Original news, features, opinions from Chicago to Jerusalem
Algeria The People Speak: What’s Next? Algerian generals who have been trying to bring about some change to their people would benefit from reading the Chilean story. By Abdennour Toumi A country which only three weeks ago was still regarded as hopeless. The day of glory the people of Algeria have waited for so long…
Algeria: The Regime Is Saying, Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me! When the President returned though, the people began to sense the smell of hate, intolerance and simply death. By Abdennour Toumi Sunday night Algerians went to bed with two pieces of sorrowful national news. First, they waited for long hours to hear that President Bouteflika…
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A Cri-de-coeur for Dignity and Stability Algerians are scrupulously suspicious of the number five (al-Khamsa) or Fatma’s hand. By Abdennour Toumi Thousands of Algerians across the country head to the streets, breaking the wall of shame the regime and its acolytes built to silence any opposition voice. Fear is no longer a factor in the…
Why General Ali Ghediri’s candidacy is way too early? A retired-General who wants to revolutionize Algeria’s political establishment, he has a story to tell, so let history be the judge. By Abdennour Toumi I want to ask retired General Ali Ghediri, former Human Resources Director at the Algerian Defense Ministry, to give one reason why…
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Algeria’s State: Between Deep State’s Denial and Opposition’s Delusion Political debate between competing interests does not necessarily have a malign effect on the search for accountability. By Abdennour Toumi Last week Algeria’s ruling coalition endorsed President Abdelaziz Bouteflika as its candidate in the April, 2019 Presidential election, despite his poor health — however, the 82-year-old…
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Algeria Migration Policy: National Security Concerns Vs. Humanitarian Morality Algeria’s migration policy reflects the interdependence of its domestic national security and to some extent regional foreign policy priorities and objectives. By Abdennour Toumi The first ever international agreement on the migration crisis aimed at coordinating action on migration around the world was signed by a…
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The Islamic Republic of Iran: Forty Years Later Forty years later, neither the tears of the Arab regimes nor the rise of Israeli alarms have stopped the expansion of Iran’s nuclear program and hegemony in the region. By Abdennour Toumi With the Iraqi quagmire, the Syrian imbroglio, and the Afghanistan cul-de-sac, the U.S. and the…
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How Political Incorrectness Made Algerians Hate Politics The opium though turns out to be pure honey for the fans’ throats to manifest their anger and challenge the cynicism and the narcissism of their “leaders.” By Abdennour Toumi Four months before the April, 2019 Presidential election, where President Bouteflika is running for a fifth-term, despite all…
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French Protests Want More Brioche and Less Croutons In a democracy, legality, electability and accountability are the foundation of a political party. By Abdennour Toumi French President Macron, in a conciliatory tone on Monday night, offered a minimum wage rise, tax-free bonuses and reversal of pension charge, yet the majority of the “Yellow Vests” protests…
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From a Social Movement to an Urban Insurgency in France The anger is not about simple social demands for a decent and a better life, it has become for a large majority of the protesters a personal fight with President Macron. By Abdennour Toumi The anger and determination of the “Yellow Vests” protests against rising…
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Union Activism is Politics in French parliament election City Council Amrani is becoming known for going where no Arab-Muslim woman has gone before, challenging the establishment and the media, fighting to get to the French Parliament. By Abdennour Toumi Council Farida Amrani, a leading-edge Arab-Muslim woman, is the new face of la France insoumise (LFI)…
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American Dream vs. French Wishes Congresswoman-elect Ilhan Omar wouldn’t even be elected for her classroom President because of her Islamic veil, though it looks like Simone de Beauvoir turban. By Abdennour Toumi Tuesday’s U.S. mid-term election marked a distinct turning-point in American politics as voters went to the polls to elect or re-elect the entire…
Waves Burst from Time to Time Modern history teaches us to believe that revolutions are led by the masses, despite the good intentions of the idealist elite. By Abdennour Toumi The political Tsunami that swept the Arab lands from Manama to the shores of Tripoli, finally came to rest in Algiers’ harbor eight years ago….
The Rise and the Fall of the Prince: Fear & Cruelty A ruler needs then to be a fox to recognize traps and a lion to frighten away the wolves. The mysterious and gruesome stories about the disappearance of anti-Saudi Washington Post writer Jamal Khashoggi has left many people wondering and afraid. A former insider…
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Khashoggi mystery: From Turkey with Love The story of Mr. Djamel (Jamal) Khashoggi: From Turkey with Love, is not the story that one would rush to read; it is far from the legendary love story (Majnoon Leïla) in Arab literature. By Abdennour Toumi Visualize a sweaty day in Istanbul, on the European bank of the…
Is the French Mass Media Democratizing the Press? The coverage of Mr. Zemmour vs. Ms. Hapsatou Sy has let victimization and guilty prevail over freedom of the press in France By Abdennour Toumi Burton Rascoe said, “A news sense is really a sense of what is important, what is vital, what has color and life,…
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Grand Pardon or Repentance! The evaluation of the past should not stop with memory alone, and spectacle bold decisions in a local political tempest. By Abdennour Toumi Then-candidate Macron speaking from Algiers in February 2017, described French Republic atrocities in Algeria as “crimes against humanity,” which sparked outrage from the far-right and the right political…
One, two, three où va l’Algérie? Algerians are simply posing the question that the country’s nomenclature does not want to hear: One, two, three où va l’Algérie? (Where is Algeria heading?) By Abdennour Toumi Crisis events are piling up in Algeria, ranging from socioeconomic errors, which might cause major inconvenience, to inflation that seriously impacts…