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Category: War

Did Harappan civilization avoid war for 2,000 years?

Did Harappan civilization avoid war for 2,000 years?

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Annalee Newitz writes: The Harappan civilization dominated the Indus River valley beginning about five thousand years ago, many of its massive cities sprawling at the edges of rivers that still flow through Pakistan and India today. But its culture remains a mystery. Why did it leave behind no representations of great leaders, nor of warfare? Archaeologists have long wondered whether the Harappan civilization could actually have thrived for roughly 2,000 years without any major wars or leadership cults. Obviously people…

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Iraqis who helped U.S. military now face obstacles being granted refugee status

Iraqis who helped U.S. military now face obstacles being granted refugee status

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Reuters reports: Trump campaigned in 2016 promising tight restrictions on immigration, and in the past year and a half, his administration has sharply reduced refugee admissions through executive orders and closed-door decisions. The refugee ceiling Trump set last year of 45,000 is the lowest since 1980, when the modern refugee program was established. The United States is on track to admit about 22,000 refugees this year, approximately half of the maximum allowed. Advocates for Iraqis who worked for the U.S….

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How Russia, China or America could accidentally start a nuclear war

How Russia, China or America could accidentally start a nuclear war

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BBC News reports: A mysterious Russian satellite displaying “very abnormal behaviour” has raised alarm in the US, according to a State Department official. “We don’t know for certain what it is and there is no way to verify it,” said assistant secretary Yleem Poblete at a conference in Switzerland on 14 August. She voiced fears that it was impossible to say if the object may be a weapon. Russia has dismissed the comments as “unfounded, slanderous accusations based on suspicions”….

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A generation of American soldiers with little to fight for but one another

A generation of American soldiers with little to fight for but one another

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C.J. Chivers writes: Second Platoon did not hide its dark mood as its soldiers waded across the Korengal River in the bright light of afternoon. It was early in April 2009 and early in the Pentagon’s resumption in earnest of the Afghan war. The platoon’s mission was to ascend a mountain slope and try to ambush the Taliban at night. They were about 30 men in all, riflemen and machine-gunners reinforced with scouts, a mix of original platoon members and…

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We are witnessing the birth pains of a new and vile authoritarianism in Syria

We are witnessing the birth pains of a new and vile authoritarianism in Syria

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HA Hellyer writes: Domestic officials’ records in Syria are being updated and so many Syrians who have been worrying about missing loved ones are finally getting a bit of closure. But it is a bittersweet type of transparency – because the regime is declaring that many of those who were missing have actually been killed. As one Syria expert, Dr Thomas Pierret, put it, there has been “bulk delivery of death notifications to families of Syrian prisoners” by the Assad…

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How war has changed Syrian society

How war has changed Syrian society

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An essay penned collectively by Synaps’ Syria team says: Syria’s war has transformed the country in both shattering and subtle ways. While many evolutions are for the worse, others inspire cautious optimism: Syrians have shown relentless ingenuity in adapting to every stage of a horrendous conflict, salvaging remnants of dignity, solidarity and vitality amid nightmarish circumstances. They have generally done so on their own terms, grappling with changes ignored by virtually everyone who claims to help or represent them. These…

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The world abetted Assad’s victory in Syria

The world abetted Assad’s victory in Syria

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Christopher Phillips writes: After more than seven years of a civil war that has left half of Syria’s population displaced, cities reduced to rubble, and over 500,000 killed, President Bashar al-Assad appears to be on the brink of victory. In July, units loyal to Assad recaptured Deraa, where the peaceful protests that turned into a violent rebellion against him first began in 2011. The recapture came as Assad conquered the south, one of the last rebel holdouts. The war is…

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Kim Jong-un nukes the U.S. in a terrifyingly plausible near-future novel by Jeffrey Lewis

Kim Jong-un nukes the U.S. in a terrifyingly plausible near-future novel by Jeffrey Lewis

