Director, Ohio State University's Middle East Studies Center
Director of Middle East Studies Center at Ohio State University in Columbus
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Alam Payind
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FROM Alam Payind
Which Way, L.A.?
The Run on Kabul Bank: Corruption and the Karzai Government After Somallia, Transparency International now ranks the government of Afghanistan as the most corrupt in the world. The latest evidence is the crisis involving Kabul Bank , Afghanistan's most important private financial institution.
To the Point
Corruption and Counterinsurgency in Afghanistan After Somallia, Transparency International now ranks the government of Afghanistan as the most corrupt in the world. The latest evidence is the crisis involving Afghanistan's most important private financial institution. Friends and relatives of President Karzai borrowed hundreds of millions of dollars from Kabul Bank and invested in Dubai's risky real estate market. That revelation has caused a run on the Kabul Bank, which could pave the way to the country's financial collapse. As Karzai tries to limit investigations, will the corruption of his regime make the Taliban look good to ordinary Afghans? What would that mean for the counterinsurgency strategy of General Petraeus, which depends on a solid government supported by its own people?
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To the Point
What is Trump's plan for Middle East peace? On his first foreign tour, President Trump has promised "peace" between Israel and the Palestinians. Are there any details for re-starting talks that have been stalled for the past three years?
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The Trump agenda: where's the beef? President Trump says big things are happening. After celebrating a House bill on health care, he doesn’t yet have Senate agreement. With James Comey’s public testimony scheduled tomorrow, the President today tweeted his selection of a new FBI Director. Is the Chief Executive all style and no substance? Later, terror attacks in Iran and conflicting claims about who’s behind them.
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Terrorism and tweets, hate speech and murder Just days before an election, Britain is coping with a rash of deadly terrorism, and Prime Minister Theresa May is on the defensive. And again today, President Trump has tweeted criticism of the Mayor of London. Later, a double murder in Portland, Oregon has revealed the ugly past of a supposedly “progressive” city. One immediate question: is “hate speech” protected by the First Amendment?
To the Point
Trump's new look at civil rights and global warming President Trump is reportedly ready to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. We look at the possible consequences. On the second half of the program, we hear about cuts in Obama-Era civil rights programs called for by the Trump Administration's first budget plan.