Month

Archives: Arab Spring

The Arab Spring and the Western Winter

Ishac Diwan | (Project Syndicate) | - - BEIRUT – There are many striking parallels between the “Arab Spring” that began in 2010 and the United Kingdom’s Brexit referendum, the election of…

Along with pardoning Manning, Obama should have repealed 1917 Espionage Act

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - In a daring and bold move that showed his profound humanitarian side, President Obama has commuted the 35-year sentence of Chelsea Manning, a…

Gilbert Achcar, Morbid Symptoms: Relapse in the Arab Uprising

Notice: Gilbert Achcar, Morbid Symptoms: Relapse in the Arab Uprising In this eagerly awaited book, foremost Arab world and international affairs specialist Gilbert Achcar analyzes the factors of the regional relapse. Focusing…

The Biggest threat to the Mideast isn’t ISIL, it’s bad, Corrupt Governance

By Marwan Muasher | (Project Syndicate) | - - WASHINGTON, DC – A recent survey of 100 Arab thought leaders conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace revealed a sweeping consensus…

Thousands protest Gov’t in Egypt over Saudi Hegemony

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - Thousands of Egyptians came into the streets Friday in the first major demonstrations in 2 and a half years, to protest the bestowal…

5 Years After Revolution, Egyptians See #PanamaPapers as Further Vindication of Mubarak’s Ouster

By Salma Essam | (Global Voices) | - - Among the names contained in the Panama Papers, the enormous trove of confidential documents revealing how the world's elite exploit tax havens, is…

Arab Youth view ISIL as major Mideast Obstacle, want less Religion

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - The annual Arab Youth survey conducted by pollsters Burson-Marsteller is out, reporting on 3500 interviews with Arabs 18-24 years of age in 16…

Forgetting Tahrir: The Man on Horseback and the fate of Egypt’s Revolution

Neil Serougi | ( OpenDemocracy ) | - - Why would a country that showed itself so courageous in confronting Mubarak’s repression now be content to sacrifice its hard won gains, and…

Can non-violent Revolt actually Change practical Politics?

By Mark Engler and Paul Engler | ( Tomdispatch.com) | - - Bernie Sanders's insurgent presidential campaign has opened up a debate about how social change happens in our society. The official…

Despite Risks, Egypt’s Cartoonists Take on increasingly Authoritarian Regime of al-Sisi

By Mohamed Hassan | ( Global Voices ) | - - Cartoonist Islam Gawish. Photograph from his Facebook page. Photograph by Mostafa Darwish. Less than two weeks after the fifth anniversary of…

Tahrir 5 Years Later: The Hurdles to Democratization & Arab Youth Revolts

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - A frequently met-with Western political and often journalistic narrative of the 2011 youth revolts in the Arab world is that idealistic young people…

5 Years after Tahrir Square, Egyptian Government in Crackdown on Dissent ahead of Jan. 25 Anniversary

Global Voices Advocacy's Netizen Report | (Globalvoices.org) | - - Activists online and on the ground in Egypt have faced heightened scrutiny and legal threats from government authorities since early January, as…

Five years on, Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution continues from the ground up

By Adnan Saif | (The Conversation) | - - Tunisians are marking five years since the culmination of their “Jasmine Revolution”. Since its longtime authoritarian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was…

The Fifth Anniversary of Arab Uprisings: A Turning point in Modern History?

By Farhang Jahanpour | (Informed Comment) | - - The tumultuous developments that have rocked the Arab world and have come to be known as the Arab Spring resulted in the toppling…

Annual Informed Comment Fundraiser: Support Indie Journalism

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | - - It is that fundraising time of year again, folks. This year everyone who contributes $100 or more to Informed Comment by Paypal will…

Young Protesters Languish in Jail under Egypt’s Military Counter-Revolution

By Nelly Bassily | ( openDemocracy) | - - Yara Sallam is starting the second year of her sentence in Qanater Women's prison outside Cairo. She says, "I do not feel any…

Syria: When al-Assad Regime shuts off Internet, State Violence Spikes

By Sarah Myers West | (Electronic Frontier Foundation) | - - EFF has noted and protested when authorities deliberately cut off Internet access in times of unrest. As a restraint on the…

Tunisians fight back

By Christine Petré | Your Middle East | - - In an interview with Swedish radio I was asked if there is any support for these radical Islamist ideals among people in…

Wikileaks Docs Reveal Saudi intrigues against Bahrain’s Arab Spring

By Faten Bushehri | (Global Voices) | - - The Saudi Cables, released by WikiLeaks, includes a treasure trove of information in secret exchanges between Saudi diplomats on restive Bahrain Saudi Arabia's…