Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Iraq’s Vice President Nouri al-Maliki speaks during an interview with Reuters in Baghdad REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani

Baghdad’s Reform to Halt Iraq’s Secession

by Abdulrahman Al-Rashed | Sep 30, 2017 | Opinion

Give the Kurds a real stake in Baghdad’s government, and then they will let go of the separation idea. Right now, they are conferred honorary posts without powers just like many components of the Iraqi state, which was founded, post the invasion, on a participatory...

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Have you heard the good news? Photographer: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Trump Evangelizes for American Exceptionalism

by Eli Lake | Sep 29, 2017 | Opinion

If you want to get a sense of the enduring power of American exceptionalism, watch President Donald Trump’s address Tuesday to the United Nations General Assembly. Here we got a clear message from the candidate whose foreign policy platform was “America...

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An Iraqi Kurdish man decorates a car with the Kurdish flags ahead of the independence referendum in Erbil, on September 7, 2017. AFP PHOTO / SAFIN HAMED

Kurdish Referendum: What is the Lowdown?

by Amir Taheri | Sep 29, 2017 | Opinion

Despite many efforts to stop or postpone it, the Iraqi Kurdistan referendum has become a fait accompli and must be taken into account in shaping future developments, and Masoud Barzani, the man who orchestrated the exercise, must be as pleased as Punch. In...

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FILE PHOTO: Kurdish Peshmerga forces celebrate Newroz Day, a festival marking spring and the new year, in Kirkuk March 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed/File Photo

Too Much Democracy may Damage your Health!

by Eyad Abu Shakra | Sep 28, 2017 | Opinion

One quote widespread in the Arab region, a few decades ago, was that it was facing the danger of ‘partitioning what has been already partitioned. Those days, several Arab capitals were run by leaders who cover their tribalism and sectarianism by claiming to be...

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Saudi women. AFP Photo/Fayez Nureldine)

Saudi Arabia: Women to Drive after Community Persuaded

by Salman Al-dossary | Sep 28, 2017 | Opinion

Similar to other historic decisions, some are petrified of announcing them, supporters anticipate in boredom while conservatives persistently warn of such moves. Once the clock ticks and the time is adequate to take the decision, the fear of people vanishes. This is...

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Women in a car show (Asharq Al-Awsat)

More than Just Driving Cars

by Abdulrahman Al-Rashed | Sep 28, 2017 | Opinion

These are happy and historic days in Saudi Arabia! There are positive changes that would have never crossed our minds after years of despair. For decades, every time an obstacle was removed, social and political battles would erupt tackling education, employment,...