Qifa Nabki
Syria
Leaving Beirut
That’s right, friends. QN is leaving the old country and returning to the New World where a dissertation and several sections of over-ambitious undergraduates await. I hope to keep the blog up so keep stopping by, won’t ya? What a difference nine months make. Back when we set up shop, the media was full of … Continue reading
New Metaphors for the Syrian-US Rapprochement
Have you heard? The United States is on… The Road to Damascus. Yes, that road; the road on which Paul – the synagogue-purging firebrand who set out to disabuse any soft-headed Jews of their Jesus-loving ways – saw the light and embraced the new faith. It’s the spiritual road of inner renewal, the road of … Continue reading
Can Syria be the Linchpin in Obama’s Mideast Strategy?
As someone who came to consciousness during the period of Syrian control of Lebanon, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t sympathetic to those Lebanese who regard Damascene politics with an innate sense of trepidation. Growing up in such an environment, I’d heard the old box-of-matches-and-pail-of-water argument countless times, while listening in on discussions … Continue reading
Engaging Syria, part 1
Everybody is talking about Obama’s need to engage Syria. The pro-engagement crowd has grown beyond the initial cadre of Arab-friendly analysts and now includes taste-makers and heavy hitters who have the ear of the President: people like Martin Indyk, Richard Haass, and others. Only a year ago, when Syria Comment and Creative Forum hosted discussions about Syrian-Israeli … Continue reading
Hamas & Hizbullah Go to Washington?
Joshua Landis, over at Syria Comment, has a new post entitled “Will Syria Benefit From Syria’s Invasion of Gaza”. In it, he argues that “the ‘moderates’ are moderate because they have no conflict with Israel. The radicals are radical because they do… Syria is compelled to fan the flames of hatred and violence because it … Continue reading
Qifa Nabki 
And the people say…