In the last two weeks, violent protests have taken place in the two countries that started the Arab Spring: Tunisia and Egypt. In Tunisia, protesters paralyzed the province of Siliana. Like Sidi Bouzid, where Elbouazizi sparked the Tunisian revolution, Siliana has many grievances. But protests quickly spread to other cities including the capital, Tunis. The Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* On October 31, I wrote, Who is the Syrian Opposition?. Less than two weeks later, a new coalition of opposition figures was born in Qatar, underscoring the erratic composition of the groups fighting to oust Bashar Assad from power. Ahmed Moaz al-Khatib, Riad Seif, Suhair al-Atassi, and Mustafa al-Sbbagh The Syrian National Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Map: Syria and Iran The third presidential debate in the United States’ race focused on foreign policy. In reality, there was no real debate. It was an argument between two candidates about which one of them would apply policies that are already in place better than the other. Granted that Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* Muslims around the world President Obama offered renewed hope when he promised to usher in an era of mutual respect with the Islamic world. To jumpstart this new era, President Obama addressed Muslims in two key speeches: one delivered in Turkey, the last seat of the Sunni Islamic caliphate, and the Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* With two superpowers emphatically vetoing three UNSC resolutions on three different occasions, the world could not be more divided about the Syrian crisis. World leaders are nonetheless united in their rhetoric supporting peaceful protest. The Syrian crisis, however, revealed troubling contradictions in the position taken by key countries. For example, Read more
Continue ReadingThe End of Populism by Ahmed E. Souaiaia* The Arab Spring has provided scholars and analysts with a laboratory to observe radical social change. Tunisia and Egypt taught us about non-violent resistance and the power of the people to overcome regime repression. In Libya, we saw tribal, regional, national, and international actors whose interests intersected Read more
Continue Readingby Ahmed E. Souaiaia* In a couple of days, Morsi will be declared the winner of the presidential contest. Although we just witnessed events that reminded us that nothing is certain in post-revolution Egypt, having a president 15 months after the ouster of Hosni Mubarak will bring some political stability and predictability for the country. Read more
Continue ReadingUntil before Cablegate, when in February 2010 WikiLeaks began releasing classified U.S. cables, Saudi Arabia was known for its quiet diplomacy. Then its secret dealings were revealed and exposed its actual dealings. Regionally, released documents exposed Saudi Arabia as an enthusiastic proponent of military intervention in Iran. Privately, the Saudi rulers told U.S. officials that Read more
Continue ReadingAhmet Davutoğlu On Thursday, the Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu responded to opposition parties’ members of parliament who accused the government of war mongering on Syria. “A new Middle East is emerging and we will continue to lead this. Turkey will pioneer this order of peace. … The Turkish people of 74 million are with the Syrian Read more
Continue ReadingSyria: From peaceful uprising to armed rebellion By all accounts, the success of the uprisings against the old guard in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya was not matched in Yemen and Syria. The failure of the Yemeni and Syrian uprisings to achieve their goals can be explained by the post-revolutions’ events in the Arab Awakening countries Read more
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