Epstein Secrets

the vote and the Salafis 25 percent in the first round of Egypt's parliamentary elections, Rana Abdelhai, a student, told New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof that while she would never vote for a Muslim Brotherhood or Salafi candidate, "This is democracy now. We have to respect who other people choose,

udi Arabia and Qatar, bolstered by Turkey and the West, seem ready to stop at nothing to violently overthrow a fellow Arab head of state, President Bashar al-Assad - and to do whatever they can to hurt Iran. Iranians increasingly interpret Saudi Arabia's mood as a hungering for war; and Gulf statements do oft

A02720382 The Saudi king may aspire to unify the Sunni world to his vision, but he is unlikely to succeed in this way: his harsh vendetta towards Assad is not unifying the region, it is souring it; and the recourse to militant Sunnism is fomenting civil, violent struggle in many states: in the Leva

sad's goons killing the Syrian opposition? Or the Iran of a young, dynamic populace hungry for democracy, dignity, and jobs, a population that, as Nicholas Kristof has reported recently in the New York Times, harbors little antipathy toward the United States and wants the same freedoms we all want, who are hei

n's enormous economic potential with corruption, mismanagement, and needless diplomatic spats, and sends money and weapons to Hezbollah, Hamas, and Bashar al-Assad's goons killing the Syrian opposition? Or the Iran of a young, dynamic populace hungry for democracy, dignity, and jobs, a population that, as Nicho

ives. Remember that the dynastic regime of the al Assads in Syria was built on an east bloc model during

ruling family, preferably the Crown Prince, to take charge as they believe no one outside the Khalifa family can deliver. New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof recently appealed to the King of Bahrain for the release of his friend Hassan al- Sahaf. The publication of Kristofs column was timed to coincide wit

their kinsmen instead. In some other cases, residents spoke of infighting among the security forces. International pressure is increasing against Assad's regime. The Jordanian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood has escalated its rhetoric against the regime, calling the ongoing events a "crime against

lims in Syria and throughout the region feel that Assad's Syria has unduly favored the Alawites, a sect o

A government spokeswoman has hinted that coming reforms will include greater freedom for the press and the right to form political parties. President Bashar al-Assad is due to address the country in the next 48 hours. His speech is eagerly awaited, but it remains to be seen whether it will be enough to defuse the

llenged the fundamentals of Syria's security state, a harsh system of controls over every aspect of society, put in place by the late Hafez al-Assad, Bashar's father, who ruled for 30 years from 1970 to his death in 2000. By all accounts, the debate HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_030032 --- PAGE BREAK --- 4 about how

es been far from neutral, favoring one community over another in cynical power plays. Many Sunni Muslims in Syria and throughout the region feel that Assad's Syria has unduly favored the Alawites, a sect of Shiite Islam, who constitute some 12 percent of the population but control a vastly greater percen