Category: Uncategorized

Congressional approval of Iran deal highly likely  The Obama administration needs only one more senate vote to assure it is able to proceed. This despite a concerted effort by some pro-Israel groups to block it. This is a win for the president and a loss for AIPAC. Majority of GOP Read More …

Al Shabab overruns AU base Al Shabab, an al Qaeda affilate in Somalia, has shown surprising strength in attacking and overrunning an African Union base in southern Somalia which is supporting regional efforts to stabilize the country. Al Shabab once controlled and administered large parts of the country before irritating Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Large gas field found off Egypt Egypt, in conjunction with Italy’s ENI, has discovered a sizable gas field in the Mediterranean. This could solidify authoritarian rule, even though it would reduce the country’s reliance on Saudi money, which is of course tied Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Not long ago, American power and beliefs appeared unchallenged in the world. The Soviet Union was gone, generals in developing nations were heading back to the barracks, and democracy was everywhere on the rise. We had, in the famous words, reached Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Discontent emerging in Turkey over war with Kurds Turkey has lost sixty troops since the conflict with Turkish Kurds erupted into warfare last month. Discontent is growing among the population. Interesting that the Kurds are refraining from targeting civilians, as they Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Saudi Arabia opens to Hamas This is an effort to detach Hamas from its ties to Iran. This may initially seem like good news for Israel, but I’ve long noted that Saudi Arabia is a greater threat to Israel than Iran. Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Pakistan steadily increasing nuclear arsenal Pakistan is said to be making twenty nuclear weapons a year, playing it on track to be the third largest nuclear power, behind the US and Russia. The concern with Pakistan is that its generals are mercurial Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Key suspect in Khobar Towers bombing arrested  Ahmed al-Mughassil, leader of a Shia group in Saudi Arabia, has been arrested in Lebanon and taken to Saudi Arabia. His group, Hezbollah al-Hejaz, is thought to have executed the bombing of a US housing Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Saudi troops land in Yemen According to a London-based news source, Saudi troops have landed in the southern port of Aden. They are there to provide security in the city, not to engage the Houthis just to the north of the Read More …

Downing Reports: Brian M Downing and the world at war Israel increasingly interested in Kurdistan Kurdistan is a landlocked autonomous region that wants to become an independent country. Landlocked countries usually face serious trouble, but Kurdistan has oil and is positioned in the middle of a great geopolitical contest. Iran and Israel are Read More …