Political Geography: North Africa / Publication Year: within 25 Years / Topic: Politics

1. Russia's Influence in MENA After a Year of War in Ukraine

Author:: Matthew Czekaj, Iulia-sabina Joja, Alex Vatanka, Yörük Işık, Charles Lister, and Roger Kangas
Publication Date:: 02-2023
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: MEI Managing Editor Matthew Czekaj speaks with scholars Iulia-Sabina Joja, Alex Vatanka, Yörük Işık, Charles Lister, and Roger Kangas on Russia's current standing in the Middle East a year since re-invading Ukraine. How has Russian aggression in Ukraine redrawn Moscow’s relationships in the MENA region? And as the Middle East increasingly becomes a key area of global great power competition, is Russia still a meaningful player there, politically, economically, militarily, and diplomatically?
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Economics, Politics, Military, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Russia, Ukraine, Middle East, Eastern Europe, and North Africa

2. China’s subsea-cable power in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Dale Aluf
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Atlantic Council
Abstract:: In a new Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative issue brief, “China’s subsea-cable power in the Middle East and North Africa,” Aluf analyzes China’s campaign to make countries in the region more dependent on Chinese networks, while reducing its own dependence on foreign cables. For a country that seeks to alter the internet’s physical form and influence digital behavior while exerting supreme control over information flows, China’s growing presence in the Middle East and North Africa’s cable industry is significant because Beijing has the power to shape the route of global internet traffic by determining when, where, and how to build cables.
Topic:: Security, Diplomacy, Politics, Science and Technology, Partnerships, and Innovation
Political Geography:: China, Middle East, Asia, and North Africa

3. Tunisia's new state institutions, legitimacy, and the future of the political transition

Author:: Kais Saied and Intissar Fakir
Publication Date:: 05-2023
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Tunisian President Kais Saied has reformed the structure of the Tunisian government, creating worries that democracy is being eroded in the North African country. Amidst ongoing economic turmoil and a growing migration issue, many are wondering if it is still possible to preserve democracy in Tunisia. Intissar Fakir, Director of MEI's North Africa & Sahel program, is joined by Chiraz Arbi and Lilia Blaise to discuss the current political situation and what the future may look like for Tunisia.
Topic:: Migration, Politics, Economy, Legitimacy, and Institutions
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Tunisia

4. Civil Society & Political Transformations (Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy, Fall 2021)

Author:: Ghazi Ghazi
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: Eleven years after the 2011 Arab Spring, feelings of transformation and change still reverberate throughout the region. The Spring 2022 edition, Civil Society and Political Transformations, seeks to illuminate how civil society organizations operate in the region and their effects on political transformations.
Topic:: Civil Society, Education, Human Rights, Migration, Politics, Race, History, Reform, Women, Constitution, Arab Spring, Syrian War, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Baath Party, and Peacebuilding
Political Geography:: Afghanistan, Iraq, South Asia, Turkey, Middle East, Israel, Libya, Yemen, Palestine, North Africa, Syria, Jordan, Morocco, and United Arab Emirates

5. MEI-NAPI Roundtable on the Environment in Tunisia: A Youth Perspective On Challenges & Opportunities

Author:: Intissar Fakir, Fatine Ezbakhe, Marouen Taleb, Abir Ben Romdhane, and Mohamed Walid Jomni
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: The Middle East Institute (MEI) and the North African Policy Initiative (NAPI) are pleased to announce the sixth in a series of roundtable discussions inviting engaged youth to share their perspectives on the key issues facing their country’s future. This policy-oriented discussion will feature young Tunisian researchers offering their views on the current environmental challenges in their country and the opportunities ahead. Tunisia is already facing the reality of climate change. From the degradation of natural resources and water scarcity to desertification and coastal erosion, the country has to cope with complex and interconnected environmental challenges. While Tunisia has put the environment on top of its political and economic agenda (with Article 45 of its Constitution acknowledging the “right to a healthy and balanced environment and the right to participate in the protection of the climate”), there is still room to do more.
Topic:: Climate Change, Economics, Environment, Politics, Natural Resources, Water, and Desertification
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Tunisia

6. Labor and Politics in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Dina Bishara, Ian Hartshorn, Marc Lynch, Samar Abdelmageed, and Ashley Anderson
Publication Date:: 01-2022
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: Economic grievances were at the heart of the Arab uprisings which erupted a decade ago. The centrality of those grievances and the workers articulating them has led to a growing research community focused on organized labor in the Middle East and North Africa. In April 2021, Dina Bishara and Ian Hartshorn convened a virtual workshop through Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations bringing together a wide range of scholars writing in the area. POMEPS then invited those participants, as well as others who had not presented papers, to participate in a follow-on workshop to continue the discussion in September 2021. The papers in this collection are one of the fruits of this increasingly robust scholarly network.
Topic:: Economics, Politics, Labor Issues, Employment, Regulation, Arab Spring, Youth, Protests, Unions, Higher Education, COVID-19, Gulf Cooperation Council, and Activism
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, North Africa, Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia, and Gulf Nations

7. Environmental Politics in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Jeannie Sowers, Marc Lynch, Taraf Abu Hamdan, Ekin Kurtiç, and Kali Rubaii
Publication Date:: 05-2022
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: In February 2022, POMEPS convened a virtual workshop bringing together interdisciplinary contributions from anthropology, public health, political science, history, and human geography. Their geographic scope includes Morocco, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey, Kuwait, and other Gulf countries. The papers grapple with the complexity and diversity of environmental politics and issues across the Middle East. In doing so, they contribute to important trends that have emerged in international and comparative environmental politics more broadly. Many of the papers highlight the importance of field-based research in producing insightful analyses, and all raise important and innovative questions that should inform future research in this area.
Topic:: Environment, Politics, History, Political Science, Anthropology, Public Health, and Human Geography
Political Geography:: Iraq, Turkey, Middle East, Kuwait, North Africa, Lebanon, Jordan, Morocco, and Gulf Nations

8. COVID-19 in the MENA: Two Years On

Author:: Marc Lynch, Vahid Abedini, Yasmina Abouzzohour, Meliha Benli Altunisik, and Mona Ali
Publication Date:: 06-2022
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: Early in the pandemic, POMEPS convened an online workshop with a diverse group of scholars working across the MENA region to discuss the initial impacts and to think through possible trajectories. That workshop resulted in POMEPS Studies 39, which included twenty-one essays ranging across the MENA region. Several major themes ran across those essays. We collectively expected regimes to securitize the pandemic, using the excuse of lockdowns to crack down on a protest wave that had reached multiple countries in 2019 and to further entrench authoritarian rule. We expected variation in state capacity to be a critical variable in terms of the ability of states to effectively respond to the pandemic. And several essays anticipated soft power international competition, as great powers used vaccine diplomacy to sway public attitudes their way. Two years on, how did those predictions hold up? In April 2022, POMEPS convened a follow-up workshop with some of the same scholars and a number of new contributors to assess how well those early projections panned out, and to assess the actual impacts of COVID on the region after two years. We are delighted to now publish the results of that workshop and ongoing conversations among a diverse group of scholars of the region.
Topic:: Civil Society, Health, Politics, Sectarianism, Authoritarianism, Economy, Solidarity, Soft Power, Violence, Public Health, Students, COVID-19, Securitization, Gender, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, North Africa, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, and United Arab Emirates

9. Tunisia’s Turbulence: On the Road to Economic and Political Collapse

Author:: Daniel Zisenwine
Publication Date:: 04-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies
Abstract:: Thousands of Tunisians took to the streets of the capital Tunis in mid-March, demonstrating against Tunisian president Kais Saied’s July 2021 power grab and the country’s ongoing economic crisis. Citing alleged threats to Tunisia’s political order, Saied dismissed the government on July 25, 2021, suspended parliament, and moved to rule by decree. Critics, including opposition Islamist parties but also the country’s powerful trade unions, civil society groups, and foreign experts have since assailed Saied’s moves, contending that he effectively re-imposed one-man rule on Tunisia, and secured unchecked control over all branches of government. This political crisis intensified in late March, after Saied dissolved the Tunisian parliament which convened online and voted to repeal his decrees. The March protest differed from previous ones, as it was organized by the anti-Islamist Free Destourian Party (FDP), which has been critical of democratic measures adopted in Tunisia after the 2011 revolution that overthrew Zayn al-ʾAbidin Ben ʿAli’s authoritarian regime. The protest, led by a right-wing party not unsympathetic to some of Saeid’s grievances, focused on the president and the deteriorating economic crisis.[1] It was another indication of Tunisia’s growing unrest.
Topic:: Politics, Democracy, Civil Unrest, Economic Crisis, and Instability
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

10. Towards a Renewed Local Social and Political Covenant in Libya, Syria and Yemen

Author:: Ahmed Morsy
Publication Date:: 12-2022
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Abstract:: This SIPRI Insights Paper examines the domestic and external factors at play in Libya, Syria and Yemen and their impact on negotiating post-war peaceful settlements and shaping prospective social contracts. The paper’s argument is two-fold. Firstly, policymaking must move beyond a static approach to understanding these conflicts. Despite apparent stalemates, the three countries should be approached as ever-evolving simmering conflicts. Secondly, policymakers have to move below the national level in order to achieve various forms of localized social peace. Given the nature of these conflicts and the varied sub-national segmentation, the analysis concludes that community-level social and political covenants may offer a first building block towards nationwide social contracts and sustainable conflict resolution. The role of external actors, particularly the European Union (EU), is critical in paving the way for these local-level dialogues and negotiations in Libya, Syria and Yemen. In short, external powers, including the EU, should adopt policies that push for long-term resolution to achieve post-conflict stabilization rather than the opportunistic taking of sides.
Topic:: Politics, Arab Spring, Social Contract, and Society
Political Geography:: Middle East, Libya, Yemen, North Africa, and Syria

