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Jun 30, 2016

After Failed 2015 Siege, Sinai State Fights On

By Zack Gold

On July 1, 2015, Sinai State—the ISIS affiliated terrorist group —launched a massive operation across the Egyptian border governorate of North Sinai. The bulk of “The Battle of Sheikh Abu Sohaib al-Ansari,” named for the group’s deceased founder, took place around and inside Sheikh Zuweid: North Sinai’s third-largest city. Sinai State’s failed attempt to takeover […]

North Africa

MENASource

Jun 29, 2016

Yemen Peace Talks Stalled But Process to Restart Mid-July

By Jillian Schwedler

Representatives of the government and Houthi delegations to the peace talks in Kuwait announced that they were suspending the talks until the end of Ramadan in mid-July.  The process had effectively stalled even as UN special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed expressed cautious optimism last week about the Yemeni peace talks underway in […]

Yemen

Bremain vs Brexit

Jun 28, 2016

What Brexit Means for the GCC

By Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

The startling result of the referendum on the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union has caused political and economic chaos in Britain unparalleled since World War Two. Prime Minister David Cameron will be out of power by September 2 and Britain faces a period of profound uncertainty and volatility over the nature of its […]

European Union International Organizations

MENASource

Jun 28, 2016

Turkey-Israel Rapprochement: Business as Usual

By MENASource

On June 26, Turkey and Israel announced the end of a diplomatic row reached a head in 2010, after eight Turks and a Turkish-American citizen were killed on an aid flotilla, the Mavi Marmara, bound for Gaza. Soon after the incident, Turkey withdrew its ambassador from Israel, and within six months had expelled the Israeli […]

Israel Turkey

MENASource

Jun 24, 2016

Despite Fallujah Victory, Baghdad Remains in Political Quagmire

By Nussaibah Younis

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi appears to have launched the sudden assault on the city of Fallujah last month in an effort to distract from the political turmoil in Baghdad. And to some extent, it has worked. Popular support for the fight has won the prime minister a short political reprieve, and the media landscape has […]

Iraq

MENASource

Jun 24, 2016

What Was in the Egyptian Court’s Reasoning in the Tiran and Sanafir Case?

By Mohamed Elgohari

On June 21, in an unexpected move, the first circuit of the Egyptian State Council’s administrative court, headed by State Council Vice President Yahya al-Dakrouri, annulled a Saudi-Egyptian maritime agreement, ceding sovereignty of the two islands of Tiran and Sanafir to the Gulf kingdom. The Egyptian government, at the time, said that Saudi Arabia had […]

North Africa Saudi Arabia

MENASource

Jun 23, 2016

The AKP’s Push for a Presidential System

By Aaron Stein

The recent resignation of former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and his replacement with incoming Prime Minister Binali Yidirim represents a shift in Turkish domestic politics. Yildirim, a long-time close ally to current Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has pledged to work towards implementing Erdogan’s top domestic priority: a new constitution to bring about a […]

Turkey

MENASource

Jun 23, 2016

Support for Egypt’s Press Syndicate Fades

By Khaled Dawoud

The trial of the head of Egypt’s Press Syndicate and two board members resumed this week without much fanfare, indicating that President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s government has won popular support in the confrontation between the government and independent journalists.

North Africa

MENASource

Jun 22, 2016

The Prospects for Japanese-Qatari Relations

By Cinzia Miotto and Giorgio Cafiero

Over the past three decades, the tiny, wealthy Gulf emirate of Qatar has become one of Japan’s most important Middle Eastern partners. Driven by Japan’s demand for steady access to hydrocarbon resources from a reliable and stable partner and Qatar’s large-scale projects in preparation for the World Cup in 2022, the energy and construction sectors […]

Economy & Business Japan

MENASource

Jun 21, 2016

The EU, Areas of Conflict in International Politics, and the Case for Assuming Greater Responsibility

By Ralf Fuecks

This article is remarks by Ralf Fuecks, president of the Heinrich-Böll Foundation, presented at the Foundation’s 17th Annual Policy Conference on June 17, 2016.

European Union International Organizations