notes from WEST ASIA

ALISON TAHMIZIAN MEUSE

MEDIA

Jun 18

Election Eve Tremors in Armenia Risk Erosion of Legitimacy, Widening War

By Alison Tahmizian Meuse / Newslines June 18, 2021 Azerbaijan could use Armenia’s snap elections as an opportunity for military action, potentially disrupting or delegitimizing the vote in the vulnerable country. This gives the United States a chance to engage in preventive diplomacy. Armenia’s snap elections, scheduled for June 20, will be a crucial test not only for…
Aug 28

Lebanon probes procurement of ‘death ship’ Rhosus

A sensitive line of inquiry into the root of the August 4 Beirut explosion threatens multiple parties By ALISON TAHMIZIAN MEUSE / Asia Times AUGUST 28, 2020 BEIRUT – Lebanese investigators are understood to be probing why the MV Rhosus – a substandard vessel burdened with 2,750 metric tons of hazardous ammonium nitrate – was procured in 2013…
Sep 23

An Emirati collector leaves his art behind

By: ALISON TAHMIZIAN MEUSE September 23, 2018 A daring Gulf Arab commentator goes West, leaving behind his thought-provoking collection of modern Arab art for the public to contemplate. Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi — the Twitter giant, champion of modern Arab art, and beloved host — has left the UAE after two decades. This infectious personality, who…
Jun 29

As ISIS Gets Squeezed In Syria And Iraq, It’s Using Music As A Weapon

June 29, 2017 By Alison Tahmizian Meuse Iraqi government forces flash a victory sign while holding an upside-down Islamic State flag in western Mosul on June 9. As ISIS loses territory, it’s still exhorting its supporters to keep fighting. Mohamed El-Shahed/AFP/Getty Images Three years ago, the Islamic State overran large swaths of Iraq and Syria, and…