Armed Conflicts

Syrians celebrate the fall of Bashar al-Assad regime and the New Year’s Eve in the capital, Damascus, on December 31, 2024.

Damascus Diary: A New Year in a New Syria Damascus Diary: A New Year in a New Syria

Syrians begin to learn to live without Assad.

Jan 6, 2025 / Nicolas Niarchos

A view of Europe from space.

The Old World Order Is Dying. What New World Order Is Struggling to Be Born? The Old World Order Is Dying. What New World Order Is Struggling to Be Born?

Some of the world’s largest, oldest empires are collapsing before our eyes, with no clear sign of what will happen next.

Jan 2, 2025 / Alfred McCoy

An effigy of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol during a protest outside the National Assembly in Seoul following the second martial law impeachment vote on December 14, 2024.

South Korea's Autumn of the Patriarchy South Korea's Autumn of the Patriarchy

President Yoon Suk-yeol is the first of his country's leaders eager to be a stooge of both Washington and Tokyo. His impeachment is testimony to the strength of Korean democracy.

Dec 19, 2024 / Bruce Cumings

The new face of the resistance? Outgoing Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

It Would Be Idiotic to Make Mitch McConnell the Face of Anti-Trump Resistance It Would Be Idiotic to Make Mitch McConnell the Face of Anti-Trump Resistance

Countering imaginary isolationism, the outgoing Senate Republican leader advocates a return to Cold War militarism.

Dec 17, 2024 / Jeet Heer

Partners for peace? Trump meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in June 2019. Instead of attacking Trump’s diplomatic initiatives as “weak,” Democrats should support negotiations.

Progressives Can’t Afford to Spend the Next 4 Years Just Playing Defense Progressives Can’t Afford to Spend the Next 4 Years Just Playing Defense

Or reflexively denouncing every Trump policy. While we mustn’t underestimate the danger he poses to our democracy, when he says he wants to end war, the left should call his bluff...

Dec 17, 2024 / Matthew Duss

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump watch during a military flyover as they host the 2020 “Salute to America” event in honor of Independence Day on the White House South Lawn.

The Military Under Trump Will Be a Disaster The Military Under Trump Will Be a Disaster

It’s no longer clear that anyone in Trump’s second term will be there to restrain him from moving forward with his worst intentions against civilians.

Dec 16, 2024 / Andrea Mazzarino

Lebanese return to their homes after a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, while the roads were destroyed and buildings were collapsed due to the Israeli air strikes in Nabatiyeh, Beirut, Lebanon, on December 7, 2024.

Beirut Gets a Reprieve—but for How Long? Beirut Gets a Reprieve—but for How Long?

If history is any guide, the latest Lebanese ceasefire may well have broken down by the time you read this.

Dec 16, 2024 / Charles Glass

https://www.thenation.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Palestine-Protest-Yale-University.jpg

Yale Students Voted to Divest, but What’s Next is Unclear Yale Students Voted to Divest, but What’s Next is Unclear

The referendum calls on the school to divest its $41 billion endowment from military weapons manufacturing firms, yet the power to do so is in the hands of the board of trustees.

Dec 13, 2024 / StudentNation / Maggie Grether

Celebrations erupted around Syria and crowds ransacked President Bashar al-Assad's luxurious home on December 8 after Islamist-led rebels swept into Damascus and declared that he had fled the country, in a spectacular end to five decades of Baath party rule.

Celebrations in Syria May Be Premature Celebrations in Syria May Be Premature

The speed of the Assad dictatorship's collapse stunned even the opposition. But the result is a power vacuum that Israel and Turkey have already moved to occupy.

Dec 12, 2024 / Séamus Malekafzali

Women wave flags of the Syrian opposition from a vehicle as they celebrate the fall of the Assad regime in Syria's northern city of Aleppo on December 10, 2024.

The Fall of Syria Changes Everything The Fall of Syria Changes Everything

Retired diplomat Chas Freeman and writer Pascal Lottaz discuss what happens now that Damascus is in the hands of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

Dec 11, 2024 / Chas W. Freeman Jr.

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