11. The Egyptian TikTok Girls

Author:: Nir Boms
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies
Abstract:: In August issue of Beehive, Nir Boms analyses the Egypt’s recent restrictive policy on social media and its impact on young bloggers. Amidst a new wave of authoritarianism and repression in Egypt, the Internet remains one of the only platforms of alternative expression, although perhaps, not for long. Aside from Covid-19, the water crisis of the Rival Nile Dam, and the ongoing economic challenge, Egyptian news also dealt with the visible arrest of two young “TikTok stars.” Haneen Hossam, aged 20, was sentenced in absentia by a Cairo court to ten years in prison while Mawada al-Adham, aged 23, who appeared before the court, was sentenced to six.
Topic:: Politics, Authoritarianism, Internet, and Social Media
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

12. Cooperation or Coercion? The Views of US Opinion Leaders on Foreign Policy Approaches

Author:: Craig Kafura, Dina Smeltz, Joshua W. Busby, Joshua D. Kertzer, and Jonathan Monten
Publication Date:: 03-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Abstract:: Following four years of former President Donald Trump’s “America first” foreign policy, President Joe Biden is seeking to reorient the US approach to world affairs, placing much greater emphasis on international cooperation. This reorientation has already been evident in Biden’s decisions to return the United States to the Paris climate agreement, extend the New START arms control treaty with Russia, remain in the World Health Organization, reengage with the United Nations Human Rights Council, and commit to rejoining the Iran nuclear deal if Iran returns to complying with it. To what extent do Democratic, Republican, and Independent foreign policy professionals support Biden’s international agenda? The results of the 2020 Chicago Council on Global Affairs-University of Texas at Austin survey of more than 900 US executive branch officials, congressional staff, think tank scholars, university professors, journalists, and interest group representatives indicates there is substantial support among leaders of different political persuasions for a greater emphasis on cooperation and less reliance on coercion in foreign policy. However, this consensus also has a partisan tilt: Democrats and Independents are far more likely to agree on cooperative foreign policy approaches the United States should use, while Republicans are more comfortable with coercive measures. Taken together, these findings suggest that Biden should be able to attract strong support for his foreign policy from Democratic and Independent members of the foreign 2 policy community but will find it much more difficult to gain Republican backing for many of his international initiatives.
Topic:: Security, Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, Politics, Economy, Business, Trade, and Survey
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and North America

13. Americans Split on Military Aid to Israel, Say Political Status Quo Unacceptable

Author:: Dina Smeltz and Emily Sullivan
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Abstract:: Ahead of Prime Minister Bennett's first visit to Washington, Council data show partisan divides on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, support for a Palestinian state, and more. In recent years, the US-Israel relationship was stewarded by Israel’s longest-serving leader, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and the man whom he referred to as “the greatest friend that Israel has ever had in the White House,” former President Donald Trump. This week, the first meeting between the two countries’ newly elected leaders, President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, will set the tone for a new era of US-Israel relations. New data from the 2021 Chicago Council Survey indicate that some differences in ideas about US policy toward Israel on Capitol Hill—heightened by the 11-day clash between Israel and Hamas last May—have corresponding divisions among the American public. The US public is sharply divided along partisan lines on key issues, including whether to take a side in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, support for a Palestinian state, and restrictions on the uses of military aid to Israel. Moreover, it’s not just Americans who are at odds with each other. A comparison of the recent Chicago Council Survey and a Viterbi Family Center poll shows that the American public and Jewish Israelis have opposing views on what might be acceptable solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while Israeli Arabs and Americans are broadly aligned on acceptable political outcomes.
Topic:: Politics, Foreign Aid, Military Affairs, and Conflict
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Palestine, North Africa, and United States of America

14. Eight Reasons: Why did Algeria sever political relations with Morocco?

Author:: FARAS
Publication Date:: 08-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: On August 24, 2021, during a press conference held in the capital, Algiers, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Morocco, stating that the recent period has witnessed Morocco committing hostile acts against his country.
Topic:: Diplomacy, Politics, and Bilateral Relations
Political Geography:: Algeria and North Africa

15. Coronavirus in the Arab World

Author:: Haizam Amirah-Fernandez
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:: The COVID-19 pandemic is shaking Arab countries hard at a time when the region is already under great pressure. The responses of Arab states to the threat of the coronavirus, added to the uncertain international context generated by the pandemic, is aggravating existing problems in the Middle East and the Maghreb. This current global emergency and its ramifications has the potential to turn socioeconomic challenges into political crises and intensify demands for change that have spread through multiple countries in the region over the past decade. Until an effective vaccine against the pandemic is made available and widely accessible, the economic and social costs of the drastic restrictions being imposed by Arab governments during the successive waves of the pandemic may be overwhelming and, ultimately, unbearable.
Topic:: Politics, Arts, Culture, COVID-19, and Demonstrations
Political Geography:: Middle East, Arab Countries, and North Africa

16. From Tectonic Shifts to Winds of Change in North Africa and the Middle East: Europe’s Role

Author:: Nathalie Tocci, Riccardo Alcaro, Francesca Caruso, Silvia Colombo, Dario Cristiani, Andrea Dessì, Flavio Fusco, and Daniela Huber
Publication Date:: 03-2021
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: Winds of change are blowing in North Africa and the Middle East. They originate from Washington, where the new Biden administration is expected to abandon its predecessor’s zero-sum, erratic approach and take steps towards supporting regional balances and cooperation. Effects are visible especially in the Gulf, with the US pondering its options to re-activate nuclear diplomacy with Iran and Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates grudgingly agreeing to put their feud with Qatar on ice. One way or another, these winds of change are working their way through the Levant, the Eastern Mediterranean and Libya. Admittedly, they are still feeble and can easily fade out like a morning breeze. Were that to happen, Europeans would be amongst the most affected – aside, of course, from regional populations themselves. It is now high time for the EU and its member states to leave the backseat they have (un)comfortably been sitting in for years, seize the opportunity of a cooperative US administration and work to play a more proactive role in North Africa and the Middle East commensurate with their considerable financial, diplomatic and military resources.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Politics, European Union, and Institutions
Political Geography:: Europe, Middle East, North Africa, United States of America, Mediterranean, and Gulf Nations

17. Under Observation: The Libyan conflict and the election of a new government

Author:: Ahmed Abdel-Alim Hassan
Publication Date:: 02-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: The internationally-supported political dialogue forum in Geneva succeeded in selecting a new government, including Abdul Hamid Mohammed al-Dabaib as Prime Minister, and Muhammad Al-Manfi as President of the Presidential Council as well as two other members of the Council. These results were well received internally, regionally and internationally, which raises a key question relevant to the ability of the new government, though temporary, to effect positive accomplishments leading to the general elections in December 2021.
Topic:: Politics, Conflict, Transition, Khalifa Haftar, and Dialogue
Political Geography:: Libya and North Africa

18. The Likely Scenario: Possible trajectories after Tunisia’s President exceptional decisions

Author:: Ahmed Nazif
Publication Date:: 07-2021
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS)
Abstract:: On the 64th anniversary of the Republic, President Kais Saied chose to declare ‘state of imminent danger’, invoking the constitution shaped by the Islamist Ennahda movement. On July 25, Saied took exceptional decisions ousting the government led by Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, freezing the activities of parliament, and stripping parliament members of legal immunity. He considers the measures necessary for saving the state. The political forces took different stands depending on their position in the political hierarchy as well as their closeness to President Saeid.
Topic:: Corruption, Government, Politics, and Governance
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

19. Tunisia: An overlapping political and constitutional crisis

Author:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Publication Date:: 03-2021
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: Tunisian President Kais Saied’s rejection of governmental alteration is a reflection of a wider political crisis, stemming from the disagreement between the presidency and the parliamentary majority over the form of the political system and the distribution of powers among its pillars.
Topic:: Politics, Constitution, and Political Crisis
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

20. Challenges to the Middle East North Africa Inclusionary State

Author:: Marc Lynch, Bassel Salloukh, Toby Dodge, Jeroen Gunning, Dima Smaira, Stacey Philbrick Yadav, Morten Valbjørn, Simon Mabon, Ala'a Shehabi, and Mariam Salehi
Publication Date:: 02-2020
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: The challenges to inclusionary states in the MENA region are daunting—including fiercely authoritarian states, the reality or threat of political violence, and ongoing protest movements. In September 2019, POMEPS and the Lebanese American University (LAU) brought together a diverse, interdisciplinary group of scholars to discuss the challenges to building more inclusive orders under these conditions.
Topic:: Security, Civil Society, Politics, Sovereignty, Sectarianism, Transitional Justice, State, Reconciliation, Inclusion, and Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF)
Political Geography:: Iraq, Middle East, Yemen, North Africa, and Lebanon

21. MENA’s Frozen Conflicts

Author:: Marc Lynch
Publication Date:: 11-2020
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: Over the last year, the MENA region’s simmering conflicts have seemed frozen in place. The internationally-fueled civil wars in Syria, Yemen and Libya have long since settled into an equilibrium in which no side can either truly win or truly lose. Those conflicts have been held in place in part by local ecologies and war economies and in part by the competitive interventions by regional and international powers on behalf of their proxies and clients. But are these conflicts truly frozen? What does viewing them through such a lens gain, and what are the theoretical and analytical costs? To explore these questions, POMEPS convened a virtual research workshop on September 25, 2020, with scholars from diverse empirical and theoretical backgrounds.
Topic:: Security, Civil War, Politics, Citizenship, Military Intervention, Conflict, Syrian War, Mental Health, Crisis Management, Peace, Justice, Capital, and Mobilization
Political Geography:: Iraq, Middle East, Libya, Yemen, North Africa, Lebanon, Syria, and United States of America

