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MENASource

Mar 26, 2018

The president’s scorecard

By Mirette F. Mabrouk

Egyptians are going to the polls to vote in a presidential election for the third time since the uprisings of 2011. The act of voting for a president who could, ostensibly, be voted out was a novelty. Hosni Mubarak served five six-year terms before stepping down in February of 2011, and Egyptians were keen on […]

Democratic Transitions Elections

MENASource

Mar 26, 2018

Egypt’s 2018 presidential elections – live updates

By Audrey Bolus and Yousuf Eltagouri

Polls opened at 9am local time on Monday, March 26th, in the first of three days of expected voting for the next president of Egypt. With Abel-Fattah El-Sisi projected to win against his only challenger, Moussa Moustafa Moussa from the al-Ghad Party, the incumbent government is pushing for the highest possible voter turnout to bolster […]

Democratic Transitions Elections

MENASource

Mar 23, 2018

Democracy in Tunisia: Façade or reality?

By Amir Ben Ameur & Erin Neale

Disappointment surrounding Tunisia’s democratic transition abounds in the country, and the volatile economy adds a degree of difficulty to politicians’ agendas. Economic development is always a long and arduous process, but the current strategy is clearly inadequate. Tunisians call on the government to do more to pull the economy out of stagnation by increasing public […]

Democratic Transitions North Africa

MENASource

Mar 19, 2018

Going local in Libya

By Karim Mezran & Frank Talbot

The political situation in Libya has slowly reached one of apparent paralysis while the military situation is continually evolving with frequent clashes across the country. Given the lack of any progress, the whole approach undertaken by the international community has clearly failed and desperately needs a new strategy. Political negotiation alone, without one that engages […]

Libya

MENASource

Mar 8, 2018

The ongoing Israel-Iran proxy war in Syria

By Mona Alami

The next Israeli confrontation with its neighbors will be markedly different from its previous encounters. Recent military escalation in Syria that resulted in the downing of an Israeli F16 in February, points to new trends that could shape future conflict between Israel and Iran. On February 10, an Iranian drone penetrated Israeli airspace from Syria. […]

Iran Israel

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Mar 8, 2018

How legal reform can drive social change for women in Tunisia

By Andrea Taylor and Elissa Miller

Many anticipate that a proposed new bill that would enable Tunisian women to receive equal inheritance with men will cement Tunisia’s place as a leader on women’s rights in the Arab world. Yet broad support within Tunisia for the inheritance bill remains lacking.

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

Feb 28, 2018

Algeria’s Libya problem

By Andrea Taylor

Algeria has a problem knocking on its door: Libya. A relative powerhouse in North Africa, a combination of political and economic issues has weakened Algeria in recent years, limiting its engagement in Libya while it dealt with its more immediate concerns at home. Despite these challenges, Algeria may step up in the face of continued […]

Libya North Africa

MENASource

Feb 28, 2018

The role of Hezbollah among its Shia constituents

By Mona Alami

Hezbollah’s power and resilience at the Lebanese level is not only derived from its military might and Tehran’s constant backing, but more importantly, from the tireless support of its Lebanese Shia Muslim community base. The allegiance of Lebanese Shia to Hezbollah is widely known to be rooted in the party’s capability to win hearts and […]

Middle East Terrorism

MENASource

Feb 27, 2018

Yemen: What dreams may come

By Dr. Nabeel Khoury

As early as 2007, while serving as Deputy Chief of Mission at the US embassy from 2004-2007, I argued that the central government needed to pay attention to legitimate grievances to prevent constant warfare in the north and a potential secession of the south. At the time, the late president Ali Abdullah Saleh prohibited foreign […]

Yemen

MENASource

Feb 23, 2018

From the front lines of Yemen’s lawless Taiz

By Afrah Nasser

With one hand holding the hose for hookah and the other his beeping cell phone, a conversation with Mohammed al-Qadhi is constantly interrupted. He swiftly takes a glance at his cell phone and says, “Excuse me, it’s breaking news I must send this to my editors.” He grabs his phone and he begins tapping. As […]

Yemen