Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Omar (left), Zine (center), and Eminene (right) at home in Diyarbakir. (AAA)

Welcome to Kurdistan: A Tale of Two Families

by Hannah Lucinda Smith | Mar 23, 2013 | Profiles

Diyarbakir, Asharq Al-Awsat—Eminene Özbek and Zine Yilmaz have only just met, but already they have so much in common. “He was such a nice person, and he never wanted to harm anyone,” says Eminene of her son Mahir. When it is Zine’s turn to speak about her own son,...

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Ghasssan Hitto celebrates his election as Syria’s provisional prime minister. (AFP)

Ghassan Hitto: The Influential Technocrat

by Nazeer Rida | Mar 20, 2013 | Profiles

Beirut, Asharq Al-Awsat—49-year-old Ghassan Hitto, the newly-elected head of the interim Syrian government, enjoys two key advantages that the opposition can utilize to make significant advances in their quest to bring down the Syrian regime. First and foremost are...

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Supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez light candles while gathering in front of the Venezuelan embassy in Santiago, Chile. (AFP)

Hugo Chávez: The Man Who Turned the Light of Hope On and Off

by Amir Taheri | Mar 6, 2013 | Profiles

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—I first met Hugo Chávez, the late flamboyant Venezuelan president, in 2002, after one of his earlier trips to Iran. With a few colleagues, we dined at an Italian restaurant in Paris. The conversation touched on a range of topics, but two themes...

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Iraqi Hezbollah Chief Wathiq al-Battat. Source: Asharq Al-Awsat Photo

Wathiq al-Battat: Khamenei’s Militiaman?

by Hamza Mustafa | Mar 2, 2013 | Profiles

BAGHDAD, Ahsharq Al-Awsat—Wathiq al-Battat, secretary-general of Hezbollah in Iraq, seems to be paying little attention to the arrest warrant issued against him by the Iraqi interior ministry after he formed the militia dubbed jaysh al-mukhtar, or the Mukhtar Army....

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File photo of Prince Khalid Bin Bandar Bin Abdulaziz (SPA)

Asharq Al-Awsat Profile: Prince Khalid Bin Bandar

by Fahd Al-Zayabi | Feb 17, 2013 | Profiles

Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat—“My main goal is to serve the capital and study its requirements in all fields and to give it attention once I have a good grasp of what is happening upon taking office.”” said Prince Khalid Bin Bandar Bin Abdulaziz, Emir of the Riyadh Region....

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Iyad Ag Ghali, leader of the armed Islamist group Ansar Dine, August 7, 2012 in Kidal (AFP)

Iyad Ag Ghali: Mali’s Desert Fox

by Al-Sheikh Mohamed | Feb 15, 2013 | Profiles

Nouakchott, Asharq Al-Awsat—In early January at the Battle of Konna in northern Mali, Iyad Ag Ghali, the leader of Ansar Dine, laid waste to scores of Malian soldiers trained by French and European military officials. In a matter of days, French Special Forces had...