Following ongoing criticism from newspapers and human rights organizations about systemic abuse within the Qatari labor system, the Persian Gulf monarchy is ramping up its public relations efforts. The scrutiny has been fueled in large part by the publicity surrounding the construction for the 2022 World Cup. The Wall Street Journal reported (Google link) Wednesday that last month...

A United Nations Human Rights Council hearing on last year’s war between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas was highlighted by testimony on Monday from three military experts who said that the Council’s recently commissioned report on the war would encourage further terrorism. The three experts were Col. Richard Kemp, former...

The desperation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could prompt him to increase the regime’s use of chemical weapons, The Wall Street Journal reported (Google link) yesterday, citing sources in the American government. Last year, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad let international inspectors oversee the removal of what President Barack Obama called the regime’s...

Human rights activists have added a new dimension of coverage to the ongoing nuclear talks in Vienna between the P5+1 global powers and Iran, despite declarations by top American officials that they would prefer not to let human rights issues interfere with sealing a nuclear deal. The families of Americans jailed in...

In an analysis (Google link) of the secret diplomacy between the United States and Iran that led to the nuclear talks, The Wall Street Journal today reported that in order to build confidence with Iran, the United States expedited the release of four Iranians, among them convicted arms smugglers, who were held...

A delayed human rights report issued this week by the State Department was harshly critical of Iran, The Hill reported yesterday. The Obama administration accused Iran of “severe restrictions on civil liberties,” “disregard” for people’s physical safety and general abuse of human rights on Thursday, days before a deadline for...