Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- April 19, 2016

Sami Tousafzai, Daily Beast: In Kabul, the Taliban Don’t Care Who They Kill

The Taliban were anxious to strike in the Afghan capital, and the bomb went off near the Defense Ministry—but much nearer a taxi stand.

Maryam Jan’s voice was shaking almost uncontrollably as we spoke on the phone. The truck bomb that hit the center of Kabul, the Afghan capital, on Tuesday morning was “huge, very huge,” said the 27-year-old journalist. “I haven’t seen and felt such a huge blast in my whole life in Kabul,” she said. “I was near the spot with my 4-year-old daughter and she turned mute for five minutes.”

Other witnesses reported similar shock. One police officer told the Associated Press that he could not see or hear anything after the detonation, which took place near the defense ministry, but nearer still to a crowded taxi stand, killing dozens of innocent civilians and injuring hundreds.

After the bombing, the Taliban battled security forces with automatic weapons before, finally, order was restored.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- April 19, 2016

The Ever More ‘Complicated’ U.S. Relationship With Saudi Arabia -- David Graham, The Atlantic

Saudi Arabia: Mr. Obama's foreign policy conundrum -- Howard Lafranchi, CSM

Why Obama is visiting a different Saudi Arabia this time -- Faisal J. Abbas, Al Arabiya

Exploring the real Iran, with social media as your guide -- Gus Serendip, The Guardian

Egypt's Military Regime Grows More Brutal Every Day: Copts Likely To Find Persecution, Not Protection, Ahead -- Doug Bandow, Forbes

As drought deepens, African nations struggle to get globe's attention -- Ryan Lenora Brown, CSM

Russia's Perpetual Geopolitics: Putin Returns to the Historical Pattern -- Stephen Kotkin, Foreign Affairs

Who wins if Brazil impeaches its president? -- Will Carless, USA Today/GlobalPost

“A Very Dangerous Thing for Democracy”: A Brazilian journalist on the impeachment and corruption scandals that are tearing her country apart. -- Isaac Chotiner, Slate

Rousseff's Impeachment Means Years of Mayhem -- Marieke Riethof, Newsweek

Brazil Is Partying While It Can -- Mac Margolis, Bloomberg

Saudi Arabia turns oil weapon on Iran -- John Kemp, Reuters

OPEC freeze failure could hasten oil’s recovery -- Andy Critchlow, Reuters

Has the war on drugs failed? U.N. session will examine alternatives -- Ann M. Simmons, L.A. Times

What if Trump and Putin Just Ran the Whole Damn World? -- Jack Holmes, Esquire