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MENASource

Mar 3, 2017

The ‘European Values’ of the Libya Migration Deal

By Tom Rollins

Last month, European Union leaders met in Malta, in the words of European Council President Donald Tusk, to “agree [to] concrete operational measures to stem irregular migration from Libya to Europe.” The statement was an unusually frank expression of EU intentions in the Mediterranean: to regulate, limit, or halt mixed migration flows on the Central Mediterranean […]

European Union International Organizations

MENASource

Feb 24, 2017

Report Summary: More Than the Authority of Repression – The Status of Free Speech in Egypt 2016

By MENASource

On Sunday, February 12, 2017, the Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression released their fourth annual report on the state of freedom of expression in Egypt in 2016 under the title “More Than the Authority of Repression.” This report presents thorough evidence and accurate observations on freedom of speech in Egypt. 

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

Feb 22, 2017

Which Muslim Brotherhood?

By H.A. Hellyer

The Trump administration does not fail to disappoint those that expected a raucous and riotous White House. It has only been a few weeks since President Donald Trump took office, and already his tenure is connected with scandals and resignations. Against the backdrop of that, nevertheless, two policies in particular have attracted a particular amount […]

MENASource

Feb 16, 2017

Continued Focus on Economic Reform in Egypt’s Cabinet Reshuffle

By Elissa Miller

On February 14, Egypt’s parliament approved a limited cabinet reshuffle following weeks of anticipation. Prime Minister Sherif Ismail said the reshuffle was aimed at continuing the government’s social and economic reform plans, and indeed, several of the changes reflect an effort to continue to build on major reforms. Ismail began meeting with candidates for cabinet […]

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

Feb 16, 2017

Refugee Resettlement Program Takes a Hit Following Brief Travel Ban

By Sarah El Sirgany

Mahmoud was supposed to travel to the US on February 7th. The 22-year-old Somali refugee had escaped forced recruitment by al-Shabab at the age of 16. He has finally allowed himself to dream of a better life, but it all came crashing down when President Donald Trump placed a 120-day ban on refugees.

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

Feb 15, 2017

Al-Nadeem Center for Torture Victims Fights its Closure in Cairo

By Jihad Abaza

On Thursday, February 9th, the doctors and lawyers working in the Al-Nadeem Center for the Rehabilitation of Torture Victims found that “a huge police force” had sealed their center and clinic with red wax and took their porter to the police station for questioning, the co-founders said in a statement.  Al-Nadeem is an NGO founded […]

North Africa

MENASource

Feb 9, 2017

How Trump’s Executive Order Played Out in Cairo

By Jihad Abaza and Muhammed Al Kashef

US President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) on January 27, barring refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries—Syria, Libya, Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, Iran, and Iraq—from entering the United States for at least 90 days, leaving refugee and immigrant communities in limbo. Trump’s Executive Order also suspends the US refugee resettlement program for 120 […]

North Africa Syria

MENASource

Feb 9, 2017

Strategic Thinking About the Middle East

By Stephen Blank

In its first weeks, the Trump Administration openly castigated terrorism as America’s primary threat and underlined it anti-Iranian orientation. It also announced its intention to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem and its readiness for a partnership with Russia against the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL). Unfortunately, taken together these moves are mutually contradictory. If […]

Iran Middle East

MENASource

Feb 6, 2017

Putting Institutions First

By Salam Fayyad

While initiating political reform is difficult, sustaining it is even more so. This is not unique to Arab societies. Rather, it is a challenge that today’s well-functioning democracies had to contend with in their often-turbulent formative years. The answer is a process of smart incrementalism, which establishes and safeguards state institutions while creating the potential […]

MENASource

Feb 3, 2017

Rethinking Transitional Justice in Yemen

By Tarek Radwan

Six years ago today, the Yemeni people erupted in a Day of Rage against a corrupt regime to demand equal rights, but the transitional process faltered leading to the now nearly two-year-old conflict between Houthi rebels allied with former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and the government-in-exile led by President Abdrabbo Mansour Hadi backed by Saudi […]

Yemen