Creating new perspectives since 2009
Items by Dr Ahmed Al-Burai
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Unexplainable German double standards with Turkey and Egypt
The war of words between Turkish and German officials and diplomats started when Germany prevented Turkish Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag from holding a rally in Germany. The minister headed to Germany as part of a mobilisation and awareness campaign that started prior to the pending constitutional referendum that is...
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Is there an imminent thaw between Sisi and Hamas, or is it a coercive détente?
Ever since the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi, Hamas has found itself in Egypt’s crosshairs. The regime of Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has opted for a multifaceted retributive strategy toward the Hamas-run Gaza Strip. Post-2013 coup, the state media began running an insidious propaganda campaign intended to demonise the Palestinians...
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If you want to know what’s going on in the Middle East, look at the gas deals
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters at Ankara’s Esenboga Airport before leaving for Pakistan: “They have also appointed their envoy. I believe they start their duty today.” Turkey, he added, is appointing Kemal Okem as ambassador to Tel Aviv. The exchange of the ambassadors came days after the Turkish...
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Turkey is in Mosul to protect its interests, not for imperialist purposes
The Arabs have long been indoctrinated that the Ottomans were foreign invaders who occupied Arab lands, while Turks were taught that “Arabs betrayed our ancestors”. Were our history lessons merely propaganda to distort history or an irrefutable truth? “I wonder why someone would feel offended when I say that...
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Has Turkey relinquished Gaza or simply bent before the rising tide of Israeli influence?
Did Erdogan, symbolically the only leader ready to stand up to Israeli arrogance, make a pragmatic U-turn in his country’s relations with Israel at the expense of the Palestinians?...
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The rise of the new Ottomans
Erdogan is not only proud of his country’s past, but he also tries to attach his name as a sequel to the Ottoman civilisation...
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Does Erdogan’s purge provide Islamists with an opportunity to eradicate secularism?
The Turkish government embarked legally on an operation against insurgents in 2013 when their dirty games emerged; the latest coup attempt will boost the government’s efforts to purge the army of mutineers and traitors...
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Why Hamas’ five fatal flaws were unavoidable
Recently, there have been genuine calls by intellectuals in Islamic movements in the Arab world for the recalibration and reassessment of strategies, ideologies, paradigms and tactics. Some even called for an entire shift from religion to politics. Hamas, as a pivotal movement which pioneered and inspired Islamic movements, maintains...
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Lieberman, Israel's belligerent nightclub bouncer who tore the mask off 'Beautiful Israel'
Politically, Netanyahu and his narrow coalition was about to accomplish a Turkish-Israeli compromise to warm up relations with Turkey after sever intensions. The sudden invitation to Lieberman, however, most likely blows away previous efforts and agreements....
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Is there a change in Obama’s no-bluffing policy in Syria?
Obama’s allies in the region, explicitly Turkey, repeatedly offered him options which avoided a full-scale offensive. People are striving for feasible solutions such as a no-fly zone for refugees....
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The motives and repercussions of Davutoglu’s resignation
Turkey’s Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has said that he is “ready to concede all positions in order not to inflict any harm to our party’s cause or to my companions.” He made the claim confidently in a press conference held to announce the date of the ruling Justice and...
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The island issue shows Egypt’s gratitude to Saudi Arabia blessed by Israel
Egyptian anger at the government’s handover of two islands in the Gulf of Aqaba to Saudi Arabia is palpable. “The outrage of the Egyptian activists and bloggers is utterly unjustified,” said one man in a café, sarcastically. “The islands of Tiran and Sanafir were not relinquished, they were gifted...
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Turkey and the prospect of a divisive Syrian Kurdistan
The Kurds in Syria, Iraq, Iran and Turkey have made no secret of their longing for a self-governing state. Since the start of the conflict in Syria, the Kurds have tightened their grip in the north of the country and look set to crystallise their dominance over the north...
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A revived dream of the oft-thwarted Gaza seaport
Abu Jihad, a Palestinian businessman has lived in Istanbul for more than 25 years and exporting goods to Gaza for almost all of that time. “For God’s sake,” he asked over coffee, “why should I pay all that money to the Israeli customs services? Why don’t we have our...
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The Turkish-Kurdish peace process is on hold
A letter written by a Turkish soldier has been published in the local media in Turkey. The soldier is currently fighting against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Cizre, which is a hot spot in the conflict between the Turkish army and the Kurdish insurgents. “We are all...
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Turkey’s challenge is the sectarian animosity fuelling Saudi-Iran standoff
Despite their regional political rivalry, Turkey has maintained its relations with Muslim rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia. Since the Ottoman war with Safavid Persia almost 400 years ago, Turkey and its political predecessors have sought to stabilise its links with Iran and its previous political manifestations. The shared Sunni...
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Gaza: The brink of collapse triggers war
“I counted all the gunshots in his chest one by one. Why did they shoot him? He was naked and waving with his hands pleading for their help to get medication for the injury he has been suffering from since the Battle of al-Furkan of 2008.” Said the mother...
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The pending rapprochement between Turkey and Israel
If Deniz Zeyrek, a famous leftist journalist in Turkey, was to say, “The state of Israel and its people are undoubtedly sincere friends of Turkey and our condemnations until now are aimed at some extreme illegitimate actions of the Israeli government,” he would be condemned as a conspirator or...