- October 26, 2026
AUTHOR DETAILS
Millennium Goals Revisited: Noble Ideas, and Feel-Good Moments
By RAMZY BAROUD When the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) were first declared, they were met with a sense of promise. A decade later, despite all the official insistence that all is on track, it is increasingly clear that this approach to development was flawed from the onset. For ten years, numerous committees, international […]
Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon: Righting a Perpetual Wrong
By RAMZY BAROUD Finally, a parliamentary debate in Lebanon over the human rights of Palestinian refugees. What is unfortunate though, is that granting basic civil rights to over 400,000 Palestinians – 62 years after their expulsion from their historic homeland and the issuing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – has been a topic […]
Turkey Accepts the Challenge
By RAMZY BAROUD ‘Even despots, gangsters and pirates have specific sensitiveness, (and) follow some specific morals.’ The claim was made by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a recent speech, following the deadly commando raid on the humanitarian aid flotilla to Gaza on May 31. According to Erdogan, Israel doesn’t adhere to the code […]
The Old Gaza Boy and the Sea
By RAMZY BAROUD I grew up by the Gaza sea. Through my childhood, I could never quite comprehend how such a giant a body of water, which promised such endless freedom, could also border on such a tiny and cramped stretch of land – a land that was perpetually held hostage, even as it remained […]
Facebook and Muslim Outrage
By RAMZY BAROUD ‘Any depictions of the prophet are considered blasphemous by Muslims,’ wrote Agencies, as reported readily by Aljazeera.net English. The above statement is meant to fully summarize the reason behind the outrage that arises in Pakistan and other parts of the Muslim world whenever some provocative ‘artist’ decides to express his freedom of […]
‘The Internet is a Game Changer’
By RAMZY BAROUD The debate is no longer confined to a few academics in distant universities. It is now a widely prevalent, mainstream topic of discussion. How will the news of the future be distributed? The jury is still out, but not completely. Increasingly, we are driven to believe that the future will be paperless. […]
‘Overcoming the Bush Legacy’: New Language Is Not Enough
By RAMZY BAROUD When former US President George W. Bush left the White House, he left behind one of the most unpleasant legacies in history. He redefined the US’ role in world affairs, tainted the country’s reputation, and left his successor with a political inheritance that seemed almost irrevocable. This, of course, says nothing of […]
Karazai’s Washington Visit: The War Awaiting Kandahar
By RAMZY BAROUD Clad in his usual attire of a colorful, striped robe, Afghan President Hamid Karazai appeared more like an emperor as he began his fourth day in Washington. Accompanying him on a somber visit to the Arlington National Cemetery were US Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. […]
Yemen’s Sorrowful Options: ‘Revolt, Migrate or Die’
By RAMZY BAROUD When the Soviets concluded their pull out from Afghanistan in February 1989, the United States government abruptly lost interest in the country. A devastated economic infrastructure, entrenched poverty, deep-rooted factionalism and lack of international aid caused the country to descend into complete chaos. Internal violence also worsened, but it was no longer […]
The Price of Courage: On Goldstone’s Bar Mitzvah and Finkelstein’s Book
By RAMZY BAROUD In his report on Gaza issued late last year, prominent South African jurist Richard Goldstone accused Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes. His language also showed awareness of the fact that the former is an occupying power with most sophisticated weapon arsenal (as reflecting in the number of Palestinian victims), and […]
The South Reduced: How the News Promotes a Mistaken View of the World
By RAMZY BAROUD I am not good at flying kites. But during a recent visit to the Olympic Village of Beijing, I felt compelled to do so. Despite the cold and late hour, there were many kite runners around me. A salesman insisted that I try my hand before committing to any purchase, and I […]
From Neptune to Gaza
In excerpts from a speech prepared for the Hetherington Memorial Lecture, Ramzy Baroud argues for a history of the people, by the people and for the people. By Ramzy Baroud Either you repeat the same conventional doctrines everybody is saying, or else you say something true, and it will sound like it’s from Neptune. — […]
Dispatch from China: Number 15 Has Left the Building
By RAMZY BAROUD Li Changchun is often referred to as one of the most powerful men in China, in Asia and, increasingly, in the world. He is a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee. On April 8, he awaited our arrival at the Great […]
Indispensable IslamOnline Must Not Fail
By RAMZY BAROUD A widely popular Islamic website has been, until very recently, an undisputed success story. IslamOnline arrived at a time that millions of Muslims needed a common platform and a unifying outlet. Here was a website that neither shunned nor alienated. Its influence was upbeat and positive, rather than destructive or divisive. While […]
The Lobby vs. America: On Netanyahu’s Lies and the Spineless Politicians
By RAMZY BAROUD As I listened to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu address an animated crowed of supporters on March 22, I felt physically sick. The man has already displayed time and again a complete lack of moral sense or ethical framework in his words and actions. In his recent arguments, he once again twisted […]
My Children, Ralph Nader and the South China Sea
By RAMZY BAROUD I basked in the warm Borneo sun, following a long run somewhere at the edge of a rainforest. The beach was only partly clean, but the water was most inviting. My children ran excitedly, collecting what I assumed to be shells and whatever other treasures the South China Sea had decided to […]
Activism is Change, Not academic Squabbles and Bickering
By RAMZY BAROUD An activist is a person who feels strongly about a cause and who is also willing to dedicate time and energy towards advancing and realizing this cause. This might be my own limited interpretation of what activism means. I was born and raised in a Gaza refugee camp where the daily struggles […]
Alternative Reading of the Al-Mabhouh Murder
By RAMZY BAROUD The killing of Palestinian activist Mahmoud al-Mabhouh on January 19, 2010 was clearly a well-planned, violent and sadistic act, committed by Israeli assassins in the supposed safety of a sovereign country. Yes, Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was a Palestinian activist. We have no reason to believe otherwise. He spent years of his life in […]
Flexible Afghanistan War Objectives: And the Agony Grinds On
By RAMZY BAROUD Washington and its willing mouthpieces in the media have for years been trying to sell us the preposterous war in Afghanistan. While they attempt to convince us that the war is predicated on a faultless military logic and moral wisdom, it remains in fact a tragic adventure with no decipherable objectives, and […]
Challenging History: Why the Oppressed Must Tell Their Own Story
By RAMZY BAROUD When American historian Howard Zinn passed away recently, he left behind a legacy that redefined our relationship to history altogether. Professor Zinn dared to challenge the way history was told and written. In fact he went as far as to defy the conventional construction of historical discourses through the pen of victor […]
