Giovanni Sale, SJ

The Insurrections of the Arab Spring The uprisings that engulfed the Arab world in the winter and spring of 2011 were some of the most important historical events of recent times. The first began on December 17, 2010, following the protest of a young Tunisian street vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, who set himself on fire in… Read the full article

Pope Francis’ visit to Iraq (March 5-8, 2021)[1] will bring to the attention of Christians around the world and of the international community the issue of the survival of Christian communities in Middle Eastern regions that, because of wars, tribal conflicts and poverty, risk disappearing forever. These are very ancient communities, many of apostolic foundation…. Read the full article

From March 5 to 8, 2021, Pope Francis will visit the troubled Land of Two Rivers, a common translation of the old name, Mesopotamia, modern day Iraq. Accepting the invitations of the Republic of Iraq and the local Catholic Church, Pope Francis is due to make an apostolic journey to the country, visiting Baghdad, the… Read the full article

In order to understand the challenges Christian communities in the Middle East face, it is necessary to understand the ways in which, through centuries of history, Islam institutionally organized its relations with the different religions – in particular with Christianity – across its vast territories. This is a problem that Islam had to face very… Read the full article

The government in Addis Ababa views what took place in November 2020 in its rebel province of Tigray as a simple police operation in the north of the country on the disputed border with Eritrea and Sudan. In reality, the clash between the Ethiopian Army and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) was a real… Read the full article

In Belarus, a revolution has been underway for over three months. It is a peaceful, popular protest led by three courageous women linked to people who before the presidential elections were either imprisoned by the police or forced into exile. The “White-Red Revolution,” as it has been described, began immediately after President Alexander Lukashenko, who… Read the full article

A United Arab Emirates official in long flowing robes, white headdress firmly in place and face covered with a Covid-19 mask, rubbed elbows with the Israeli National Security Advisor, dressed in a smart suit, his head covered with a large Jewish skullcap and his features also obscured by a Covid mask. The scene took place… Read the full article

A new government for Israel After 508 days of political stalemate, on May 17, 2020, the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament, voted in a new government of national unity, with 73 votes in favor and 46 against. It is Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu’s fifth premiership.[1] This time, however, he will have to share the office of prime… Read the full article