22. A New Chapter in Algeria’s Tumultuous Politics

Author:: Daniel Zisenwine
Publication Date:: 12-2020
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies
Abstract:: The Algerian government’s recent referendum on new constitutional amendments was heralded as the start of a new political era. The referendum, symbolically held on November 1, the day Algeria’s armed struggle for independence from France commenced in 1954, was publicized under the official slogan “November 1954 Liberation; November 2020 Change”. The vote was intended to address the grievances expressed by the Hirak protest movement, which throughout 2019 staged swelling weekly protests demanding sweeping changes in the country’s political system. But the vote fell far short of the government’s expectations. Largely boycotted by Hirak supporters, voter turnout was very low (23.4 percent). Overshadowing the referendum was the news that Algeria’s president, ʿAbd al-Majid Tebboune, had been transferred several days earlier to a hospital in Germany, allegedly for “medical checkups,” but was later reported to have been infected with the COVID-19 virus. At the time of this writing, Tebboune remains in Germany. Although he has reportedly recovered from his illness, looming questions about his condition and ability to resume his duties, along with a potential power vacuum continue to overshadow Algerian politics. These events have been further compounded by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Algeria, and the government’s difficulty in responding to the crisis. Algeria’s economy has been battered by the outbreak and other factors, including plummeting oil prices, which affect a major export commodity and an important income source. All of these challenges add new features to Algeria’s tumultuous political history, and highlight the growing volatility that could further affect domestic stability.
Topic:: Politics, Reform, Income Inequality, Economy, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Algeria and North Africa

23. The State of Tunisia's Democratic Transition and the Power and Perils of Consensus Politics

Author:: Daniel Brumberg, Sharan Grewal, Mohamed-Dhia Hammami, Sabina Henneberg, and William Lawrence
Publication Date:: 02-2020
Content Type:: Video
Institution:: Middle East Institute (MEI)
Abstract:: Following elections in September and October, Tunisia is having difficulty forming a government, in part because of the collapse of the 2016 Carthage Pact. MEI is pleased to host a panel featuring several leading analysts of Tunisian politics, who will attempt to answer which approach can produce forward motion while at the same time prevent Tunisia from slipping backward towards authoritarianism. Some parties are defending the consensus model to preserve democratic gains, and others are pursuing to force change based on their political preferences. Presiding over all of this is a populist president without a political party who has in the past proposed a radical overhaul of the entire system, abolishing political parties, and creating a form of direct democracy. It is unclear if Tunisian democracy can survive any of these scenarios, whether it be consensus politics, majoritarian politics, or antipolitics. With any of the formulas, winners win, and losers can easily become spoilers, as nearly happened in 2013 with opposition protests led by the women's movement.
Topic:: Government, Politics, Elections, and Democracy
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Tunisia

24. Stormy Waters in the Eastern Mediterranean

Author:: Hay Eytan, Cohen Yanarocak, Shaul Chorev, and Benny Spanier
Publication Date:: 01-2020
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies
Abstract:: In the latest issue of Tel Aviv Notes, Benny Spanier, Shaul Chorev, and Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak explain the politics of Turkey's agreement with Libya on the contours of an Exclusive Economic Zone in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Topic:: Politics, Treaties and Agreements, Economy, and Special Economic Zones
Political Geography:: Turkey, Libya, North Africa, and Mediterranean

25. The Mechichi government: Will it resolve the Tunisian crisis or deepen it?

Author:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Publication Date:: 07-2020
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: Tunisian President Kais Saied tapped Hichem Mechichi to form a new government, following the resignation of Prime Minister Elyas Fakhfakh, whose government lasted a brief, though stormy, five months marred by allegations of conflict of interest and a vote of no-confidence.
Topic:: Government, Politics, and Crisis Management
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

26. Libya’s Zero-Sum Politics and Defiance of Legitimacy – Part 1

Author:: Mohammed Cherkaoui
Publication Date:: 05-2020
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: There has been fluctuation and reconstruction of political legitimacy. Since the summer of 2014, two battles over legitimacy have spoiled Libyan politics and weakened the UN mediation with two rounds of international recognition of one new political institution or another.
Topic:: Politics, United Nations, Conflict, and Legitimacy
Political Geography:: Africa, Libya, and North Africa

27. Libya’s Zero-Sum Politics and Defiance of Legitimacy – Part 2

Author:: Mohammed Cherkaoui
Publication Date:: 05-2020
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: Foreign manipulation defies the wisdom of envisioning a political settlement of the Libyan conflict. All international diplomatic gestures need to be aligned via the UN platform, with a well-defined trajectory, rather than any zero-game equation or realist calculation.
Topic:: Diplomacy, Politics, United Nations, Conflict, and Legitimacy
Political Geography:: Africa, Libya, and North Africa

28. Reform from crisis: How Tunisia can use covid-19 as an opportunity

Author:: Thierry Brésillon and Hamza Meddeb
Publication Date:: 06-2020
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
Abstract:: Tunisia’s 2019 elections produced a vote against the establishment and a fragmented political landscape in which it was challenging to form a government. Parliament is deeply divided and lacks a clear foundation for stable and efficient policymaking, while the new president has neither political experience nor a party to implement his agenda. The 2019 elections may have finally ended the transactional power-sharing agreement forged by Ennahda and representatives of the old regime, which long ignored major socio-economic challenges. The government must build on its successful response to the covid-19 pandemic to create a compromise that shares the burden of economic reform between major political actors and interest groups. If it fails to do so, the resulting rise in economic and social tension could empower anti-democratic forces and destabilise Tunisia. The European Union should actively help the Tunisian government take the path of reform by launching a strategic dialogue to rethink their priorities and identify their common interests.
Topic:: Politics, Reform, Elections, European Union, Economy, Crisis Management, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

29. Demonstration effects: How the Hirak protest movement is reshaping Algerian politics

Author:: Amel Boubekeur
Publication Date:: 02-2020
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
Abstract:: The Hirak protest movement has revealed flaws in Algeria’s ruling system, which lacks the tools to reinvent itself or negotiate a new social contract with the people. The army has been unable to restore the “civilian president” narrative it used for two decades, while the current president has been unable to disguise his dependence on the military leadership. The regime can no longer use rigged elections as a substitute for negotiations with citizens. The regime is trying to promote a narrative on the removal of mafias connected with the former president as a guarantee of a new era. The Hirak has created a political culture of popular empowerment, but it still has to agree on a road map for a political transition.
Topic:: Corruption, Politics, Social Movement, Elections, Protests, and Demonstrations
Political Geography:: Algeria and North Africa

30. Never-Ending Reformism from Above and Dissatisfaction from Below: The Paradox of Moroccan Post-Spring Politics

Author:: Francesco Cavatorta and Fabio Merone
Publication Date:: 01-2020
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS)
Abstract:: In recent years, Morocco has implemented far-reaching political reforms of modernisation and liberalisation but these have never reached the stage of a systemic change. The country's political regime is still authoritarian in nature.
Topic:: Politics, Authoritarianism, Reform, Arab Spring, and Liberalization
Political Geography:: North Africa and Morocco

31. The Rise and the Future of Militias in the MENA Region

Author:: Ranj Alaaldin, Federica Saini Fasanotti, Arturo Varvelli, and Tarik M. Yousef
Publication Date:: 12-2019
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI)
Abstract:: In recent decades, militias and sub-national armed groups have played a decisive role in politics and security in the MENA region. Their prominence with local and outside actors in areas where state institutions have collapsed presents multiple policy challenges. Armed groups have access to substantial resources and in some cases enjoy considerable local legitimacy. That makes them formidable but also resilient forces. This is why their suppression – through coercive measures or marginalization – can bring more costs than benefits to already fragile state institutions and exhausted populations. This volume addresses the void in the current debate on subnational armed groups, focusing particularly on the multiple ongoing conflicts and turmoil in the MENA region. It places a particular emphasis on whether armed groups can be integrated into state-building initiatives and whether they can play a constructive role with other key actors.
Topic:: Security, Politics, Non State Actors, Armed Forces, Legitimacy, and Militias
Political Geography:: Middle East and North Africa

32. Youth Politics in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Sean Yom, Wael ak-Khatib, Begum Uzun, Matt Gordner, Giulia Cimini, Yousra Kadi, Dina El-Sharnouby, Sarah Fischer, Aziza Moneer, Curtis R. Ryan, Sara Ababneh, Yazan Doughan, Aydin Ozipek, Makiko Nambu, Sarah A. Tobin, Justin Gengler, and Sarah Anne Rennick
Publication Date:: 11-2019
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: Youth political activism has been challenging Middle East and North African political systems frequently and forcefully over the last decade. This is not a new phenomenon, of course. Young people have historically stood at the forefront of popular uprisings and cultural movements. Demographic realities in the Middle East have increased the latent potential for disruptive youth activism. Nearly 60 percent of people in the region fall under the age of 30, half of whom are aged between 15 and 29, and in almost every country, unemployment for working-age youth exceeds the overall jobless rate. The failures of the 2011 Arab uprisings to achieve lasting democratic change revealed the limits of street protests, but the underlying problems remain profoundly unresolved. How are young people questioning, subverting, and transforming the boundaries of politics in the post-uprising Middle East and North Africa? In June 2019, the Project on Middle East Political Science convened a workshop on youth politics in Amman, Jordan, in cooperation with the Phenix Center for Economic and Informatics Studies. The workshop’s papers and deliberations sought to unpack the meaning of youth politics. What characterizes the latest wave of youth mobilization? How is youth activism, and youth politics, changing public attitudes and government policies? Can any generalizations be made about youthfulness, and the experience of being young and political, in the Middle East today? The essays contained in POMEPS Studies 36: Youth Politics in the Middle East and North Africa attempt to answer these questions. They come from scholars who, through intensive fieldwork in varying countries, study the origins and processes of activism among young people through diverse methodologies and orientations.
Topic:: Politics, Political Activism, Women, Youth, Protests, Sexual Violence, and Revolution
Political Geography:: Sudan, Turkey, Middle East, Israel, North Africa, Jordan, Morocco, and Tunisia

