GERMANY – Art is a powerful means of expression. It played significant roles in times of peace and war.  While the scene in Syria has become blurred with the emergence…

One week ago, I wrote an article titled The U.S.-Russia brokered ceasefire in Syria – are we being naive? which I closed with this thought: “These [ceasefire monitoring] working groups…

No matter what the Syrian Expat Philharmonic Orchestra plays, it’s a song of solidarity. Founded by musician-activists in Bremen, Germany, the orchestra composed of Syrian and local musicians came together…

Preliminary results show candidates from Iran’s powerful hard-line camp have lost ground in parliament, while moderates poised to win top spot on powerful clerical body. Partial election results in Iran…

What is the point of flogging a dead horse? The Israeli-Palestinian peace carriage has advanced not an inch in the 68 years since the founding of the state of Israel.…

Turkey was on 27 February 2016 closely following a landmark UN-backed cease-fire in Syria that came into effect at midnight in the war-torn country. Turkish Air Force F-16s continuously patrol…

On 16 February 2016 France formally endorsed the plan, originally outlined in December 2014 by its former foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, for an internationally-backed summit to be held in Paris…

Rami Jarrah has been released! Syrian journalist Rami Jarrah was arrested by Turkish authorities on Tuesday last week. We don’t know why he was arrested – we only know he…

In January 2016, the European Union unanimously adopted a tough resolution criticising Israeli settlement activity in the occupied Palestinian territories. The resolution came out despite fierce efforts by Israel to persuade…

The idea to create then and now photos emerged when I heard that New York Public Library has added many old photo scans to the public domain. Probably most photos…