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Juian Borger writes: Reflecting on US nostalgia for music from past wars, the musician and satirist Tom Lehrer once joked: “I feel that if any songs are going to come out of World War III, we’d better start writing them now.” Those whose job it is to contemplate the likelihood and impact of nuclear war feel the same way about postmortems. Trying to explain what went wrong after a thermo-nuclear conflict kills millions is the ultimate in futility – a…

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Despite tensions, Russia seeks U.S. help to rebuild Syria

Despite tensions, Russia seeks U.S. help to rebuild Syria

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Reuters reports: Russia has used a closely guarded communications channel with America’s top general to propose the two former Cold War foes cooperate to rebuild Syria and repatriate refugees to the war-torn country, according to a U.S. government memo. A boy walks along a damaged street at the city of Douma in Damascus, Syria, April 16, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki The proposal was sent in a July 19 letter by Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the Russian military’s General Staff, to…

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Osama bin Laden’s mother speaks for the first time

Osama bin Laden’s mother speaks for the first time

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Martin Chulov reports: In the corner couch of a spacious room, a woman wearing a brightly patterned robe sits expectantly. The red hijab that covers her hair is reflected in a glass-fronted cabinet; inside, a framed photograph of her firstborn son takes pride of place between family heirlooms and valuables. A smiling, bearded figure wearing a military jacket, he features in photographs around the room: propped against the wall at her feet, resting on a mantlepiece. A supper of Saudi…

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U.S. talks with the Taliban could be a breakthrough in the Afghan war

U.S. talks with the Taliban could be a breakthrough in the Afghan war

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The Washington Post reports: A first possible breakthrough in the 17-year Afghan conflict came in June, when a brief cease-fire during a Muslim holiday produced a spontaneous celebration by Afghan troops, civilians and Taliban fighters. The nationwide yearning for peace became palpable. Now, in a development that could build on that extraordinary moment, a senior American diplomat and Taliban insurgent officials have reportedly held talks for the first time, meeting in the Persian Gulf state of Qatar and agreeing to…

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U.S. spy agencies: North Korea is working on new missiles

U.S. spy agencies: North Korea is working on new missiles

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The Washington Post reports: U.S. spy agencies are seeing signs that North Korea is constructing new missiles at a factory that produced the country’s first intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the United States, according to officials familiar with the intelligence. Newly obtained evidence, including satellite photos taken in recent weeks, indicates that work is underway on at least one and possibly two liquid-fueled ICBMs at a large research facility in Sanumdong, on the outskirts of Pyongyang, according to the…

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Iran’s General Soleimani warns Trump war would ‘destroy all you possess’

Iran’s General Soleimani warns Trump war would ‘destroy all you possess’

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BBC News reports: An Iranian special forces commander has warned President Donald Trump if the US attacks Iran it “will destroy all that you possess”. Major General Qassem Soleimani vowed that if Mr Trump started a war, the Islamic Republic would end it, Iranian news agency Tasnim reported. It follows Mr Trump’s all-caps-lock tweet warning Iran’s president to “never, ever” threaten the US. Tensions have risen since the US withdrew from the 2015 Iran deal. Maj Gen Soleimani – who…

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Remembering May Scaff, icon of the Syrian revolution

Remembering May Scaff, icon of the Syrian revolution

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Budour Hassan writes: “When the Syrian revolution started, I became like a newborn making her first steps, rediscovering herself and rediscovering her country,” Syrian actress May Scaff told me when we met in Paris on April 28 this year. “Like all Syrians who took to the street, I found my voice for the first time.” May never contemplated the idea that she would breathe her last in a country other than Syria or in a city other than her native…

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U.S. launches campaign to erode support for Iran’s leaders

U.S. launches campaign to erode support for Iran’s leaders

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To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018 Reuters reports: The Trump administration has launched an offensive of speeches and online communications meant to foment unrest and help pressure Iran to end its nuclear…

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