Epstein Secrets

3 only drama playing out there. Syria is also a highly tribalized and sectarian-divided country. Its Shiite-leaning Alawite minority — led by the Assads and comprising 12 percent of the population — dominates the government, army and security services. Sunni-Muslim Syrian Arabs are 75 percent, Chris

n ever. The regional balance of power is shifting against Tehran, in no small part because of its ongoing support for the beleaguered government of Bashar al- Assad in Syria. The Assad regime is failing, and in time, Iran will lose its only state ally in the Arab world and its conduit for arming the m

an continued its support for the Assad regime and backed his brutal crackdown on civilians. The Syrian uprising has become a zero-sum game: Either Bashar al-Assad will win, or the demonstrators will triumph. Likewise, it has become a proxy war between Tehran and Ankara, in which there will be only one winner.

ractured, the stronger Assad will be, the more some Syrians will cling to him out of fear of chaos and the more he will get away with Hama Rules. Article S. The Council for Foreign Relations The UN's Mideast Struggles Interview: William H. Luers February 14, 2012 -- Russia's and China's veto of a draf

nterviews with Syrians I met in Jordan or who talked with me from inside Syria by phone. My Syrian contacts described a bitter stalemate: President Bashar al-Assad holds on to power, but he has lost control of major parts of the country. The rebels fight bravely, but they lack the organization and heavy weapon

al-Qaeda extremists fester in the shadows. The opposition remains so fragmented that some rebels frankly admit they aren't ready to govern, even if Assad should fall. EFTA00718098 "We still need to find a leader," conceded one rebel commander. "We are headless inside the country." Rebel fighters s

ave, all along, had the knowledge and the tools to restore full employment. But policy makers just keep finding reasons not to do the right thing. Article S. The Washington Post EFTA00718111 How U.S. billionaire Sheldon Adelson is b_u_ying up Israel's media Ruth Eglash May 1 -- Jerusalem — Las Vegas

al Obama Lets the U.N. Tie His Hands on Syria Douglas J. Feith July 15, 2012 -- To retain power in the face of a popular revolt, Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has killed nearly 15,000 civilians. From a humanitarian point of view, this is a crisis. From a national-interest point of view, it is an opportuni

ia's Turkish border, nor provided arms to the rebels. It has not helped establish a no-fly zone, nor has it supported NATO military strikes against Assad's forces. At first, Mr. Obama vainly called for Assad to behave humanely. Eventually, he vainly exhorted Assad to relinquish power. All the while,

editor at The Atlantic and the author, most recently, of The Evolution of God, a New York Times bestseller and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Article S. Wall Street Journal Russia's Support for Assad Will Backfire Lazareva July 12, 2012 -- The common explanation for why Moscow continues to back

decades and continued to invest in it even after its discovery in 2002. The government is outspoken in its hatred of Israel. It supports President Bashar al-Assad of Syria and extremist groups like Hezbollah. If Iran gets a weapon, other countries in the region may want one, too. But while Israel's defense m

abroad. The current international consensus for sanctions, and the punishments, would evaporate. It would shift international outrage against Mr. Assad's brutality in Syria to Israel. Many former Israeli intelligence and military officials have spoken out against a military attack. And polls show t

tem that involves real checks and balances or which consolidates yet another system in which the presidency wholly dominates the political system. Article S. The Washington Post E FTA_R1_00298259 EFTA01883840 Egypt's Morsi defies predictions Ernesto Londoho August 14 -- Cairo — A month ago, as Presi

ional/countriesandterritories/syria/index.html?inline=nyt-geo>.=94 A few months ago, talk of possible massacres of Alawites, who dominate Bash=r al- Assad<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/a/ba=har_al_assad/index.html?inline=nyt-per>'s government in Syria, seemed =ike pro-regim

hood would like Morsi to do, is a very bad investm=nt. Eric Trager is the Next Generation Fellow at the Washington Institute for N=ar East Policy. Article S. The Wall Street Journal The Return of a Nightmare Walter Russell Mead The Second Nuclear Age By Paul Bracken (Times Books, 306 pages, $29) Nov