Morocco has long been viewed as a center of stability, with development potential and openness to reform. It has also been a beacon for foreign investment for these regions, considered in many respects an oasis surrounded by a volatile region. Yet in the last month, unusually fervent protests have shaken things, exposed vast inequality and […]
Morocco is not known for political activism or protests. Yet in the last 2 weeks the country has seen the largest popular protests and government backlash since the 2011 Arab Spring.
Libyan oil coming back online could jeopardize a fragile production cut deal orchestrated by producers cartel OPEC to rebalance the global oil supply glut.
In May 2016, Ennahda—an Islamist party—did something fairly shocking: it disassociated itself from Islam, or, more specifically, from political Islam.
The fall of Gaddafi destroyed the fragile post-colonial state which his iron-fisted rule had held together.
From the outside, Algeria seems relatively stable, especially in contrast to Libya and Egypt. Behind the scenes, however, a succession crisis is underway
[European Union] South Sudan earned its independence just over two years ago. Yesterday, really. By the standards of international policy most countries had not even begun to think about South Sudan as anything other than a regional roadblock, never mind as its own entity. Hell, I don’t even have a coherent view of South Sudan. […]
There are many—both in the East and the West—who have been confidently betting on the overt plan to marginalize, and, in due course, eradicate the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan) as a sociopolitical movement. In light of the on-going vicious Ikhwanophobia and emboldened brutality of the coup regime, it is hard to counter such contemptuous optimism. But, […]
Check out this very insightful piece from Ahmed Charai on Huffington Post, “A Regal Response to an Undue Provocation.” Ahmed makes a very good point that what makes Morocco stand out in a region of instability is King Mohammed VI’s visionary leadership. (It goes to show what I have always believed that good leadership, an open […]
To coup or not to coup? Who cares? Whatever label it is being given, coup or revolution, what the Egyptian military accomplished less than one week ago is removing a government supposedly democratically elected. This comes on the heels of a previous removal of a long-standing dictator — Hosni Mubarak — just over two years […]
Recent events in Egypt have been tumultuous, to say the least. The country’s first elected president in history was deposed by the military three days after his first anniversary in office. The International Crisis Group’s description of current Egyptian politics gives the impression of a grand competition in short-sightedness. What happens next will depend on […]
The U.N. Security Council is currently debating a draft resolution on whether or not to extend the peacekeeping mission in the Western Sahara (MINURSO) ahead of the April 30, 2013 deadline. For more than 20 years, the U.N. Security Council has debated, then renewed the mandate of this U.N. body rather perfunctorily—needlessly prolonging a nearly […]
As the Atlantic Community examines “What can the US do to promote security in the Sahel?” the discussion must focus on the importance of U.S. partnerships in the region. Too often, meaningful and successful U.S. intervention to address conflicts and threats to security is erroneously envisioned as a going-it-alone undertaking. It doesn’t have to […]
“There have been gains in Tunisia. Through disagreements, controversies and blunders, the new phase, once the government is fully endorsed and up and running, will usher a new realism – a wake-up call […]” – Dr Larbi Sadiki regional expert and author of Arab Democratization: Elections without Democracy (March 13, 2013) Tunisia, the birthplace of […]
On February 11, 2011, approximately two years ago, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak stepped down as the supreme leader of Egypt after a reign that lasted 30 years. His rise to the pinnacle of the country’s power structure came following the 1981 assasination of his predecessor, Anwar Sadat. This was considered the culmination of the Arab […]