by Nelson Graves | 4 Oct 2016 | Islam, Middle East, Syria, Terrorism
By Nelson Graves The Islamic State movement will probably be destroyed militarily in the next year, but the roots of the radical group will survive unless Arab regimes promote social justice and economic growth. That was one of the key messages that Rami Khouri, an...
by News Decoder | 13 Sep 2016 | Islam, Middle East, Syria
By Alistair Lyon When Turkish tanks swept into Syria last month, their first objective was to drive Islamic State fighters from Jarablus, a border town whose strategic location has long attracted covetous eyes and the murky maneuvers of spies and statesmen. For...
by Rashad Mammadov | 31 Aug 2016 | Middle East, Religion, Syria
Turkey’s first ground intervention in Syria’s war aims to prevent an independent state for Kurds and changes the dynamics in the five-year-old conflict. A child waves toward Turkish troops heading to the Syrian border, Karkamis, Turkey, 26 August 2016. (AP...
by News Decoder | 29 Aug 2016 | King’s College London, Religion, Student Posts, Syria
By Ruben Tjon-A-Meeuw It was hardly a coincidence. Mere hours before U.S. Vice President Joe Biden landed in Ankara to stress the significance of Turkish-American friendship, Turkish tanks rolled into northern Syria in an effort to drive Islamic State forces out of...
by News Decoder | 10 Aug 2016 | Europe, Middle East, Syria
Volunteers on a mission to help Syrian refugee children ended up in the middle of an attempted coup in Turkey. They drew inspiration from the orphans. (Photo courtesy of the Karam Foundation) Last month, a team of volunteers from the Chicago-based Karam Foundation was...
by News Decoder | 9 Aug 2016 | Europe, Middle East, Syria
Volunteers to help Syrian refugee children were caught up in Turkey’s attempted coup. Here are their stories of perseverance and improvisation. The mural, Noor School, Khirikhan, Turkey (Photo courtesy of the Karam Foundation) Twice a year, the Karam Foundation...
by Hélène Pinto | 5 Aug 2016 | Europe, Middle East, Student Posts, Syria
The European Union has failed to bring peace to the Middle East and needs to rethink its strategy if it wants to help end conflicts in the region that threaten European security and prosperity. We encourage readers to contribute their views on international issues....
by News Decoder | 24 May 2016 | King's Academy, Middle East, Student Posts, Syria
By William Watkins When Syrian armed forces recaptured the ancient desert city of Palmyra from the Islamic State jihadist movement in March, the world may have seen a turning point in the five-year-old war. Whether or not it was a watershed, important lessons can be...
by News Decoder | 16 May 2016 | Islam, Middle East, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Syria, Terrorism
Syrian refugee holds onto his children as he struggles to walk off a dinghy on the Greek island of Lesbos, 24 September 2015. (REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis) By Annique Browne What’s the biggest threat to U.S. national security? During this year’s presidential...
by News Decoder | 12 May 2016 | Americas, Europe, Greens Farms Academy, King's Academy, Middle East, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Syria, United States, Youth Voices
By Nelson Graves “We have to find a political solution, in offices and not with arms.” So said Evgenia Chatziadamido, one of four students from three continents who discussed the causes and effects of Syria’s civil war during a recent online round...