All Backchannels
Six years in, Obama gearing up to be a war presidentPresident Obama's dismissal of Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel today is the latest sign of the president's growing hawkishness in the face of unresolved conflicts in the Middle East. 聽
Captive John Cantlie is a propaganda prop for Islamic StateUsing John Cantlie, whose friend and colleague James Foley was beheaded by the group two months ago, is one of the Islamic State's lesser crimes. But it's still a crime.
In Egypt, avenues of political dissent are closing steadilyA slew of ruling by President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, have turned the clock back to the Mubarak era. On Friday, at least 31 Egyptian soldiers died in Sinai attacks blamed on militants.
A Canadian murderer, and myths about countering radicalizationThe Canadian man who shot dead a soldier at the country's war memorial in Ottawa yesterday is a classic 'lone wolf' 鈥� and a reason why state-led efforts to counter 'radicalization' and jihadi recruiters won't amount to much.
Iraqi PM Abadi says the US is not to be trusted. Really?His comments are the sort of thing that can increase the danger for US, or other foreign troops, working to help save Iraq's beleaguered聽government.
Signs of victories against Ebola in Africa 鈥撀燼nd the United StatesTime for hysteria to be tempered with evidence that progress is being made, and that the global response to Ebola can really make a difference.
Turkey says Iraqi Kurds can fight in Kobane. Could they make a difference?Turkey doesn't want to allow Turkish Kurds - most importantly members of the Marxist PKK - to go fight in Syria. But the PKK's fighters have proven most effective in resisting Islamic State advances in Iraq.
Indonesia's new president is the world's most unlikely political storyThe stunning rise of Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, who took office Monday for a five-year term as Indonesia's new president.
What would an actual battle for Baghdad look like?Islamic State militants and supporters are close at hand, but so too are Shiite fighters defending their homes and family.聽
America's Saudi problem in its anti-IS coalitionSaudi Arabia sentenced dissident Shiite cleric Nimr Baqir al-Nimr to death today. That's trouble for a strategy that rests on ending sectarianism in Iraq.
US military denied treatment to soldiers exposed to chemical weapons in IraqA detailed New York Times scoop raises troubling questions about secrecy and responsibility in the US government.
The Islamic State, gardening metaphors, and misinformationThe dangers of analysis and misrepresentation that flows from strained gardening metaphors by an influential columnist.
The US remains focused on IS in Syria and Iraq. Local 'allies?' Not so much.It's hard to put together a successful coalition when the partners don't agree on priorities and objectives.
Obama's Iraq-Syria strategy, way back in June 2014 ... and nowObama touted Yemen as a model for US efforts against the so-called Islamic State in a major speech this summer. While an odd statement at the time, with Yemen teetering, it looks much worse now.
What's at stake as Kurds, Islamic State, and US fight over Kobane? A lot.A look at what victory or defeat would mean for聽the self-styled Islamic State聽鈥� and for US objectives in its expanding war in Syria and Iraq.
Ebola: The kind of enemy the US military excels at fightingYou get the opposite impression from much of the discussion in the US, though.
Elizabeth the last queen of Scotland? Not so fast.A lot of the coverage of polls saying Scots are leaning toward independence from the UK ignores the undecideds.
Why Snowden and Assange line up with alleged digital pirate Kim DotcomKim Dotcom is fighting extradition to the US on charges he ran a sophisticated scheme to share hundreds of millions worth of stolen movies and music. Now he has famous friends in his fight to unseat New Zealand Prime Minister John Key.
Obama's IS plan looks good on paper. But in practice?If US statements are taken at face value, Obama has set the country a mammoth task in the Middle East with a very low probability of success.
Obama's anti-Islamic State coalition: Who's in and what are they likely to do?So far, it doesn't look like much. That explains why the US president was short on specifics when he vowed to take the fight to the jihadis.
