President Obama will announce on Wednesday the size of the troop withdrawal from Afghanistan that he will order in July in keeping with the symbolic drawdown he has promised. His top military men appear to want to keep most combat troops in the field for at least another two years; other advisers want the withdrawal to involve …
Since 2008, Greek Protesters Have Had a Canine Companion
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Loukanikos hates Greece’s austerity measures, corrupt politicians, and the plight of the Greek everyman. And, as a dedicated protestor, he is willing to brave riot police and tear gas for his beliefs.
Either that, or Athens’s most famous stray dog just likes the food …
Why the Muslim Brotherhood Are Egypt’s Best Democrats
After the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003, many Western commentators were surprised by the ease with which Iraq’s religious movements adapted to multiparty democracy. The Shi’ite groups, in particular, were quick to organize into political parties, set up grass-roots organizations across the country and form practical coalitions ahead of …
The Trials of Adel al-Gazzar: Former Gitmo Detainee Ends Up Back in Prison
Adel al-Gazzar is possibly the last person who deserves to go from the frying pan into the fire. After losing a decade of his life to the cruel exigencies of the war on terror, the 46-year-old returned to his native Egypt for the first time last week, only to be seized by security officers and flung into jail upon arrival. Al-Gazzar had …
In Chaos-Ravaged Syria, Truth Gets Tossed Out the Window
In two new articles for TIME, Rania Abouzeid touches upon the myths and shifting perspectives of those caught up in the ongoing Syrian conflict. First, she details her quest to confirm reports of mass rapes and sexual assaults in Syria by interviewing refugees in Turkish camps. Although nearly every refugee interviewed was able to relate …
World Refugee Day: Three Things You Must Know
Today marks 60 years since the founding of the UN refugee agency. Initially tasked with assisting 2.1 million Europeans displaced by World War II, it now works in 120 countries and is charged with helping millions more. In a cover story for TIME last year, Krista Mahr reported that the system is over-stretched and under-funded. The …
NATO’s Libya Bombing Error Won’t Help a Flagging War Effort
The reason there’s a well-worn military euphemism – “collateral damage” – to describe incidents like Sunday morning’s air strike in which NATO admits it may have inadvertently killed Libyan civilians in a residential area of Tripoli is that they’re an inevitable consequence of waging war from the air. It happens so frequently in …
With Syria on Fire, Turkey and Israel Move to Avoid a New Fiasco at Sea
It’s hard to overstate the zesty potency of the words “Mavi Marmara” in Turkey. Giant posters on Istanbul’s busiest streets trumpet the impending return to sea of the ferry that Israeli commandos intercepted in the Mediterranean a year ago, killing nine activists en route to break the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip. The botched raid …
Why Greek Tumult Signals the Coming of Europe’s Own ‘Arab Spring’
Are the youth-led protests rocking Greece and other European countries a sign Arab Spring uprisings have jumped the Mediterranean? Kinda-sorta, say experts watching these movements. They warn that even if democratic systems in Europe can’t be compared with the brutally authoritarian regimes under fire in the Arab world, the angry …
Couch Potato Briefing: Submarines and Subversives
Your weekly installment of rental movies to watch this weekend that reflect news around the world. Presented by Ishaan Tharoor and Tony Karon
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Traveling Players
As hundreds of thousands of Greeks took to the streets this week to resist an economic austerity program they believe …
Turkey’s Prime Minister Erdogan Faces Many Challenges in Third Term
TIME editor Rana Foroohar examines the political and economic climate that gave Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan a third term as prime minister. Known as both a populist and a firm economic leader, Erdogan has achieved nearly unprecedented success in Turkey’s complex political environment. But although he has thus far handled an expanding …
Making History: TIME Sits with a Woman Behind the Wheel in Saudi Arabia
Maha al Qatani settles herself in the driver’s seat, adjusts her headscarf, and with a quick prayer turns the key in the ignition. “I’m not nervous,” she says, even if the uneven tenor of her voice betrays tension. “When we lived in the U.S. I always drove my kids to school.” But this is Saudi Arabia, the only country in …
Al-Qaeda’s ‘Shadow Leader’ Finally Emerges As Head Honcho
In an investigation for TIME, Tim McGirk details Al-Qaeda’s new chief: an Egyptian doctor who some report has been wielding the true power in the terrorist organization for several years. Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden’s former deputy, does not look like a fearsome terrorist leader with his large wire-framed glasses and scraggly …