As of December 2012, there were over 4,000 Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli custody. The year ended in frustration for many prisoners as interest in their plight has waned, both in the international media and in Palestinian society.
The seizure of an international gas-plant in Algeria follows closely the escalation of conflict in Mali. The response of western states to both reinforces the worldview of their Islamist adversaries.
The dominant perception of suicide-attackers has paid too much attention to the unchallenged assumptions of past experts and too little to the clinical evidence, says Adam Lankford.
Syria under the rule of Hafez al-Assad acquired the image of a bastion of intransigent anti-imperialism that made it attractive to a section of the western left. The process reflected changes in regional politics whose effects are felt to this day, say Hazem Saghieh & Samer Frangie.
The growing challenge to Bashar al-Assad's regime raises the issue of Syria's chemical weapons, and whether there are any feasible military options in addressing it. Here, the decisions of the United States and Israel will be crucial.
Syria's conflict is approaching a decisive phase, and the United States is making intense efforts to influence the shape of a post-Assad regime. Here, the prominence of Islamist groups among the rebels is becoming ever more important.
International observers have always nurtured mixed feelings towards Recep Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister: is he a resolute champion of democratisation, or an Islamist with hidden authoritarian tendencies? The answer might have less to do with his personal traits than with the system he operat
The pace of events in Syria is reinforcing the case for western military intervention. There is still - just - time for a Washington-led but inclusive diplomatic option to deliver an outcome that averts further great suffering.
نحن بحاجة إلى قانون غير مبهم وواضح لمعاقبة المتحرشين لا لمعاقبة الضحايا" غيداء العبسي"
The United Arab Emirates' human-rights record is under new scrutiny. The European Union should follow the lead of its parliament and put the issue at the centre of its engagement with the Gulf state, says Joe Stork.
As Tahrir Square fills up again and the Arab uprisings continue, the power of words and the battle over who owns them is captured by six middle eastern playwrights whose work Arab Nights is being performed in London
The latest war over Gaza leaves unchanged the underlying roots of conflict, even as regional changes are narrowing the potential for a long-term settlement.
