VIJAY PRASHAD looks at the web of militias and drug-trafficking gangs that emerged in the Sweida region through the Syrian civil war, and how they relate to recent clashes and Israel’s intervention
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Afghanistan: ‘a strictly limited period’
'British forces would not be in the country on a long-term basis' claimed a nervous Tony Blair in 2001. How easily 'several months' becomes two decades once the wheels of war turn, says SOLOMON HUGHES
by Roger D Harris and John Perry
VINCE MILLS says Scottish Labour has adopted better positions than its Westminster counterpart — but unless it starts to fight for them that will count for nothing
Labour MSP CAROL MOCHAN calls for Britain to follow France’s lead and recognise the Palestinian state as part of efforts to end this war
A Chilean court ruled that funds were illegally taken by the dictator to accumulate family wealth that is now disputed among his heirs, writes PABLO MERIGUET
The shock suspension of socialist MPs and Diane Abbott’s re-suspension reveals a leadership intent on crushing internal debate — but MERCEDES VILLALBA MSP warns against surrendering party democracy without a fight
THE FATE of Afghanistan also shows how Western forces approached the September 11 attacks as a test of national virility rather than a crime. The hijackers of the aeroplanes largely came from Saudi Arabia, with a couple from the United Arab Emirates.
However, neither the US nor Britain took any significant action against Saudi Arabia, because they are an economic and military ally. They’ve got a lot of oil and money and their generally reactionary politics fit well enough with Western foreign policy.
Bin Laden, whose organisation had a role in the attacks which the Western powers said was crucial, was in Afghanistan in 2001. But he wasn’t there for any of the subsequent 20 years of occupation.
More from this author
Labour’s new Treasury unit will ‘challenge unnecessary regulation’ by forcing nominally independent bodies like Ofwat to bend to business demands — exactly what Iain Anderson’s corporate clients wanted, writes SOLOMON HUGHES
There have been penalties for those who looked the other way when Epstein was convicted of child sex offences and decided to maintain relationships with the financier — but not for the British ambassador to Washington, reveals SOLOMON HUGHES
US General Stanley McChrystal has been invited to advise on creating a ‘team of teams’ for healthcare transformation. His credentials? He previously ran interrogation bases where Iraqis were stripped naked and beaten, reports SOLOMON HUGHES
