Abdiwali Gaas elected new President of Puntland

The former Prime Minister of Somalia, Abdiwali Mohamed Ali Gaas, has become the president-elect of the semi-autonomous region of Puntland Somalia, in a hotly contested parliament vote. He will be the fifth person to hold the post. Abdiwali Gaas, garnered Read on! →

Puntland politicians to pick new President

Puntland is a tiny semi-autonomous region in eastern Somalia, the only and first administration under the new federal government in Somalia. It is roughly a third of the country, and has a population of 3.5 million, enjoying relative stability in Read on! →

From Bully to Friend: Changing America’s international image

Even though President Obama is enjoying his holidays in Hawaii, he will most certainly think about his past and future decisions. Without a doubt, the Middle East will figure prominently among his list of key topics for the year 2014. Read on! →

Israel and the West Bank build a bridge over murky waters

The new Memorandum of Understanding signed between Israel and West Bank in December 2013 goes some way to addressing Palestinian water shortages but it does not address the root causes of this shortage and the disparity in water supply between Read on! →

Berlusconi’s downfall: The last act of a classic tragedy

Although Silvio Berlusconi is arguably one of the most prominent political figures in Europe, he is well known for all the wrong reasons. His career has been overshadowed by innumerable scandals. But from repeated allegations of corruption to questionable bunga-bunga Read on! →

A rebel fighter signals victory after he fires a shoulder-fired missile toward a building where Syrian troops loyal to President Bashar Assad were hiding in the Jedida district of Aleppo, Syria on November 4, 2012.

Syria: Assad might negotiate, but why would the rebels?

We are only engaging with half the problem on Syria. As hard as it might be to persuade Assad that he cannot win the war, it may be harder to persuade the rebels they should stop fighting it. The reason Read on! →

Nakumatt Westgate in Westlands, Nairobi

Kenya: Westgate siege unifies shocked nation

The hostage situation this weekend in the Westgate shopping centre has hit global headlines in a way very few events in Sub-Saharan Africa ever do. At least 68 people have been killed and many more injured in an attack by Read on! →

Syrian rebels from the “Al-Qasas Brigade” or “Justice Brigade” run through an olive grove to avoid Syrian Army snipers as they travel between villages on foot in the northwestern Jabal al-Zawiya area.

Syria: Would any US-led strike on Syria remain limited in scope?

In August 2012, President Obama declared that any use of chemical weapons by the government of Bashar al-Assad would cross a game-changing red line. When the Assad regime deployed sarin gas on a Damascus suburb, almost exactly a year later, Read on! →

The International Criminal Court in the Hague

Kenya: William Ruto on trial at the Hague

Suited and media-savvy, it seems at first look as if William Ruto, the Deputy President of Kenya, is an average politician. However, today he faced the International Criminal Court in The Hague. He’s the first serving political figure to do Read on! →

A UK Visa application office in Kuwait

UK: Are visa bonds winning at home but losing abroad?

The announcement by the UK government to pilot a tough new visa bond scheme aimed at discouraging illegal immigration and reducing net migration will have gone down well at the Home Office. However, given the public perception of the scheme Read on! →