33. Who are the Candidates in Tunisia’s 2019 Presidential Elections?

Author:: Souha Drissi
Publication Date:: 09-2019
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:: With the death of President Beji Caid Essebsi on 25 July, Tunisia’s presidential elections were moved up and will be held on 15 September 2019. By the end of the eight-day process of accepting nominations – from 2 to 9 August – the Independent High Authority for Elections (IHAE) had received 971 requests for nomination which include 75 independents and 11 female candidates. On 31 August, the IHAE released the final list of candidates for the presidential race, accepting 26 nominees, including two women, and rejecting 71 applications for failing to meet candidacy requirements. The IHAE is considered one of the achievements of the 2011 Revolution. It is a nine-member permanent body based in Tunis which enjoys administrative and financial independence. Its mission is to “ensure democratic, pluralistic, fair and transparent elections and referendums”2 and supervise and oversee all related processes. The election campaigns started on 2 September and will continue until 13 September, with 17 September as the deadline for the announcement of the preliminary election results and 21 October for the announcement of the final results. In case of no absolute majority vote, a second round will be held after two weeks.3
Topic:: Politics, Elections, Democracy, and State Building
Political Geography:: Africa, North Africa, Tunisia, and Tunis

34. Who are the Candidates in Tunisia’s 2019 Presidential Elections?

Author:: Souha Drissi
Publication Date:: 09-2019
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Arab Reform Initiative (ARI)
Abstract:: With the death of President Beji Caid Essebsi on 25 July, Tunisia’s presidential elections were moved up and will be held on 15 September 2019. By the end of the eight-day process of accepting nominations – from 2 to 9 August – the Independent High Authority for Elections (IHAE) had received 971 requests for nomination which include 75 independents and 11 female candidates. On 31 August, the IHAE released the final list of candidates for the presidential race, accepting 26 nominees, including two women, and rejecting 71 applications for failing to meet candidacy requirements. The IHAE is considered one of the achievements of the 2011 Revolution. It is a nine-member permanent body based in Tunis which enjoys administrative and financial independence. Its mission is to “ensure democratic, pluralistic, fair and transparent elections and referendums”2 and supervise and oversee all related processes. The election campaigns started on 2 September and will continue until 13 September, with 17 September as the deadline for the announcement of the preliminary election results and 21 October for the announcement of the final results. In case of no absolute majority vote, a second round will be held after two weeks.3
Topic:: Politics, Elections, Democracy, and State Building
Political Geography:: Africa, North Africa, Tunisia, and Tunis

35. Algeria’s Election Is a Make-or-Break Moment

Author:: Sarah Feuer
Publication Date:: 12-2019
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: The vote’s outcome will not have much legitimacy in the eyes of the people, so Washington should focus on urging all parties to lay the groundwork for longer-term reforms aimed at breaking the political deadlock. On December 12, nearly ten months after demonstrators across the country took to the streets in protest of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika running for a fifth term, Algeria will elect his successor. Calling itself “Hirak,” the remarkably peaceful protest movement perceived Bouteflika’s candidacy as a provocation, since he had scarcely appeared in public after suffering a stroke in 2013. And though he rescinded his candidacy in April, the Hirak began calling for more radical changes, including an end to the power structures that have ruled the country since its independence from France in 1962. In response, army chief of staff Ahmed Gaid Salah stepped in to assert control over the political process, despite the parliament’s selection of an interim president. In addition to arresting activists and putting some of his establishment rivals on trial, he pressed for an election to be held by year’s end. The political situation has since devolved into a confrontation between the Hirak and the army. With no candidate representing the protestors, this week’s vote will be a decisive test for the future of both sides.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Politics, Reform, and Elections
Political Geography:: Algeria, North Africa, and United States of America

36. Ennahda’s Uneasy Exit From Political Islam

Author:: Hamza Meddeb
Publication Date:: 09-2019
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: In 2016, Islamist political party Ennahda decided to abandon preaching and focus on politics, precipitating an identity crisis within the party. It faced new challenges, including rethinking the role of Islam, addressing its own neutralization as a driver of socioeconomic change, and managing its core supporters while appealing to a broader electorate. Ennahda’s shift to politics has forced it to rethink its ideological framework and rebuild its legitimacy based on arguments other than religion.
Topic:: Islam, Politics, Religion, Legitimacy, and Political Parties
Political Geography:: North Africa and Tunisia

37. A Geopolitical Crossfire: Al-Azhar Struggles to Balance Politics and Tradition

Author:: James M Dorsey
Publication Date:: 08-2019
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: The Begin-Sadat Centre for Strategic Studies (BESA)
Abstract:: When Pope Francis I visited Egypt in 2017 to stimulate interfaith dialogue he walked into a religious and geopolitical minefield at the heart of which was Al-Azhar, one of the world’s oldest and foremost seats of Islamic learning. The pope’s visit took on added significance with Al-Azhar standing accused of promoting the kind of ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim Islam that potentially creates an environment conducive to breeding extremism.
Topic:: Islam, Politics, Religion, Violent Extremism, and Geopolitics
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

38. Egypt’s Consolidated Authoritarianism

Author:: Amr Hamzawy
Publication Date:: 09-2019
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Brown Journal of World Affairs
Institution:: Brown Journal of World Affairs
Abstract:: The current Egyptian political scene reveals an important paradox: since its ascendancy to power in 2013, the military-led authoritarian government has not faced significant challenges from civil society despite systematic hu- man rights abuses and continuous societal crises. Apart from limited protests by labor activists, student movements, and members of syndicates, Egyptians have mostly refrained from protesting, instead hoping that the government will improve their living conditions despite a rising poverty rate of 33 percent, an inflation rate between 11 and 12 percent, and unemployment at eight percent.1 This popular reluctance to challenge the authoritarian government has continued to shape Egypt’s reality since the collapse of the short-lived democratization process from 2011–2013.2
Topic:: Corruption, Democratization, Politics, Authoritarianism, Protests, and Military
Political Geography:: North Africa and Egypt

39. Social Policy in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Melani Cammett, Kristin Fabbe, Marc Lynch, Allison Spencer Hartnett, Ferdinand Eibl, Anna Getmansky, Tolga Sınmazdemir, Thomas Zeitzoff, Melp Arslanalp, Rania AbdelNaeem Mahmoud, Sean Yom, Wael Al-Khatib, Alexandra Blackman, Dina Bishara, Markus Loewe, Lars Westemeier, Asya El-Meehy, Marc C. Thompson, and Caroline Abadeer
Publication Date:: 10-2018
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: This spring, major protests swept through Jordan over economic grievances and subsidy reforms. In July, protestors took to the streets in the south of Iraq, demanding that the government address persistent unemployment, underdevelopment, and corruption. Meanwhile, earlier in 2018, Tunisians launched a wave of protests to oppose tax hikes on basic goods and increased cost of living. Such highly politicized responses to social policy concerns are the norm rather than the exception across the Middle East and North Africa. Social policy is where most citizens actually encounter the state and where policy most impacts peoples’ lives. As such, social policy and, more generally, welfare regimes, deserve a more central place in political science research on the region, as they have in the broader discipline. On April 20, 2018, POMEPS and the Harvard Middle East Initiative, led by Tarek Masoud, convened a workshop with a dozen scholars from around the world to discuss theoretical and policy issues related to social policy in the Middle East. The diverse, multidisciplinary group of scholars at the workshop addressed these questions from multiple perspectives. By probing the conditions under which reform occurs or may occur, the essays in POMEPS Studies 31, Social Policy in the Middle East and North Africa emphasize both possibilities for and persistent obstacles to change and underscore the deeply political nature of social policy reform.
Topic:: Development, Education, Energy Policy, Politics, Culture, Prisons/Penal Systems, Reform, Employment, Youth, Social Policy, Political Parties, Social Contract, and Housing
Political Geography:: Iran, Turkey, Middle East, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, North Africa, Egypt, Jordan, and Tunisia

40. From the Ground Up: UN Support to Local Mediation in Libya

Author:: José S. Vericat and Mosadek Hobrara
Publication Date:: 06-2018
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: International Peace Institute
Abstract:: Libya’s overarching statelessness, and the violence and lawlessness that result, permeate the country, which is plagued by local-level conflicts. However, local mediation efforts have flourished over the last few years. As a senior UN official noted, “Local mediation is the best thing that has happened in Libya since the revolution.” This report examines these local mediation processes to explore the significance of their impact. It focuses on the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) and the support it provides internal efforts in Libya to solve local conflicts or the mediation of such disputes. It also describes and analyzes how Libyans themselves are able to address and resolve local conflicts, or at least contain their escalation. The report offers a number of lessons based on the challenges UNSMIL has faced in supporting local mediation efforts in Libya. These include the importance of leveraging soft power, taking a coordinated and long-term approach, linking the local and national levels, ensuring sovereignty and local ownership, intervening through local mediators, and expanding beyond traditional political actors.
Topic:: Politics, United Nations, Peace, and Mediation
Political Geography:: Libya and North Africa

41. Political and Doctrinal Sources and Valuable Framework of the Political Islam in the Context of Political Ideologies

Author:: Nikola Gjorshoski
Publication Date:: 02-2018
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Liberty and International Affairs
Institution:: Institute for Research and European Studies (IRES)
Abstract:: The relation between religion and politics is a field of mutual interaction, as well as source and promoter of many historical, current, and probably future political movements, parties, and organizations. Political Islam represents the old-new dimension in the spectrum of contemporary political ideologies with specific characteristic and own socio-political worldview which pretend to penetrate into countries with Muslim inhabitants. The authors analyze those value’s elements, their first term, and modern interpretation, as well as their indicators for change. Level and dynamic of society’s development in many cases are determinate in political ideologies and Political Islam tries to present itself in this light with the affirmation of its/own postulates of organization and regulation on socio-political living. This paper in addition to analyzing those values’ framework logically offers and reviews of political doctrine sources which concept Political Islam in the whole of its time-space aspects.
Topic:: Islam, Politics, Religion, Ideology, Islamism, and Political Parties
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Global Focus

