Transatlantic Intelligencer

Germany and the Euro Crisis

John Rosenthal — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:17:08 +0000

Lazy, profligate, scheming Greeks versus honest, thrifty, industrious Germans. Southern vice versus northern virtue. For much of the news media, the euro sovereign debt crisis could be summarized in the form of a morality play opposing national or regional stereotypes. But what if the financial strains on the so-called PIGS that threaten the eurozone are a product of the eurozone itself? What if the problems of the euro, in other words, are of the euro’s own making?

A careful look at trade statistics reveals the disaster that the euro has been for the “PIGS” – and the boon that it has been for Germany.

See my new essay in the current issue of World Affairs — now available online here.

Al-Qaeda Ladies Choir Struts Its Stuff in Rebel Syria

John Rosenthal — Thu, 10 May 2012 22:56:43 +0000

Back in mid-February, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper warned that al-Qaeda had “infiltrated” the Syrian opposition. At roughly the same time, videos began emerging on the internet that clearly revealed just what an understatement – to put it mildly – Clapper’s observation represented. The videos show Syrian rebel brigades proudly posing with the al-Qaeda flag and protestors holding it high. This was not a matter of “infiltration,” with the word’s connotations of stealth and cunning, but rather of an openly publicized affiliation.

In the meanwhile, an even more revealing video has come to light. It shows demonstrators in a public square in Syria holding up the al-Qaeda flag and chanting “Allahu Akbar!” What is particularly notable about this video, however, is that the demonstrators are women…

For background, context, and the video itself, see my new article on Breitbart.com here.

‘He Hurt Me, I Told Him No’: The Latest Accusations Against DSK

John Rosenthal — Thu, 10 May 2012 16:19:17 +0000

Just two days before last Sunday’s presidential elections, news broke that French judicial authorities are contemplating bringing rape charges against former IMF director Dominique Strauss-Kahn in connection with the so-called Carlton Affair. Strauss-Kahn has hitherto “merely” been under investigation for aiding and abetting the organization of a prostitution ring in connection with the affair, which revolves around a series of “sex parties” with prostitutes that were organized for his benefit.

The most recent revelations have received some limited coverage in the American news media: notably, in the form of a short article in the New York Times. But the Times report is sparse on details, coy and linguistically-challenged to boot.

For a more complete picture, including translated excerpts from the statements of Strauss-Kahn’s accuser, see my new article at the Weekly Standard online here.

Newsletter Reminder

John Rosenthal — Fri, 04 May 2012 07:44:20 +0000

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In Syria, America Allies with the Muslim Brotherhood

John Rosenthal — Tue, 01 May 2012 09:37:33 +0000

While the Obama administration’s burgeoning contacts with the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt continue to cause controversy, the administration’s policy of growing cooperation with the Syrian opposition continues to enjoy almost unanimous support. This is remarkable, since by virtue of that policy the administration is openly allied with none other than the Muslim Brotherhood: openly, that is, but with perhaps just enough misdirection for the alliance to escape the notice of the broader public…

Since my new article on National Review Online here.

Syria, the Media and Jihad: An Interview with Frédéric Pichon

John Rosenthal — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:17:24 +0000

The French Syria specialist Frédéric Pichon accuses the Western media of irresponsibility in its treatment of the Syria crisis: of being ignorant about the region and its history, neglecting to verify sources, blithely parroting activist talking points–in short, of “refusing to deal with the reality.”

See my new interview with him on Breitbart.com here.

Tunisian Salafists Demonstrate for Sharia under Al Qaeda Banner

John Rosenthal — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 23:08:34 +0000

As the magazine Le Courrier de l’Atlas has reported, thousands of Islamists, “the majority of them Salafis,” demonstrated in front of the constituent national assembly in Tunis last Friday, in order to demand that the sharia be recognized in the future Tunisian constitution as the fundamental source of the law. Images of the demonstration show that many demonstrators were waving al Qaeda’s distinctive black flag…

See my new post at The Corner on NRO here.

Salafist Suspected in Belgian Mosque Attack

John Rosenthal — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 19:16:25 +0000

Last night, a Shia mosque in Brussels was the target of an arson attack. The 46-year-old imam of the mosque died of asphyxiation during the fire. While the wire services have reported the attack, most of the reports have ignored a salient detail: according to eyewitnesses, the perpetrator was a Salafist who shouted slogans regarding the conflict in Syria…

See my new report at The Corner on NRO here.

Al-Qaeda and Caliphate Flags in Rebel Syria

John Rosenthal — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 15:25:53 +0000

The Obama administration has conceded al-Qaeda’s involvement in the Syrian rebellion, suggesting last month that the terror group had “infiltrated” the opposition to Bashar al-Assad. But video evidence emerging out of Syria suggests that “infiltration” is not the word. At least three such videos depict anti-Assad forces or demonstrators with al-Qaeda’s black flag. Numerous other videos show demonstrators with black and white “caliphate” flags.

For the images and corroborating evidence, see my new article at National Review Online here.

Syria: The Salafist Who Launched the Rebellion?

John Rosenthal — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:26:07 +0000

Earlier this month, the French daily Libération published an interview with Sheikh Louay al-Zouabi, a self-avowed Salafist imam from Daraa, Syria, who claims to have issued a fatwa that sparked the uprising against the rule of Bashar al-Assad.

A radical fundamentalist current in Islam, Salafism advocates the emulation of the Salaf: the earliest generations of Muhammad’s companions and followers. It is the same form of Islam as that embraced by al-Qaeda, to whose ideas al-Zouabi has elsewhere unabashedly said he adheres. “I am al-Qaeda,” al-Zouabi has said.

For the details, see my new report on the website of the Stonegate Institute here.