Germany and China — accounted for nearly three-quarters of all arms exports over the past five years.

Note EU-Digest:  :"War is most profitable for us", said one major arms exporter, "and let no one tell you that countries involved in these proxy wars, are in it for moral reasons, It all comes down to economic benefits. So please rest assured these wars will go on forever, for some reason or whatever".

Read more: US and European arms sales to Middle East soar amid widespread conflict | Euronews

Political Hypocricy: Clinton, Trump, and the ends of great power hypocrisy - Mark LeVine

US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry rail against Russia's support for the Syrian government's horrific bombing of hospitals and other crimes of war. Meanwhile, from Iraq and Afghanistan to Yemen to Israel, the US and its allies have either yet to account for or continue to engage in wars and pursue policies that have killed hundreds of thousands of people and ruined the lives of tens of millions more.

Truth be told, the Middle East is an intricate wheel of war and oppression whose spokes stretch across the Middle East into Africa and Central Asia, and which rolls roughshod over most every attempt by citizens across these regions to achieve a measure of democracy, accountability, development and dignity.

Why are are western leaders surprised when those crushed under the wheel ride the spokes across the water in the desperate hope of arriving at a better, or at least livable, future.

Read more: Clinton, Trump, and the ends of great power hypocrisy - Al Jazeera English

Iraq: Opinion: Dick Cheney's amazing chutzpah on Iraq - by Paul Waldman

You have to hand it to Dick Cheney. How many people, knowing what has happened in Iraq over the last 12 , would dare to write an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal containing this line: "Rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many" -- and not be talking about George W. Bush? The man has chutzpah.

The op-ed in question was co-written with Cheney's daughter Liz, former State Department worker and failed Senate candidate. The two are forming a new organization, the Alliance for a Strong America.

Of all the former Bush administration officials who have emerged in the last few days to blame the deteriorating situation in Iraq on Barack Obama, one might think Cheney would be among the last.

It's one thing to turn on your TV and hear that Obama is a dangerous weakling from people like Paul Wolfowitz and William Kristol, the ones who told us that war with Iraq would be cheap and easy, then bring a wave of peace and democracy across the Middle East.

But Cheney?

Cheney was the war's chief propagandist, who told the American public more spectacular falsehoods than anyone, including Bush himself. Cheney was the one who told us in 2002 that "Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction. There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies, and against us."

Read more: Opinion: Dick Cheney's amazing chutzpah on Iraq - CNN.com