42. Women in the Middle East and North Africa: A Divide between Rights and Roles

Author:: Michael Robbins and Kathrin Thomas
Publication Date:: 10-2018
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Arab Barometer
Abstract:: Across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), most publics surveyed believe women should have equal rights to men in a variety of areas including access to university education (75 percent), employment (84 percent), and political oce (62 percent). • Yet, despite widespread support for women’s rights, majorities in many Arab publics favor limiting the roles women play in society. For example, one third believe women are as effective in public leadership compared with men. Six-in-ten believe that the husband should have the final say in decision making within the family. • Unsurprisingly, men are, in general, less supportive of women’s rights and more restrictive in their desired roles for women. Additionally, citizens with lower levels of education are often more likely to hold unequal views, suggesting that as educational attainment increases across MENA, attitudes toward women may also shift. • Overall, these results from nationally representative public opinion surveys carried out by the Arab Barometer imply that exports to improve women’s equality need to move beyond ensuring equal rights to focus on attitudinal shifts about the roles women should play in society.
Topic:: Gender Issues, Politics, Public Opinion, Women, Democracy, Equality, and Political Rights
Political Geography:: Middle East and North Africa

43. Tunisia: “Unemployment has killed me”

Author:: JMEPP
Publication Date:: 01-2017
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:: The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:: The Tunisian revolution of 2010-11 has been understood as a point of rupture after years of worsening job prospects and living standards in the country. Some have claimed it highlighted the inefficacy of Tunisia’s development policies, while other studies saw a link between high rates of literacy, lack of economic opportunities, and protests against the state. One should, however, be cautious of taking an economically deterministic approach to Tunisia’s uprising. Many countries whose citizens are mired in deep poverty and rampant unemployment are not in a state of revolt. Other factors such as pre-existing social networks (like trade unions and family ties) also play a major role in shaping political events. Furthermore, economic statistics in North African countries, such as Tunisia, are often manipulated for political reasons.
Topic:: Politics, Poverty, Popular Revolt, Reform, Economy, and Protests
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Tunisia

44. Democratization in Tunisia and Elite Theory

Author:: M. Hüseyin Mercan and M. Tahir Kilavuz
Publication Date:: 10-2017
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Uluslararasi Iliskiler
Institution:: International Relations Council of Turkey (UİK-IRCT)
Abstract:: This study focuses on democratization process in Tunisia since January 14th, 2011, the date President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali left the country. The article examines democratization and normalization process of Tunisia as a starting point of the Arab Uprisings through the conceptual framework of elite choice theory. The theory postulates that if softliner regime and opposition elites cooperate, democratization process succeeds. Based upon this assumption, this paper seeks to answer how it was possible for Tunisia to follow a more successful transition path when compared to the other countries in the region through the steps and policies implemented by the representatives of the leading softliner actors in the Tunisian regime and opposition.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, Arab Spring, Transition, and Elites
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Tunisia

45. A Conservative’s Prescriptive Policy Checklist: U.S. Foreign Policies in the Next Four Years to Shape a New World Order

Author:: Robert D. Blackwill
Publication Date:: 01-2017
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:: As Donald Trump prepares to enter the presidency, many observers at home and abroad seek to anticipate the outlines of his foreign policy. This essay has a different purpose. Based on the rigorous definition of vital U.S. national interests that follows immediately below, [1] it proposes a prescriptive checklist of U.S. policy steps that would strengthen the domestic base of American external actions; reinforce the U.S. alliance systems in Asia and Europe; meet the Chinese and Russian challenges, while improving the quality of diplomatic exchanges with Beijing and Moscow; reshape U.S. trade policy; gradually pivot from the Middle East to Asia (but not from Europe); maintain the nuclear agreement with Iran; and confront international terrorism more aggressively, but with minimal U.S. boots on the ground in ungoverned areas and without nation building. This list attempts to take into account the President-elect’s public statements on foreign policy, but does not assume that all of them will be manifested after January 20. It rests squarely on the application of the Nixon/Kissinger national interest driven conceptual framework that refined American foreign policy five decades ago to current U.S. challenges and opportunities.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Politics, Terrorism, and Nuclear Power
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Middle East, North Africa, North America, Asia-Pacific, and United States of America

46. From Activism to Artivism: New Forms of Youth Activism in the Aftermath of 20 February Movement.

Author:: Mohamed El Hachimi
Publication Date:: 01-2016
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Abstract:: Like many countries of the MENA region, Morocco has witnessed one of the most vigorous and dynamic youth protest in its modern history during the so-called Arab uprisings. To face this unprecedented form of youth political action, the strategy of the State consisted in containing youth protest by a twofold policy: conducting constitutional reform and trying to de-legitimize the radicals. The Policy Brief analyses what impact this strategy may have had on youth activism in Morocco. It focuses on the way the Moroccan youth movement(s) is adapting to the response of the regime. In this regard, it shows that while the youth movement(s) did not change its strategic objective (parliamentary monarchy) it is progressively changing the means to achieve it.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, Youth Culture, Popular Revolt, and Reform
Political Geography:: Middle East and North Africa

47. Journal of Advanced Military Studies: International Relations Perspectives

Author:: Robert Nalbandov, M.J. Fox, Jacob Stoil, Jonathan Schroden, William Rosenau, Emily Warner, and Rebecca Yagerman
Publication Date:: 09-2016
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Journal of Advanced Military Studies
Institution:: Marine Corps University Press, National Defense University
Abstract:: During the planning for this and upcoming issues, the staff of the MCU Journal, under the direction of the new editorial board, continues fine tuning our publication strategies to acquire content that speaks to the larger issues of policy important to the Marine Corps, generally and specifically. This has led us to seek authors who can provide more than just single threads of continuity, but rather to help us craft entire issues that focus on defined topics for deeper-level conversations. To that end, the closing issue of 2016 presents what, on the surface, may appear to be five articles speaking broadly to the concerns of one region, in this case the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Upon further reading, however, the reader will discover that this issue features two distinct sections that illustrate both political science and historical perspectives relevant to the U.S. military Services and the larger Department of Defense community.
Topic:: International Relations, Diplomacy, Politics, Terrorism, Violent Extremism, Counter-terrorism, and Conflict
Political Geography:: Africa, Middle East, Libya, North Africa, North America, Tunisia, Somalia, and United States of America

48. The Moroccan Monarchy and the Islam-oriented PJD: Pragmatic Cohabitation and the Need for Islamic Political Secularism

Author:: Abdellatif Hissouf
Publication Date:: 01-2016
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: All Azimuth: A Journal of Foreign Policy and Peace
Institution:: Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research
Abstract:: This paper aims to analyze the political relationship between the Moroccan monarchy and the moderate Islam-oriented Party of Justice and Development (PJD), which has been in power since 2011. The research methodology involves an in-depth case analysis and relies on a substantial number of primary and secondary sources such as official speeches, official political statements, journal articles and newspapers. The study finds the relationship between the PJD and the monarchy inconsistent, similar to the PJD’s relationship with other political parties. The paper argues that adopting an approach based on an Islamic political secularism that considers Morocco’s specific political realities may ease tension between the PJD on the one hand and the monarchy and other parties on the other
Topic:: Islam, Politics, Secularism, Political Parties, and Political Islam
Political Geography:: North Africa and Morocco

49. To Shoot or not to Shoot? Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern Militaries Respond Differently

Author:: James M Dorsey and Teresita Cruz-del Rosario
Publication Date:: 12-2015
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: An analysis of the Middle Eastern and North African militaries has produced a laundry list of literature, much of which was either valid for a specific post-World War II period or highlighted one of more aspects of military interest in the status quo or attitudes towards political change. Leaving aside the geopolitical differences between Southeast Asia and the Middle East and North Africa, a comparison of the transition in both regions brings into focus the building blocks that are needed for an armed force to embrace change. Southeast Asian nations succeeded whereas the countries in Middle East and North Africa, with the exception of Tunisia, have failed for several reasons.
Topic:: Politics, Military Strategy, Military Affairs, and Transition
Political Geography:: Africa, Middle East, Asia, North Africa, and Southeast Asia

50. The Middle East and North Africa: Change and Upheaval 2014

Author:: Christian Koch
Publication Date:: 07-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Abstract:: The breakdown of state structures and the wider regional political order has resulted in a complex tapestry of conflict throughout the Middle East that is likely to produce a continued period of volatility and violence for several years to come. This is because there are numerous dynamics at play that are competing with one another across various levels. Within these dynamics, religion as a mobilizing factor which, alongside sectarianism has emerged as a primary driving force for many of the ongoing conflicts. In addition, the deep crisis of the nation-state has released different dichotomies resulting in overlapping lines of confrontation that seem to be exploding all at once. The situation is exacerbated by the diminished leverage of global players on regional forces and regional players over national ones, thus significantly complicating the search for solutions.
Topic:: International Relations and Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, and North Africa

51. Political Finance and Gender Equality

Author:: Lolita Cigane and Magnus Ohman
Publication Date:: 08-2014
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Foundation for Electoral Systems
Abstract:: Throughout the world, women and men have different opportunities to participate in the political sphere. This is particularly true when it comes to participation as candidates and elected officials in electoral processes. There are many factors that contribute to existing gender inequalities in politics. While political finance is an important instrument for achieving gender equality in politics, the ongoing debates about political finance rarely consider the impact of money on the level of representation of both men and women in elected offices. IFES' latest publication, Political Finance and Gender Equality, has been developed on the premise that there is an important connection between political finance and gender equality that has not been explored in-depth. Discussions regarding political finance should take into account the issue of gender, particularly in consideration of the challenges that prospective women candidates face with regard to the role of money. This white paper attempts to take initial steps to examine the relationship between these two important issues. After an examination of political finance regulation and its impact on the chances of women and men to effectively run for elected office, the paper reviews the effect of varying electoral systems on gender equality in politics and political finance. Finally, this white paper discusses a recent pilot project in the Middle East and North Africa. A series of interviews with women candidates informed the work of multi-stakeholder working groups in Tunisia and Yemen, and these working groups provided recommendations for reform in their respective countries.
Topic:: Gender Issues, Politics, Finance, and Feminism
Political Geography:: Africa, Middle East, Yemen, North Africa, and Tunisia

