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Bashir Goth - Good riddance! The nightmare is over. The Union of Islamic Courts, UIC, had their day under the sun. They had the support of all Somali people when they stormed to power, routed the notorious warlords, restored peace in Mogadishu, opened the airports and seaports, stopped property looting and looked, for a moment, like a wise authority, but then they blew it.
Sami Moubayed - The Arab world is sharply divided over the execution of Saddam Hussein on Saturday, with many claiming that it was wrong to kill him in the early hours of the Muslim Eid ul-Adha holidays. Others say he was a symbol of anti-imperialism who should be hailed for defying the Americans in 2003.
Miriam Leitao - A specter is haunting Brazil: the internationalization of the Amazon. The deepest nationalist feelings emerge whenever any non-Brazilian authority suggests the idea that the stewardship of the Amazon should be shared, in some way, with the international community. Is this a myth or a real threat?
Amar C. Bakshi - President Bush will outline his latest policy approach to Iraq this week and some suspect he will call for a "troop surge." Blogs and op-eds are busy debating it. What do you think is the right course of action?
Zeyad - Before asking, "Should there be a troop surge in Iraq" we must ask, "What could it accomplish?" I say after four years of war in Iraq, we now know military solutions are not working.
Your Excellency, Mr. Ban Ki-moon:
As you begin your service as Secretary General of the United Nations, there are many immediate issues on your plate; not the least of which is a decision on Kosova's final status. As the leader of this powerful organization it is up to you to set the tone and the pace for 2007. The U.N.'s recent decision to delay resolution of Kosova's final status until after Serbia holds its elections on January 21, while not surprising is devastating. Many view it as the latest attempt on the part of the West to appease Serbia, a centerpiece of the international community's misguided foreign policy approach to the Balkan conflict ever since the NATO bombing campaign ended Slobodan Milosevic's genocidal march across Southeast Europe seven years ago.
Denver Research Group - The most consistent reaction of thought leaders around the world to the "surge" strategy put forth by President Bush last night was that it simply won't work. Yet, the most surprising reaction to the speech was a widespread view that President Bush was setting up a new war with Iran.
Mahfuz R. Chowdhury - Bangladesh is currently experiencing grave political turmoil. Yesterday, the interim President Iajuddin Ahmed declared a state of emergency and a delay to scheduled national elections. Since November, dozens have died in associated riots. However, like its cyclones, this is not a new phenomenon - it recurs every five years during election season. The main cause: Politics in Bangladesh is influenced not by the free will of the people, but by the manipulation of elections through money and muscle.
Somalia/UAE - It's refreshing to see President Bush finally admitting his failures in Iraq for the first time since he declared the Iraq war over in April 2003. Having one eye on a democratic congress and the other on the impact that a failure in Iraq will have on his legacy, Bush looked like more of a man looking for a dignified exit strategy from Iraq than a man of bravado.
Jim Finckenauer - Alexander Litvinenko, a former Russian FSB lieutenant-colonel, recently died in a London hospital from a mysterious poisoning. His murder and those of other prominent Russians in recent years - public officials such as Kozlov and Starovoitova and journalists such as Borovik and Politkovskaya - show there's a way to go for Russia along the road to democracy.
Steve Clemons - I suspect that we will soon see more collisions between U.S. military squads and Special Force operations against suspected Syrian and Iranian convoys and personnel -- civilian and military -- inside Iraq as well as more border interdiction. At some point, these units will go into Syria and Iran to accomplish their "disruption" missions.
Miriam Leitao - What does country-risk mean? It depends on your point of view. According to JP Morgan's metrics, Brazil and Venezuela have the same level of country risk. But we journalists have a different kind of evaluation. And right now Venezuelan journalists are about to declare war on Chavez because their freedoms are under severe threat.
Bashir Goth - After the ouster of the Union of Islamic Courts by Ethiopian forces, the Somali Transitional Government, TFG, seems to be in control of the situation. It acted quickly to impose martial law, started collecting weapons and formed a governing body to supervise the capital's return to normalcy. The most significant victory, however, was the arrival of the TFG President Abdillahi Yusuf in Mogadishu for the first time since his election two years ago and his successful meetings with his predecessors Abdilqasim Salat Hassan, Ali Mahdi Mohammed and other prominent leaders.
Ali Ettefagh - The murder of Hrant Dink in Istanbul by right-wing extremists may well shatter Turkey's chances of joining the European Union.
Rodney Wilson - Islamic banking has become a substantial industry over the last four decades. It's central component: the avoidance of interest. Does its emergence segregate Muslims from Western values and norms, creating a financial ghetto?
Theresa Hitchens - China's dramatic Jan. 11 demonstration of an anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons capability has shaken the geo-strategic landscape, raising a host of questions not just for the United States but for all space stakeholders. Whatever Beijing's motivation for this provocative move, it is a clear signal that the nature of the space game is shifting; and unfortunately not in positive ways. The question is: What now?
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