Category: Dr. Ahmad’s blog
-
The Iranian Elections
[I was interviewed by Javier Mendez of Chile’s El Mercurio on the upcoming Iranian elections. This is the substance of the interview.] Q. Do you believe there is a chance that Ahmadinejad could be reelected in Iran? A. Yes. Q. What would be the internal and external political consequences of an Ahmadinejad´s victory in the…
-
Obama’s Cairo Speech: A Defense of the Clinton-Bush Policies
If you want a brilliant attorney to defend the policies of Bush and Clinton to the Muslim world with eloquence and a sincere and studied respect for Muslim sentiments and sensitivity, you just can’t do better than Barack Hussein Obama, Esq. If you want a convincing statement that the new captain at the helm is…
-
The Crisis in Pakistan: Is There a Way Out?
[I was interviewed by Farspress on the crisis in Pakistan. Here are my answers to their questions.] Q- What do you see as the main reasons for spreading of Taliban influence in Pakistan, despite the U.S presence in Afghanistan (and Iraq) on the excuse that it was to suppress terrorists? A. The U.S. presence is…
-
Expectations for the Obama-Netanyahu Meeting
I was interviewed by Javier Mendez of Chile’s El Mecurio. Here are my answers to his questions. Q. What are the expectations for the meeting between Obama and Netanyahu? What are their differences about the possibilities of Palestinian State and the peace in Middle East? A. We expect Obama to press for Netanyahu to agree…
-
Marriage of Minors in Saudi Arabia: Is Betrothal Obsolete?
A growing debate has emerged in Saudi Arabia over a controversial court decision to uphold the marriage of an 8 year old girl to a 47 year old man. The debate over child marriage has developed into a critical issue for Saudi Arabian politics and human right groups. The father, the sole parent with custody,…
-
Thinking Through a U.S. Strategy Toward Gaza
On March 3rd something that is (to my knowledge) unprecedented happened in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill. A standing room only crowd of over 130 persons heard actual Congressmen (not just outsiders given a platform by Congressmen) objectively discuss the devastation recently visited upon Gaza by the Israeli Defense Forces. It began…
-
Afghanistan: Can We Get It Right?
We have gotten used to the invasion of Iraq being called “The Wrong War” and the intervention in Afghanistan being called “The Right War,” but there is an emerging consensus that we went about “the right war” in the wrong way. I attended a panel discussion on the lessons to be learned from America’s seven…
-
The Ross Appointment
Today I was interviewed by Javier Méndez Araya of El Mercurio newspaper, in Santiago, Chile, regarding the appointment of Dennis Ross to advise Secretary of State Clinton on “Gulf and Southwest Asian” (read: Iranian) affairs. Here are my answers. 1) In your opinion, why was Ross appointed as “adviser to the secretary of state for…
-
Why No Success in the Egyptian Mediated Negotiations?
Why no Success in the Egyptian Conducted Negotiations? Here are my answers to questions from PressTV as to the negotiations between Israel and Hamas. Q. Why is Israel unable to achieve any viable conclusion in it’s conversation with Hamas? A. The most important of the many impediments to a viable negotiation between Israel and Hamas…
-
Advising Obama on the Middle East
This past week the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (CMCU) held a panel discussion moderated by Georgetown University professor John Voll on Obama in the Middle East. The panelists were Aaron David Miller of the Woodrow Wilson Center, Hisham Melhem of Al-Arabiyya (who scored the first official interview with President Obama), Prof.…
