Weeks of brutal Israeli strikes on the heavily-populated Gaza strip have seen a number of political actors come forward to present a cease-fire plan. The deadlock, however, seems to be between Egypt and Qatar — both of whom have considerable leverage over Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated group that has ruled Gaza since 2007. The truth is that due to political bias on each side, neither country is fit to be an exclusive mediator in this situation. Read more »
Archives for July 2014
Sky Over The East – In Conversation with Sultan Sooud Al Qassimi and Matthew Sansom
In an informative and upbeat discussion preceding the opening of the largest exhibition of modern Arab art in the UAE, Sultan Sooud Al Qassimi looked back on his adventures in art collecting. In addition to gaining a personal insight into the exhibition and the works presented, the audience learnt about the role of a collector, the story behind the Barjeel Art Foundation, the experiences of its founder, and his vision for the future. Read more »
Showdown in the Gulf
Over the past week, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the UAE took the unprecedented step of collectively withdrawing their ambassadors from Qatar, citing the latter’s disregard for their security. The following day, Egypt also announced a similar step. Observers viewed this as a message to Qatar to cease its support for the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar issued […]