The act of beheading has been used as a means for execution and retribution for millennia. The guillotine, which was…
“The Worst Day” — 9/11 and the International Response
“It was the worst day we have ever seen, but it brought out the best in all of us.” –Senator…
Turning the Tables: An Interview with Stu Kennedy
In this interview with the Foreign Service Journal, Charles Stuart Kennedy talks about his Foreign Service career and pioneering work creating American…
From Nation-Building to Black Hawk Down: U.S. Peacekeeping in Somalia
Somalia has become synonymous with well-meaning but ill-fated humanitarian intervention. Live television footage of American soldiers being dragged in the…
“It wasn’t supposed to happen here” — 9/11, Before and After
September 11, 2001 left an indelible mark on American history when nineteen members of al Qaeda carried out the deadliest…
“Military overreach cannot be offset by diplomatic incapacity”
2014 marks the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I, the devastating “war to end all wars.” While…
USS Vincennes Shoots Down Iran Air Flight 655
The Iran-Iraq War created turmoil in the Persian Gulf as the combatants attacked civilian oil tankers, merchant ships, and other…
Jordan’s King Abdullah I, The Man Who Would Be Peacemaker
Abdullah I bin al-Hussein fought along side Lawrence of Arabia against the Ottoman Empire and became Emir of Transjordan and…
An Enemy of King Fahd of Saudi Arabia
King Fahd ruled Saudi Arabia from 1982 to 2005, leading it in a strong alliance with the United States and…
Persecution of the Kurds: The Documents of Saddam’s Secret Police
The Kurds have had a long and troubled history in Iraq. Under Saddam Hussein tens of thousands of Kurds were…