MENASource

Islameya Islameya: An Open Letter to the Egyptian People and the Egyptian Administration

By Mohammad Tolba

It is no coincidence that the people who believe TV ads marketing a so called: “magic patch” as a cure for every ailment or pain are the same people addicted to the ‘text-to-win’ contests that carry the promise of a trip to the holy land (‘Umra) in exchange for answering questions such as "What is […]

Egypt’s Growing Judicial Activism Stymies Democratic Consolidation

On May 13, the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East held an event to release a new issue brief, Egypt’s Litigious Transition: Judicial Intervention and the Muddied Road to Democracy. Director of the Rafik Hariri Center Michele Dunne moderated a discussion with the author Mahmoud Hamad, who is assistant professor at Drake University and Cairo […]

Top News: Seven Security Officers Kidnapped in Egypt’s Sinai

By Egypt Source

Islamist gunmen abducted seven members of the Egyptian security forces in the Sinai Peninsula on Thursday and want jailed militants released in exchange for the men, security sources said. The gunmen kidnapped the men as they travelled between the towns of al-Arish and Rafah in the early hours of the morning.  GOVERNMENT & OPPOSITION Court […]

Libya in Turmoil: From Isolation to Reconciliation

By Karim Mezran

It is difficult to understand, at least from the outside, what is happening in Libya right now. The past several weeks have highlighted the danger and difficulties the country’s feeble political institutions face to manage day-to-day affairs, let alone resolve the most pressing political issues. It now appears that the revolutionary groups that recently besieged ministries […]

Top News: Egyptian Judicial Bodies Withdraw from Morsi’s ‘Justice Conference’

By Egypt Source

Egypt’s upper house of parliament, the Shura Council, will discuss a disputed law on the judiciary on 25 May, in a move that opponents of the law have strongly criticized and which has led representatives of the judiciary including the Supreme Judicial Council and the Judges Club  to drop out of a proposed judicial reform conference with President Morsi.  […]

The Politics of Tunisia’s Final Draft Constitution

By Duncan Pickard

Tunisia’s constitution-drafting process has reached another milestone: the committee coordinating the drafting of the country’s post-authoritarian constitution presented its third and final draft to the National Constituent Assembly on April 22. The draft strikes important compromises that political parties made on the most vexing issues of the process, including the balance of executive powers, the […]

Top News: White House Official Pledges US Support, Administration Criticizes Action Against Youth Leader

By Egypt Source

In a visit to Cairo, Special Assistant to the President and White House Coordinator for the Middle East Philip Gordon reaffirmed the importance of bilateral relations and US support for Egypt’s transition to democracy.  The Obama administration, however, is also blasting Egyptian authorities for detaining a prominent youth movement leader, Ahmed Maher, on possible charges […]

War and Civil War in Syria

By Faysal Itani

For the third time this year, Israel was able to carry out air strikes in Syria earlier this month without prompting an immediate military response. The reactions of all parties directly affected—Syria, Iran, and Hezbollah—indicated little appetite for a conflict with Israel. This should be of little comfort to US policymakers and the international community, […]