Basheer al-Bakr

Saudi Arabia's new absolute monarch has positioned himself at the centre of Riyadh's political and cultural life.

The proliferation and spread of Islamist factions is a sign of the divisions plaguing the country.

There is no equivalence, moral or otherwise, between Israeli provocation and Palestinian resistance.

The Islamic State group has been buoyed by support from Sunnis, and the international coalition is doing little to win them over.

No other person embodied the Palestinian struggle like Arafat did, no other figure played such a key role in Palestinian politics over 40 years.