52. Playing with Fire: Pitfalls of Egypt's Security Tactics

Author:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Publication Date:: 03-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: A string of armed attacks on military personnel and buildings in cities of the Nile Valley and Sinai Peninsula are not surprising given the Egyptian army’s past and present crackdown on villages and communities in northern Sinai. This paper examines armed attacks on these areas, questions why and how armed attacks reached the Valley, explores actors behind the attacks and projects what these attacks mean for Egypt’s security and political future.
Topic:: Security, Politics, Authoritarianism, Political stability, and Coup
Political Geography:: North Africa and Egypt

53. Sisi as President: Questionable Legitimacy, Unclear Future

Author:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Publication Date:: 06-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: On 8 June 2014, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Egypt’s former Minister of Defence, was sworn in before the Supreme Constitutional Court as President of the Egyptian Republic. On 3 July 2013, Marshal Sisi, a general at the time, led the Egyptian army to overthrow President Mohamed Morsi after only one year in office. The lavish formalities of the inauguration swept through some circles with euphoria. For others, it only intensified feelings of calamity dating back to the 30 June 2013 demonstrations, when the military command overthrew the first popularly-elected civilian president in the history of Egypt. It is important to note that the current euphoria of victory is not related to Sisi winning the majority in the recent Egyptian presidential election because his victory was clear even before the election. Rather, it is a function of the Egyptian deep state’s victory against the challenges and risks that have threatened it since the overthrow of the Mubarak regime on 11 February 2011.
Topic:: Security, Politics, Authoritarianism, Legitimacy, and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi
Political Geography:: North Africa and Egypt

54. Egypt’s Obstructed Horizon: Regime in Crisis and Fragmented Opposition

Author:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Publication Date:: 09-2014
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Al Jazeera Center for Studies
Abstract:: Both parties to the Egyptian conflict have depended on the conflict to sustain their existence. As a result, the prospects for reconciliation between the regime and the main opposition force, the Muslim Brotherhood, are very slim. In the short-term, reconciliation appears to be entirely improbable. However, this does not mean that either camp is in a comfortable position. Despite the steadfastness of its street protests for over a year, the popular opposition movement appears to be no closer to displacing the regime than it was in the summer of 2013. For the regime, while there is undoubtedly a strong state apparatus behind Sisi, this has not enabled it to maintain stability nor to solve Egypt’s economic dilemmas and resolve the dramatic deterioration in the state’s ability to care for its people. Finally, controversy between various groups on the ground and tensions among opposition leaders suggest that the mood on the ground is inclined to move away from further escalation of the protests.
Topic:: Security, Government, Politics, Revolution, and Political Crisis
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

55. Rethinking Islamist Politics

Author:: Khalil al-Anani, Mokhtar Awad, Steven Brooke, Michaelle Browers, and Nathan J. Brown
Publication Date:: 02-2014
Content Type:: Research Paper
Institution:: Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:: The Arab uprisings of 2011 radically reshaped the environment within which Islamist movements had evolved over the preceding decades, causing rapid, disorienting changes in their strategies, ideologies, and organizations. The last three years have produced an enormous amount of new information about these movements: detailed election results; factional and generational and intra-Islamist rivalries spilling out into public; varying degrees of political polarization between Islamists and their rivals; the erratic performance of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood after coming to power through elections and the fallout from its removal through popular protest and military coup; the emergence of a sharp public backlash against the Brotherhood in Egypt, at least, and a crackdown on its social services; a new regionwide campaign designating the Brotherhood as a terrorist organization; the surprising evolution of al Qaeda and jihadist movements from Syria and Iraq through North Africa. In January 2014, the Project on Middle East Political Science therefore convened a workshop with fifteen leading academic specialists on Islamist movements in the Arab Middle East and charged them with rethinking key assumptions, arguments, evidence and research programs in light of these three tumultuous years. The workshop brought together European and American academics with specialties ranging from mainstream movements such as the Muslim Brotherhood to jihadists and non-violent Salafists, and with expertise on countries ranging from the Gulf through Egypt and the Levant to North Africa. This special POMEPS Briefing collects the memos prepared for the workshop. The short essays collected here touch on many of these issues, pointing towards a rich set of compelling new theoretical and empirical questions with which the field must now grapple.
Topic:: Politics, Salafism, Arab Spring, Political Science, Islamism, and Muslim Brotherhood
Political Geography:: Middle East and North Africa

56. Conclusions of the Warsaw Dialogue for Democracy

Author:: Jerzy Pomianowski
Publication Date:: 01-2013
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Center for the Opening and Development of Latin America (CADAL)
Abstract:: Our discussion made me realise, once again, that democracy has one very important feature, brought to our attention by our friend from Libya: “Democracy has a price which has to be paid.” Indeed, there is a price that we have to pay for democracy. This applies equally to individual nations and international relations. I shall never forget the bitter, but how true remark made by a participant from Syria who reminded us that Kaddafi, Assad, Ben Ali or Mubarak could continue to act as long as we, representatives of democratic countries, shook hands with them. This is an important issue postulating that international relations be built on values.
Topic:: International Relations, Politics, Democracy, and Dialogue
Political Geography:: Poland, Libya, and North Africa

57. An Alternative to the "Turkish Model" for the Emerging Arab Democracies

Author:: Halim Rane
Publication Date:: 11-2012
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Insight Turkey
Institution:: SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:: The political and economic success of Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP) has generated extensive discussion about the extent to which Turkey provides a model for other Muslim, especially Arab, countries. The notion of a Turkish model has received intense focus since the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region began in 2010. Amid the excitement, more cautious voices have highlighted fundamental differences in historical and political experiences and relations with Islam between Turkey and the Arab countries. Considering these factors, this article contends that rather than Turkey's AKP, a more accurate comparison and potentially viable model for the emerging Arab democracies can be found among the Islamic-oriented political parties of South East Asia, which advocate an approach to Islam based on the maqasid, or higher objectives. This article examines the appeal of the maqasid approach in respect to its utility for maintaining Islamic legitimacy and transitioning from ideology-oriented to policy-oriented parties and thereby responding to the needs and aspirations of broad constituencies. This article discusses the function of the maqasid for Islamic political parties in the MENA region as it undergoes political liberalization in the aftermath of the Arab uprisings.
Topic:: Disaster Relief and Politics
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, Arabia, North Africa, and Southeast Asia

58. When Victory Becomes an Option: Egypt\'s Muslim Brotherhood Confronts Success

Author:: Nathan J. Brown
Publication Date:: 01-2012
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Egypt\'s Muslim Brotherhood stands on the brink of an impressive electoral victory. After several months of suggesting it would check its own electoral ambitions, the Brotherhood plunged into politics with unprecedented enthusiasm, focusing all of its energies and impressive organizational heft on the parliamentary vote. Now, with the electoral list of its political arm, the Freedom and Justice Party, likely to gain close to (and maybe even more than) half the seats and perhaps cabinet positions as well, the movement is entering uncharted waters.
Topic:: Democratization, Government, Islam, Politics, and Regime Change
Political Geography:: Arabia, North Africa, Syria, and Egypt

59. Mauritania's Islamists

Author:: Alex Thurston
Publication Date:: 03-2012
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Islamists have become an important political force in Mauritania since formal Islamist associations first emerged in the 1970s. Islamist activism has contributed to the ongoing Islamization of Mauritanian society, as is evident from the proliferation of mosques and Islamic associations in the capital, Nouakchott, and elsewhere. In the 1990s, political liberalization allowed Islamists to participate in elections as independents, and since its legalization in 2007, Tewassoul, the strongest Islamist party in Mauritania today, has become a significant minority voice in the country's politics and has built ties with Islamists elsewhere in the Arab world. These moderate Islamists who participate in elections hold different beliefs and goals from Mauritania's jihadist fringe. Overall, Mauritanian Islamism does not currently pose a threat to the United States. The mainstream of the movement appears committed to democracy and, even so, is unlikely to take power. Islamist parties like Tewassoul have never captured a large share of the vote in elections, and moderate Islamist leaders have explicitly rejected using violence to take over the state. Indeed, the United States may even find an upside to the Islamists' rise: Mainstream Islamist leaders publicly condemn the Muslim terrorist group Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which the Mauritanian government has been combating since 2005.
Topic:: Democratization, Islam, Politics, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: United States and North Africa

60. Elections in Libya

Author:: George Joffé
Publication Date:: 07-2012
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: IEMed/EuroMeSCo
Abstract:: The election of a new national assembly in Libya is good news in several respects after a decidedly difficult transition from the elation that accompanied the collapse of the Gaddafi regime last October to the realities of reconstructing the Libyan state. Perphaps the first piece of good news is the simple fact that it actually took place and did so in a relatively peaceful atmosphere. Secondly, the electoral process has been judged by outside observers to have been free and fair. And, finally, the outcome seems to have been a victory for moderation, rather than an outright win for Libya's Islamist movements - unlike the situation elsewhere.
Topic:: Conflict Resolution, Democratization, Islam, Politics, and Regime Change
Political Geography:: Arab Countries and North Africa

