Archive

Aliaa's nudity: A different form of protest

More now than ever before, Egyptians from all walks of life are talking about liberty. The chants for freedom have united the revolting masses beyond — and regardless of — ideological affiliation. But why has the call for a freer society limited itself to the political sphere: liberties stated in the constitution, parliamentary elections, management of state institutions and — to a lesser extent — media freedoms? Can one espouse democracy as a political system without extending its logic to gender relations, sexuality and issues of personal privacy?

Arab World: Getting under Tehran’s umbrella

Iraq is about to return to full sovereignty. As it does so, it is also about to present the region and the world with an entity of a type previously unknown in modernity – a Shia-majority Arab state under Shia rule. In a Middle East region in which Islamic politics is moving ever closer to center- stage, it is therefore not surprising that a Shia-ruled Iraq should choose to align itself with the regional bloc led by Iran. The Iranians skillfully prepared the pathway.

Dec. 13: Discussion with Amr Bargisi about "Egypt after the elections"

Egypt’s revolution was stolen from the women

The female voices that triggered the dawn of the revolution are being pushed out of Tahrir Square through violent repression.

Dec. 1st: Richard Landes: "Radical Islam’s Cognitive Warfare"

Prof. Richard Landes (Boston University) talks with Thierry Chervel about the Dysfunctions of Western News Media from Muhammad al Durah to the “Arab Spring” Thursday, Dec. 1, 2011, 7.00 pm Robert-Koch-Saal, Dorotheenstr. 96, 10117 Berlin.

Ilan Berman: Egypt's Dire Economy

Some eight months after the ouster of its long-serving strongman, Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's revolution remains the most prominent byproduct of the so-called "Arab Spring." But where, exactly, is Cairo headed? While there remains no shortage of optimism about Egypt's future in many quarters, a close look at the economic indicators suggests that the country may not be moving toward post-revolutionary stability at all. In fact, it is rapidly heading in the opposite direction.

Video interview: Three questions for Dan Schueftan

Video: Three questions for Burak Bekdil about Turkey

A new series of short interviews with international experts.

Nov. 18, Berlin: Dan Schueftan - Escalation in the Middle East? Israel in a region in upheaval

Why Syria and Iran are becoming Turkey's enemies, again

Thus forms the Middle Eastern "PKK circle:" the more people Assad kills, the more hardline Turkey's policies will become against Syria. This will, in turn, drive Iranian-Syrian action against Turkey through PKK attacks from Iraq. PKK attacks will rise. Turkey, Iran and the Assad regime are locked in a power game over Syria's future. Either Ankara will win and Assad will fall, or Tehran will win and Ankara, hurt by PKK attacks, will throw in the towel and let Syria be.

Globally Isolated and Economically Crippled: Why Hamas is Losing Gaza

A June poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found that Hamas would get just 28% of the vote, a steep decline from the 44% plurality it won in 2006. Especially alarming for the Islamists is a precipitous drop in support for the party among Gaza's youth: two-thirds of the population is under 25. In a March survey taken in the afterglow of the protests in Cairo's Tahrir Square that led to the ouster of Egypt's dictator, Hosni Mubarak, more than 60% of Gazans age 18 to 27 said they too would support public demonstrations demanding regime change.

From Ally to Nemesis: How Erdoğan’s Islamists Hijacked Atatürk’s Nation

New Simon Wiesenthal Center Exclusive Report on Turkey: The political rise of anti-American, anti-Israel Turkish Islamists—not the U.S. decision to topple Saddam Hussein in 2003 nor Israel’s decision to defend its naval blockade against the so-called “Free Gaza Flotilla” in 2010 (pictured)—is chiefly responsible for derailing the historic U.S.-Turkish and Israeli-Turkish alliances.

Amir Taheri: Russia’s Syria game

Russia knows enough about the region to know that the Assad regime won’t stand much longer. This is why Putin is looking for a “median” solution: a new Syrian regime in which Moscow’s friends, meaning elements of the Assad regime, would have a place strong enough to offer the Russian navy an outlet when, and if, Ukraine throws it out.

September 29, 2011: Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin calls for the immediate release of the Egyptian Blogger Maikel Nabil Sanad

Press release: The non-profit Mideast Freedom Forum Berlin (MFFB) urges the German Foreign Minister to plead for the immediate release of the Egyptian blogger Maikel Nabil Sanad before his hearing of an appeal which is scheduled for October 4, 2011.

Matthias Küntzel: Das Schicksal des ägyptischen Kriegsgegners Maikel Nabil

Er gehört zu den profilierten Intellektuellen, die der arabische Frühling hervorgebracht hat: Maikel Nabil Sanad. Der Name des 25-jährigen Bloggers geht derzeit um die Welt - nicht, weil er auf den Bühnen der arabischen Hauptstädte brilliert, sondern weil er in Ägypten in Einzelhaft sitzt und weil sein Leben an einem seidenen Faden hängt. Maikel war der erste Ägypter, der letztes Jahr die Wehrpflicht verweigerte. Seine Begründung: Er lehne es ab, auf israelische Soldaten zu schießen. Er warnte vor den neuen Machtbefugnissen der ägyptischen Streitkräfte und behielt recht, setzt doch das Militär die Praxis wahlloser Verhaftungen und Demütigungen fort - Übergriffe, die Maikel auf seinem Blog akribisch dokumentierte.