International Herald Tribune/Daily Star Egypt 11/17/2006 By Michael Shank As the United States veers from its modus operandi in Iraq and contemplates alliances with Syria and Iran to remedy Iraq’s catastrophic reality, the question of dialogue remains at the fore. Does the US engage, or not engage, in talks with […]
Daily Star Egypt
Rebuild Africa by Funding the African Union Mission in Darfur
International Herald Tribune/Daily Star Egypt 11/07/2006 By Michael Shank Last April, in the delegate’s lounge of the United Nations’ headquarters in New York, this columnist met with the Organization of Islamic Conference’s (OIC) permanent observer to the UN, Ambassador Abdul Wahab, to discuss ways in which Arab, Islamic, or African […]
The US Must Engage Somalia Now, Before the Horn Blows
International Herald Tribune/Daily Star Egypt 11/05/2006 By Michael Shank and Khadija Ali Unlike the Middle East, which is frequented by senior officials from the United States government, when it comes to Africa, the US prefers to send its second-in-command. This is not new State Department protocol, however, as Congo’s 4 […]
Veiled Prejudice
International Herald Tribune/Daily Star Egypt 10/20/2006 By Michael Shank Britain’s ex-foreign secretary’s recent commentary on the Muslim niqab, or full veil, as a “visible statement of separation and of difference” that “makes it more difficult” for people “to acknowledge each other” signifies the latest in Europe’s embarrassing blunders. Following the […]
The Arab League Breaks with the Past and Attempts a Rebirth
International Herald Tribune/Daily Star Egypt 10/18/2006 By Michael Shank With the United States Congress appealing to Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa for intervention in Darfur, and with Moussa’s offer to provide peacekeeping troops, one gets the impression that the League is finally taking itself seriously. Historically, the Arab League […]
American Fascism or Islamic Fascism?
International Herald Tribune/Daily News 10/04/2006 By Michael Shank Book Review: Conservatives without Conscience John W. Dean; Penguin Group; 186 pages; $25.95. Given the opportunity to correct President Bush’s political blunder wherein he stated that “this nation is at war with Islamic fascists,” John Dean, author of best-selling Worse than Watergate, […]
The Boomerang Effect
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE / DAILY NEWS EGYPT 08/23/2006 By Michael Shank The Bush Administration’s policies in the Middle East were originally sold as a means of encouraging democracy. What they’re actually doing is fostering a growing pan-Islamicism. The Bush administration calls it the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), a frighteningly […]
The Arab League Has Failed to “Fulfill the Hopes and Expectations” of Somalia
INTERNATIONAL HERALD TRIBUNE / DAILY STAR EGYPT 08/11/2006 By Michael Shank and Khadija Ali A perpetual landmine for interventionists, Somalia has witnessed its share of inept approaches. Early in the conflict, the United States precluded any possible mediator role by denigrating the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) with Al-Qaeda and […]