61. Algeria at the Crossroads, Between Continuity and Change

Author:: Andrea Dessì
Publication Date:: 09-2011
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: Algeria is the only country in North Africa which seems to be relatively immune to the so-called “Arab spring”. Popular protests did erupt in Algeria at precisely the same time as they were enveloping neighbouring countries, but the demands of the protesters never reached a popular consensus calling for the demise of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika. Drawing on the country's extensive monetary reserves, the Algerian authorities have responded by implementing a series of economic and social reforms, which have further weakened the resolve and unity of the protesters. After repealing the emergency laws in late February 2011, the government appeared to have regained the upper hand, but strikes and demonstrations have continued. Algeria still faces the real prospect of future popular unrest if the government fails in its promise to enact wide ranging political and economic reforms by early 2012. Given the country's geostrategic importance at both regional and international levels, the international community and in particular the EU must do more in order to ensure that Algeria is set on a sustainable path for the future.
Topic:: Islam, Politics, and Regime Change
Political Geography:: Arabia, Algeria, and North Africa

62. The Arab Revolution of 2011: Reflections on Religion and Politics

Author:: Nader Hashemi
Publication Date:: 04-2011
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: Insight Turkey
Institution:: SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research
Abstract:: The democratic uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East have been widely celebrated but in the West they have generated concern and apprehension. Most of this concern involves the future role of religion in the politics of the Arab world. In this essay, I make two broad observations. First, concern in the West about the rise of mainstream Islamist parties is partly based not on the illiberal orientation of these groups but the fact that they are politically independent actors who challenge Western geo-strategic interests in the region. Second, the role of religion in government has never been democratically negotiated en masse in the Arab world. To assume that this issue has been resolved and a broad consensus exists is to project a Western understanding of religion-state relations on the Arab-Islamic world. Doing so is both erroneous and analytically distorted. The battles over the role of religion in politics have yet to begin in the Arab world.
Topic:: Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, Arabia, and North Africa

63. Salafis and Sufis in Egypt

Author:: Jonathan Brown
Publication Date:: 12-2011
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: As expected, Egypt's first parliamentary election after the overthrow of longtime leader Hosni Mubarak confirmed the popularity and organizational strength of the Muslim Brotherhood and Freedom and Justice Party, which won 77 of the 156 parliamentary seats contested in the first electoral round. Surprisingly, it also revealed the unexpected strength of the Salafi alliance, dominated by the al-Nour party, which secured 33 seats. Much to the discomfort of secular Egyptians and Western governments, Islamist parties now dominate the Egyptian political scene.
Topic:: Democratization, Government, Islam, and Politics
Political Geography:: Arabia, North Africa, and Syria

64. Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly: Current Politics and Next Steps

Author:: Duncan Pickard
Publication Date:: 11-2011
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:: The paper is intended for all policy analysts interested in Tunisia, but it could be especially helpful for members of the NCA and the legal advisory committee, chaired by Yadh Ben Achour, that was recently established to advise the NCA on constitutional law and drafting procedure. The National Constituent Assembly of Tunisia (NCA) will act as the constitutional convention and transitional legislature of Tunisia and was elected on 23 October 2011.1 Decree No. 582, released on 20 May 2011, extends a one-year mandate to the NCA to write a new constitution for the republic. This commitment was also reflected in a September 18 agreement signed by Tunisia's largest political parties. Drawing from recent cases and academic literature, this paper explores key procedural questions that will confront the NCA in its first month in office.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, and Treaties and Agreements
Political Geography:: Arabia, North Africa, and Tunisia

65. Deciphering Egypt's Transition: What do Egypt's botched elections mean for the EU?

Author:: Timo Behr
Publication Date:: 12-2010
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: Finnish Institute of International Affairs
Abstract:: Egypt has arrived at a crossroads. After almost three decades in power, the Mubarak era is coming to an end. With President Hosni Mubarak's health reportedly deteriorating, the stage is set for an uncertain transition. Egypt's botched parliamentary elections have been the first act in this succession drama, paving the way for next year's decisive presidential elections. As the Middle East's traditional powerhouse, the outcome of this transition process is going to have important repercussions that will be felt far beyond Egypt's borders.
Topic:: Democratization, Islam, and Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, Arabia, North Africa, and Egypt

66. Qadhafi's Time in the Limelight: Impact on U.S. Interests

Author:: Dana Moss
Publication Date:: 08-2009
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Numerous celebrations in Libya this week will mark the fortieth anniversary of the September 1 revolution spearheaded by Muammar Qadhafi. For the Great Leader, these events are an opportunity to demonstrate the achievements of the Jamahiriyya and to further legitimize his rule. At the same time, the release and triumphant reception of terminally ill Abdel Basset al-Megrahi, convicted of murder for the Lockerbie air disaster, as well as the recent crisis in Swiss-Libyan relations, serve as a warning about Libya's leveraging of its hydrocarbon riches to achieve policy goals.
Topic:: Politics
Political Geography:: United States, Libya, Arab Countries, and North Africa

67. Egypt's Muslim Brothers: Confrontation or Integration?

Publication Date:: 06-2008
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: The Society of Muslim Brothers' success in the November-December 2005 elections for the People's Assembly sent shockwaves through Egypt's political system. In response, the regime cracked down on the movement, harassed other potential rivals and reversed its fledging reform process. This is dangerously short-sighted. There is reason to be concerned about the Muslim Brothers' political program, and they owe the people genuine clarifications about several of its aspects. But the ruling National Democratic Party's (NDP) refusal to loosen its grip risks exacerbating tensions at a time of both political uncertainty surrounding the presidential succession and serious socio-economic unrest. Though this likely will be a prolonged, gradual process, the regime should take preliminary steps to normalise the Muslim Brothers' participation in political life.
Topic:: Political Violence, Islam, and Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

68. Islamists in Politics: The Dynamics of Participation

Author:: Marina Ottaway and Amr Hamzawy
Publication Date:: 11-2008
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:: Islamist parties and movements in Arab countries that have strategically chosen to participate in the legal political process, acknowledging the legitimacy of the existing constitutional framework, have gained great political importance. Their participation raises two major questions: are they truly committed to democracy? And will participation have a positive, moderating influence on their positions, pushing them to focus on public policy platforms rather than ideological debates?
Topic:: Democratization, Islam, and Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, Arabia, and North Africa

69. Political Islam and Europe – Views from the Arab Mediterranean states and Turkey

Author:: Robert Springborg
Publication Date:: 04-2007
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS)
Abstract:: The social, political and economic power of moderate Middle East and North African Islamist movements has been growing for a generation or so. The question of how to deal with Islamists who reject violence, embrace democracy and outperform their competitors at the polls has therefore become a central concern not only of incumbent Middle East elites, but also of interested foreign actors such as the EU and US. Robert Springborg sees the need for the EU to clarify its policies towards the MENA region and Muslim democrats within it. The present lack of EU policies on engaging with moderate Islamists leads them to be at best curious about the EU and at worse to be suspicious of it. Engagement might itself help to contribute to policy formation in this important area, and serve as a vehicle to disseminate information about relevant EU policies.
Topic:: Politics and Religion
Political Geography:: United States, Europe, Turkey, Middle East, Arabia, Arab Countries, and North Africa

70. Congo's Elections: Making or Breaking the Peace

Publication Date:: 04-2006
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: As the Congo approaches its first free elections in 40 years, the stability of the country remains at risk, for three main reasons. First, one of the main former rebel groups, the Congolese Rally for Democracy (RCD), is unpopular and stands to lose most of its power at the polls: this has triggered a resurgence of violence in the east, which is likely to intensify before and after elections, as dissident RCD troops attack the newly integrated national army. Secondly, the vote has not been adequately prepared. With few safeguards in place against fraud, rigged polls could rapidly undermine stability after the elections and produce unrest in cities. Thirdly, the country's long-time political opposition, Etienne Tshisekedi's Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), will boycott the voting, unhappy with the other main parties' unwillingness to negotiate with it. This is likely to cause unrest in the two Kasai provinces and Kinshasa, where Tshisekedi enjoys substantial support.
Topic:: Development, Peace Studies, and Politics
Political Geography:: Democratic Republic of the Congo and North Africa

71. Political Transition in Mauritania: Assessment and Horizons

Publication Date:: 04-2006
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: Le 3 août 2005, une junte menée par Ely Ould Mohamed Vall, Directeur Général de la Sûreté Nationale, et Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, Commandant du Bataillon de la Sécurité Présidentielle, s'est emparé du pouvoir en République Islamique de Mauritanie. Ce coup d'État, qui répond à l'impopularité croissante et au manque de légitimité du régime déchu, représente une rupture avec le passé mais comporte également d'importants signes de continuité de méthode et de personnalités. Les nouveaux dirigeants devront démontrer que les changements l'emportent sur le statu quo et qu'ils respectent l'état de droit. La communauté internationale, qui a rapidement accepté le gouvernement après des objections de pure forme concernant la manière dont le changement avait eu lieu, devra les pousser à tenir leurs engagements, en particulier sur la question et le calendrier de la transition démocratique.
Topic:: Development and Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, North Africa, and Mauritania

72. Legislative Elections in Egypt: Another Test for Democracy

Author:: Khairi Abaza
Publication Date:: 11-2005
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: November 9 marks the start of legislative elections in Egypt. These are the first elections to be contested after Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak pledged to implement political reforms during his presidential campaign in September. The political opposition maintains that the legislative elections will not reflect the true will of the Egyptian people and that the political environment is still not conducive to truly democratic politics.
Topic:: Democratization, Development, and Politics
Political Geography:: North Africa and Egypt

73. Creating Effective International Pressure for Human Rights in Iran

Author:: Khairi Abaza and Mark Nakhla
Publication Date:: 10-2005
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: On November 2, the UN General Assembly's Third Committee is due to consider a Canadian resolution condemning Iran for human rights violations. A similar resolution was approved by the General Assembly in 2004 by a vote of 71-54 with fifty-five abstentions. Iran's human rights violations have recently worsened, and the Iranian government is becoming less concerned about international complaints on the matter.
Topic:: International Relations, Politics, and Religion
Political Geography:: Iran, Canada, and North Africa

