Saturday, August 18, 2012

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- August 17, 2012

A Free Syrian Army fighter runs for cover during clashes in Aleppo on August 17, 2012. (Reuters)

America and Iran Square Off Over Syria -- Robert Dreyfuss, The Diplomat

Washington has seen all roads in Damascus as leading through Tehran. Why time and compromise could lead to a deal that saves lives.

Viewed from Washington, the crisis in Syria has always had very little to do with Syria – and a lot to with Iran. Almost from the beginning, the United States has seen the eruption of the Syrian revolt as an opportunity to deal a severe blow to Tehran, depriving it of its chief regional ally and isolating its Lebanese partner, Hezbollah. For that reason, rather than seek a diplomatic solution that would try to bring both the government of President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition to the table, since last August President Obama has demanded that Assad step down. That had the intended effect of galvanizing the Syrian opposition, which – in response to a wantonly brutal crackdown by Syrian security forces – has increasingly become a militarized force engaged in outright civil war.

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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials

With Syria in turmoil, Lebanon remains at risk -- David Hirst, The Guardian

China's show trial harms the party by showing too much -- Minxin Pei, The National

The real danger for South Africa after Lonmin mine shooting
-- Scott Baldauf, Christian Science Monitor

Africa is booming as renaissance finally gets under way -- Dan O'Brien, Irish Times

A Russian farce over a punk rock band -- Washington Post editorial

Despite an Anti-Sarkozy Agenda, Hollande Imitates His Predecessor on Security
-- Bruce Crumley, Time

Looking for terrorism in all the wrong places -- Leonard Pitts Jr., McClatchy News/The Miami Herald

Obama turns back the clock on Guantanamo -- Baher Azmy, Washington Post

For Europe’s Economy, a Lost Decade Looms -- Jack Ewing, New York Times

Looming 'fiscal cliff' is hurting US economy now, economists warn -- Mark Trumbull, Christian Science Monitor

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