Original essays, research notes, and reports
By Noureddine Jebnoun* On May 19, the Tunisian government banned Ansar al- Sharia (Supporters of Sharia), a Salafist group, claiming to be jihadist, from holding its third annual rally in Kairouan – a city located 114 miles south-central of Tunis and which houses the mosque of the general Uqba Ibn Nafa‘a, the “conqueror of Africa” Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Syrian rebels executing Alawites Yesterday, responding to a Qatar-sponsored resolution, the U.N. General Assembly “condemned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and praised the opposition.” A day before that, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that “at least 94,000 people have been killed during Syria’s two-year conflict, but the death toll Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Syrian rebel killing Syrian soldiers It took law enforcement agencies of the United States nearly three days to identify the perpetrators of the recent terrorist bombing. It helped that the attack was in a modern city (Boston) and during a marathon event. Security cameras, spectators, and TV and media reporters on Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* BRICS nations The economic, political, and social rise of the Western block of nations was founded on the single most enduring currency: reputation. Reputation, the source of credibility and trust, is the real asset that allows the U.S. to project its stature around the world. BRICS nations cannot rise to prominence Read more
Continue ReadingSovereignty, Legitimacy and the Responsibility to Protect: Who is responsible and who is legitimate in Syria? by Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Syria and the New Middle East Western leaders’ conflicting statements underscore the unease about change in the Arab world. Unless one believes that diplomats speak unscripted, an earlier statementby U.S. secretary of State, John Kerry Read more
Continue ReadingDURBAN, South Africa, March 27: Leaders of the BRICS nations, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa wrapped up their latest round of summit Wednesday in South African city of Durban. The following is the full text of the declaration and action plan of the summit: Fifth BRICS Summit Durban: 27 March 2013 BRICS Read more
Continue ReadingBy Bawono Kumoro* Indonesia During a ceremony at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, where he received an honorary doctorate, President Yudhoyono tackled the global perception that Islam and democracy could not work together. The president said that he believed Indonesia was a good example to highlight how democracy, modernization and Islam worked hand in hand.Furthermore, President Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* The article in The Atlantic, The Emir of NYU (MAR 13, 2013), touched on a very important issue: academic integrity. It came on the heels of the no-confidence vote NYU’s faculty in the College of Arts and Science delivered against the president, John Sexton. Sexton is renowned for creating satellite research Read more
Continue ReadingInterview in English translation: Interview in Arabic: Watch video The full text of the interview: Question: Mr President, you are welcome on Ulusal TV station. My first question might be a bit strange, but I need to ask it, because in the Turkish and world media there has been a lot of information published to Read more
Continue ReadingThe Pakistanization of Turkey and the Afghanization of Syria in the new proxy-war by Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Witnessing the first democratic elections in Tunisia in 2011, I stood at the edge of the city listening to residents explaining the role of “neighborhood watch committees” in keeping peace and protecting personal and public property. Read more
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