74. The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt

Author:: Khairi Abaza and Mark Nakhla
Publication Date:: 10-2005
Content Type:: Policy Brief
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: In the third week of October, Egypt saw some of its most significant sectarian clashes in the last five years. Violence broke out as police forces protected a church in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria against Muslims protesting a play that was staged inside the church and that they considered offensive to Islam. Sporadic tensions are an expression of Egypt's general political malaise.
Topic:: International Relations, Politics, and Religion
Political Geography:: North Africa and Egypt

75. Sudan: Darfur Humanitarian Emergency

Publication Date:: 07-2004
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United States Agency for International Development
Abstract:: The humanitarian emergency in Darfur is a direct result of violence and harassment directed toward the Fur, Zaghawa, and Masaalit civilian groups by Government of Sudan (GOS) forces and GOS-supported militia groups collectively known as Jingaweit. In early 2003, the Sudanese Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) stated that they would engage in armed struggle to achieve full respect for human rights and an end to political and economic marginalization in Darfur. On April 24 and 25, 2003 the SLM/A attacked GOS military forces at El Fasher in North Darfur. Following this attack, GOS military forces and Jingaweit militia initiated a more coordinated campaign of violence against civilian populations, including aerial bombardments to kill, maim, and terrorize civilians who the GOS claimed were harboring opposition forces. Conflict-affected populations have described recurrent and systematic assaults against towns and villages, looting, burning of buildings and crops, destruction of water sources and irrigation systems, gang rape, and murders. Throughout late 2003, armed conflict intensified, as GOS military and Jingaweit clashed with the two main opposition groups – the SLM/A and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) – in Darfur. Following U.S. Government (USG) and European Union (EU) facilitated negotiations in N'Djamena, Chad, the two main opposition groups and the GOS signed a renewable 45-day humanitarian ceasefire on April 8 that took effect on April 11. This agreement included a GOS commitment to disarm Jingaweit militia groups and a protocol on providing humanitarian assistance in Darfur. The ceasefire agreement was renewed on May 22. Despite the ceasefire, Jingaweit violence against civilians continues in all three states of Darfur resulting in increasing displacement. Because the victims are displaced and vulnerable, they become targets of further violence. Even in villages where there is nothing left to burn, the fear of further violence continues to paralyze displaced populations, preventing voluntary returns. This cycle prevents many internally displaced persons (IDPs) from safely returning home, trapping them in camps or informal settlements for the foreseeable future. Out of an estimated population of 6.5 million in Darfur, approximately 2.2 million people are affected by the crisis, including more than 1 million IDPs and approximately 158,000 refugees who have fled into neighboring Chad. Humanitarian access to conflict-affected populations outside of the state capitals of Geneina, El Fasher, and Nyala was extremely limited until late May due to GOS impediments that blocked humanitarian access and relief operations. As a result of intense international pressure, the GOS lifted some of the restrictive travel regulations and announced a series of measures, effective May 24, to facilitate humanitarian access to Darfur. USAID's Disaster Assistance Response Team (USAID/DART) and other humanitarian agencies have deployed additional staff to Darfur to increase emergency response capacity. However, several obstacles remain, including continued delays in obtaining visas for relief personnel, travel restrictions within Darfur, difficulties in clearing essential relief supplies and equipment though customs, and GOS interference in relief activities that address protection of civilians and human rights abuses.
Topic:: Human Rights, Human Welfare, Politics, and War
Political Geography:: Africa, Sudan, and North Africa

76. Sudan – Complex Emergency: Situation Report #4

Publication Date:: 06-2004
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United States Agency for International Development
Abstract:: For more than 20 years, Sudan has been adversely impacted by armed conflict, famine, and disease, largely associated with the civil war between the Government of Sudan (GOS) and the Sudan Peoples' Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A). Since war began in 1983, more than 2 million people have died, approximately 628,000 Sudanese have sought refuge in neighboring countries, and more than 4 million people have been displaced, creating the largest internally displaced person (IDP) population in the world. Until April 2003, when violence increased dramatically in western Sudan, conflict had mainly affected southern Sudan and the transition zone between North and South. In 1989, the United Nations (U.N.) established Operation Lifeline Sudan, a tripartite access agreement among the GOS, the SPLM/A, and the U.N. Under this framework, U.N. agencies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) provide humanitarian and rehabilitation assistance to vulnerable southern Sudanese. Since 1983, the U.S. Government (USG) has provided more than $1.9 billion in humanitarian assistance to Sudan.
Topic:: Human Rights, Human Welfare, Politics, and War
Political Geography:: Africa, Sudan, and North Africa

77. Testimony of Roger Winter, Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance – “Humanitarian Crisis in Sudan”

Publication Date:: 06-2004
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: United States Agency for International Development
Abstract:: I thank the Chairman and Members of this Committee for holding this hearing. Your interest in Sudan is helpful and can have useful repercussions on the ground in Sudan at a time when the situation there is more fragile and more complicated than ever. Several Members of this Committee have been involved in Sudanese issues for many years, and I can assure you that that fact is known and respected in the region. Your veteran wisdom, fresh ideas, and steady engagement on Sudan are welcome and appreciated by me, by my USAID colleagues, and by many Sudanese I have met in my regular travels to the region. Thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
Topic:: Human Rights, Human Welfare, Politics, and War
Political Geography:: Africa, Sudan, and North Africa

78. Islamism in North Africa II: Egypt's Opportunity

Publication Date:: 04-2004
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: Important changes in the outlook of Egyptian Islamic activism in recent years have opened up possibilities for progressive political development, but these have gone unexploited because of the conservatism of the Egyptian government's policies. The absence of serious violence since late 1997 strongly suggests that the strategy of armed struggle (jihad) against the state has not only failed but has effectively been abandoned. At the same time, the ideology of non-violent Islamic activism has evolved and now emphatically embraces democratic principles and elements of a modernist outlook. However, unless the Egyptian government changes its approach, opens up the political field and undertakes serious political reform, the frustration which many Egyptians feel could lead to a recrudescence of violent activism at some stage. The government risks realising too late that it has squandered a vital opportunity and wasted the fruits of its own earlier successes on the security front.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, Religion, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: Africa, North Africa, and Egypt

79. Islamism in North Africa I: The Legacies of History

Publication Date:: 04-2004
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: Islamism, terrorism, reform: the triangle formed by these three concepts and the complex and changeable realities to which they refer is at the centre of political debate in and about North Africa today. The role of Egyptian elements in the leadership of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda organisation is well-known, if not necessarily well understood. The involvement of Maghrebis in terrorist networks in Europe -- whether linked to al-Qaeda or not -- has recently been underlined by the suspected involvement of Moroccans in the 11 March 2004 attack in Madrid. Egypt itself has endured years of terrorist violence; few if any countries have suffered as much from terrorism as Algeria has over the last twelve years; and the bombings in Casablanca on 16 May 2003 suggest that Morocco is not immune.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, Religion, and Terrorism
Political Geography:: Africa, Europe, Algeria, North Africa, Egypt, and Morocco

80. The Debate on Democratization in the Broader Middle East and North Africa

Author:: Ayşe Kadıoğlu, Burak Akçapar, Meliha Benli Altunisik, and Mensur Akgün
Publication Date:: 06-2004
Content Type:: Special Report
Institution:: Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:: This paper represents the views of four individuals with academic backgrounds in social sciences who are familiar with the new dynamics of world politics as well as the language and practice of democratization. The authors of the paper are convinced that there is need for change in the direction of democratization in the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) region. Rejection of this need is unrealistic. A dilemma in the recent debates of democratization and reform in the BMENA is that the US, the very country that pushed the initiative for democratization to the forefront, suffers from a tide of anti-Americanism in the Middle East. The sights of torture of Iraqi prisoners further heightened anti-Americanism in the region to unprecedented levels. Such an environment hinders the legitimate discussion of democratization in the BMENA. However, the need for democratization in the region is obvious and increasingly appreciated, and thus should be assessed on its own merits.
Topic:: Democratization, Politics, Reform, and Civic Engagement
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, and North Africa

81. Algeria: Unrest and Impasse in Kabylia

Publication Date:: 06-2003
Content Type:: Working Paper
Institution:: International Crisis Group
Abstract:: In late April 2001, lethal provocations by elements of Algeria's National Gendarmerie triggered protracted and deadly rioting in Kabylia. That the unrest from Kabylia's Black Spring continues to this day reflects the political system's nation-wide failure to adopt reforms that address its deficit of democratic representation. Neither the regime, nor the Kabyle political parties nor the so-called "Coordinations" that lead the protest movement in the region has to date proposed a serious formula for ending the impasse. The recent invitation by the new head of the government, Ahmed Ouyahia, to the protest movement to engage in dialogue over its platform is a welcome, if belated, development. But more will be needed to enable the Algerian polity to resolve what is much more a national problem than the local or ethnic disturbance it is often mistakenly portrayed as.
Topic:: Security, Government, and Politics
Political Geography:: Africa, Algeria, and North Africa

82. Antiracism Without Races: Politics and Policy in a "Color-Blind" State

Author:: Erik Bleich
Publication Date:: 09-2000
Content Type:: Journal Article
Journal:: French Politics, Culture Society
Institution:: Conference Group on French Politics Society
Abstract:: Since the end of the Second World War, millions of immigrants have arrived on French shores. Although such an influx of foreigners has not been unusual in French history, the origin of the postwar migrants was of a different character than that of previous eras. Prior to World War II, the vast majority of immigrants to France came from within Europe. Since 1945, however, an important percentage of migrants have come from non- European sources. Whether from former colonies in North Africa, Southeast Asia, or sub- Saharan Africa, from overseas departments and territories, or from countries such as Turkey or Sri Lanka, recent immigration has created a new ethnic and cultural pluralism in France. At the end of the 1990s, the visibly nonwhite population of France totals approximately five percent of all French residents. With millions of ethnic-minority citizens and denizens, the new France wears a substantially different face from that of the prewar era.
Topic:: Politics and History
Political Geography:: Africa, Europe, Turkey, France, Sri Lanka, North Africa, and Southeast Asia

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS