Charles Recknagel is standards editor for RFE/RL.
World leaders continue to react to the victory by the militant group Hamas in the 25 January parliamentary vote in the Palestinian territories. The opposition Islamist militant group won at least 76 seats in the 132-member Palestinian Legislative Council. By contrast, the Al-Fatah movement of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat took just 43 seats. That means it will very likely fall to Hamas to form the next Palestinian government, despite the group's opposition to the peace process and refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist.
Like many Iraqis, the Kurdish Regional Government wants other cases brought against former dictator Saddam Hussein -- and it is busy gathering the evidence against him.
Prague, 5 January (RFE/RL) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is in critical condition after undergoing hours of surgery following a massive brain hemorrhage. The 77-year-old Sharon, who suffered a stroke on 4 January, is now on a respirator in intensive care.
In 2005, Iraq and Afghanistan passed many milestones on the difficult road to democracy. Both countries held key elections for constitutional parliaments -- Afghanistan on 18 September and Iraq on 15 December. In all, Iraqis went to the polls three times in just one year. But 2005 was also marked by violence. U.S. and Iraqi forces continued to battle a strong insurgency and, in Afghanistan, the Taliban mounted some of its strongest attacks since its defeat four years ago. Amid such momentous events, how did ordinary people fare?
In an effort to maximize their voice in Baghdad, Iraq’s largest Kurdish parties are running as a coalition in the 15 December parliamentary elections. But the alliance’s two key factions -- factions who for years warred with each other -- have so far failed even to create a unified government for the Kurdish autonomous region. What chance, then, of pressing Kurdish demands in the new national legislature?
The kidnapping of a German archeologist in late November highlighted both the historical wealth of Iraq and the perils of exploring that history.
For Iraqi Kurds, there is little question whom to vote for in the 15 December parliamentary elections: a coalition that groups all the major Kurdish parties and is expected to sweep the Kurdish vote.
Kurdish writer Ahmad Ghazi (RFE/RL) Iraq's Kurdistan region has achieved a degree of self-rule that Kurds in neighboring states like Turkey and Iran can only dream about. That is making Irbil a magnet for Kurdish writers and intellectuals from around the world. They come here to meet, publish books and, some say, get inspired to press for similar freedoms at home.
With parliamentary elections due on 15 December, violence is expected to surge in much of Iraq. But the Kurdish autonomous region in the north of the country is a case apart.
Milosevic in the courtroom at The Hague (file photo) (AFP) The trial of Saddam Hussein re-opened in Baghdad today, with Hussein and seven other top officials of his regime face charges related to the reprisal killings of 143 men and boys from the village of Al-Dujayl north of Baghdad after Hussein escaped an assassination attempt there in 1982. How does the Hussein trial compare with the ongoing trial of former Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic?
The Old Bridge in Mostar was rebuilt after the Dayton accords ending Bosnia's civil war (RFE/RL) For 10 years, the international community has been involved in a unique experiment in Bosnia: turning a war-torn and deeply divided country into a unified and self-sufficient democracy. But after a decade of effort, many of those involved in the project say that the results have not met expectations. What has the international community learned about state building in Bosnia?
The Dayton negotiations took place at a U.S. Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio, from 1 November to 21 November 1995. They were led by chief U.S. negotiator Richard Holbrooke and included then Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, and Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic.
Nearly 10 years ago, the presidents of Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia agreed on a plan to end the war in Bosnia. How well have the Dayton accords worked, and are they a blueprint for other hot spots?
Explosions at three Western-owned hotels in the Jordanian capital, Amman, killed at least 57 people and wounded more than 100 last night. The bombings are the worst in recent memory in Jordan, one of Washington's closest allies in the region. A website statement purportedly from Al-Qaeda in Iraq -- led by renegade Jordanian Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi -- claims responsibility for the attacks. But the statement's authenticity has yet to be verified.
Official results are still not expected for a few days The final result from Iraq's constitutional referendum is still days away, but U.S. and Iraqi officials are expressing confidence that the vote count will show the public endorsed the draft document. And some say that, even if the constitution is rejected, the reportedly large Sunni Arab turnout gives ground for optimism that the Sunnis may finally be joining Iraq’s political process.
U.S. and Iraqi forces are tightening security in Iraq for the 15 October referendum on the draft constitution. Washington and Baghdad hope to duplicate the success they had minimizing insurgent attacks on voters during Iraq’s polls for an interim government earlier this year.
Arab Sunni leaders are divided over how their community should vote in Iraq’s referendum on the draft constitution that takes place on 15 October. Many clerics are using mosques to urge people to take part in the poll but vote "No" on the charter. Yet at least one mostly Arab Sunni political party is urging supporters to vote "Yes."
Iraqis reading copies of the draft constitution The Iraqi parliament approved a deal today intended to win Arab Sunni approval of the country's draft constitution in a national referendum scheduled for 15 October. The deal includes provisions for a review of the constitution after a new legislature is elected by the end of this year. One of Iraq's main Arab Sunni parties helped negotiate the deal with Shi'a and Kurdish leaders and says it will now call on its supporters to vote to "Yes" for the draft charter. Many observers call the last-minute deal necessary to assure Arab Sunni participation in Iraq's transition process and to avoid a split of the country along sectarian lines. But it remains unclear how many other Sunni Arabs will back the deal, as some leaders continue to call for their community to reject the constitution.
Prague, 3 October 2005 (RFE/RL) -- As EU foreign ministers met in Luxembourg today, there was no certainty that they would be able to agree as planned to offer to start accession talks with Ankara.
The Security Council might be the next step The United Nations' nuclear agency is considering a demand by the European Union to refer Iran's nuclear program to the UN Security Council. The draft asks the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to report Iran's "many failures and breaches of its obligations to comply" with safeguard agreements under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT). But Russia and China say they oppose taking the matter to the Security Council. RFE/RL looks at the dispute over Iran's nuclear activities and where it may go from here.
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