The question on the mind of almost everyone who has followed the horror in Syria as it has unfolded over the past two years is, “What we can do?” The short answer, unfortunately, is not much.
The implication that Congress is preventing the closure of Guantánamo is disingenuous.
None of the sides is close to a decisive military victory.
Recent inter-Korean tensions have rekindled debate over methods for moving the North Korean government away from weapons development. If an upcoming United Nations human rights report can establish a framework and funding mechanism to assist refugees who have crossed the border into China, it might be more effective than either sanctions or traditional engagement.
More often than not, news coverage of Turkey’s treatment of refugees is negative. Last month, however, Turkey took a big step toward setting up a proper domestic legal framework and administrative infrastructure for asylum–and it’s something the United States should take note of.
What does Syria plan to do, if anything, about Israeli air strikes?
Tangra was censored and harassed, but managed to get its message across.
If, as alleged, the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons, it would indeed be a serious development, constituting a breach of the Geneva Protocol of 1925, one of the world’s most important disarmament treaties, which banned the use of chemical weapons. However, U.S. policy regarding chemical weapons has been so inconsistent and politicized that the United States is in no position to take leadership in response to any use of such weaponry by Syria.
With a handful of legislators finally beginning to tackle the broken U.S. immigration system, immigration reform is back on the front page in the United States for the first time this decade. But it has never been off the radar for immigrant groups, who have witnessed first-hand the toll that indiscriminate deportation, indefinite detention, and ongoing discrimination have taken on our communities.
As I looked onto the tens of thousands of people proudly waving American flags at April’s immigration rally in Washington, D.C., I couldn’t help but think of my immigrant parents. Driven by a lack of economic opportunity and a desire for a brighter future, they escaped to the United States in their late teens. They were able to become citizens through the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, which included Ronald Reagan’s so-called “amnesty.”