Before After

An Aljazeera cartoon on the contrast between Pope Jean Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI (click on photo to play)

Apology accepted

The Pope has apologized in person for offending Muslims. The ball is now in the court of Muslim leaders to show the world that we want to be part of it.
To many Westerners, the problem is often not what Muslims do, but what Muslims don’t do. Witness how angry the Americans were because Muslim leaders [...]

Plaintiffs to the Pontiff

People shouldn’t confuse the Muslim’s reaction to the Pope’s speech with the violent reactions against the Danish Cartoons.

News websites are rife with dramatic-sounding headlines on how angry the Muslim world is with the speech (Pdf) the Pope made in Bavaria. Muslim clerics the world over have begun demanding apologies and the noise is growing.
But is [...]

Message From Bashar

An Email from the Syrian President to the American President explaining the “tragic” events in Damascus.

Dear Mr. Bush,
By the time you get this letter, you will have heard about the tragic events that unfolded in Damascus this morning. Just in case you haven’t, here’s what happened: A bunch of Islamic terrorists attempted to attack your [...]

Bidding Farewell

Quite a lot has happened in the last 3 months I spent here in Lebanon. After my plane takes off from Beirut this evening (just a few hours after the lifting of the blockade), I will have plenty of time to reflect on the extraordinary circumstances that drastically changed my initial plans.

I apologize for not [...]