Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

Embassy politics: The eerie similarities between 1980 and 2012

For months now, the right and the left have argued about whether this year's contest between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney is a repeat of the 1980 race between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. It's a comparison that benefits Republicans, who want...

Published Thu, Sep 13 2012 12:55 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012, Mitt Romney, Barack Obama

Morning Brief: Protests over anti-Islam film spread to more countries on fourth day

Protests over anti-Islam film spread to more countries on fourth day Top news: Protests throughout the Muslim world over an online video that insulted the Prophet Mohammed entered their fourth day today , and U.S. embassies are on high alert for more...

Published Fri, Sep 14 2012 5:37 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

The Election 2012 Weekly Report: Fault lines and red lines

The embassy aftermath The escalating chaos in the Middle East sparked by an anti-Islamic video spilled over into the presidential campaign this week. On Tuesday night, shortly after protesters had stormed the U.S. embassy in Cairo and reports had emerged...

Published Fri, Sep 14 2012 1:10 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012, 2012 Report

Gameday with Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 No. 13 USC rebounded from the drubbing Stanford gave it last week by grinding out a 27-9 victory over Cal on Saturday. It wasn't flashy -- quarterback Matt Barkley did an awful...

Published Mon, Sep 24 2012 7:19 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Egypt, Arab World

Space: The next GOP foreign-policy frontier

Over the weekend, without much fanfare, the Romney campaign opened up a new front in its foreign-policy attacks on Barack Obama: space exploration. During a stop at the University of Central Florida, roughly an hour away from the Kennedy Space Center...

Published Mon, Sep 24 2012 11:50 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012, Mitt Romney, 2012 Election Top Story

Obama advisor: If he met with one leader, he'd have to meet with 10!

One quote in particular stands out in today's New York Times article on the contrast of President Obama appearing on The View while Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets with world leaders in town for the U.N. General Assembly. Obama isn't...

Published Tue, Sep 25 2012 8:47 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012, Barack Obama

Morning Brief: Rebels bomb military headquarters in Damascus

Rebels bomb military headquarters in Damascus Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE Top news: Rebels bombed the Army General Command in Damascus early Wednesday morning in what was the second day of heavy bombing in the capital. Yesterday, rebels...

Published Wed, Sep 26 2012 5:55 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

NYC anti-Islam subway ads lead to pink spray paint showdown

Prominent Egyptian-American journalist and activist Mona Eltahawy, author of FP's May/June cover story , was arrested on Tuesday in New York City and jailed overnight following a scuffle over American Freedom Defense Initiative leader Pamela Geller's...

Published Wed, Sep 26 2012 2:02 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: North America, Freedom, Islam, Fun Stuff

Iran warns citizens of the dangers of travel to Canada

A through-the-looking-glass moment form Iran's foreign ministry, as reported by the CBC : Iran's foreign ministry says "Islamphobia" and "Iranophobia" are growing in Canada and Iranians who come to Canada could face possible...

Published Thu, Sep 27 2012 8:43 AM by FP Passport

Great moments in U.N. prop use

There are two schools of thought emerging about Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bizarre stunt of drawing a literal "red line" through a cartoon bomb in this UNGA speech today. On the one hand, he may have "turned a serious...

Published Thu, Sep 27 2012 12:40 PM by FP Passport

Shadow Internet command center revealed (Photo)

This Sunday's New York Times contained an interesting item on U.S. State Department-funded efforts to circumvent Internet censorship abroad. Particularly noteworthy was the description of a brave band of cyberpunk revolutionaries waging a battle for...

Published Mon, Jun 13 2011 8:16 AM by FP Passport

So which countries now officially recognize the Libyan rebels?

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Germany’s Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle announced today during a visit to Benghazi that his government would now recognize the Transitional National Council (TNC) as the official...

Published Mon, Jun 13 2011 1:15 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: North Africa, Libya

Where do the guns in Mexico come from? Mainly the U.S.

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 A new congressionally commissioned report has some interesting statistics on the weapons fueling Mexico's ever-bloodier drug war, including this: 70 percent of the firearms...

Published Tue, Jun 14 2011 1:00 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Mexico, North Africa

INTERVIEW: Rep. Brad Sherman on Libya and Obama’s Imperial Presidency

A confrontation is brewing between the executive and legislative branches over the legality of America's continued military role enforcing the no fly zone over Libya. On Tuesday, June 14, House Speaker John Boehner warned the president he had until...

Published Wed, Jun 15 2011 9:54 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Politics, Middle East, Libya

Powerful documentary shows ‘horrific’ new footage from Sri Lanka’s civil war

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 A disturbing new film from Britain's...

Published Wed, Jun 15 2011 3:33 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Southeast Asia