MENASource brings you up-close to a region at the epicenter of geo-political headlines. It is the Atlantic Council’s hub for in-depth commentary about breaking news, key topics, and trends from our team of experts on the Middle East and North Africa.

The views expressed in MENASource are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

Learn more about the Middle East

News Update: November 25, 2011

MENASource
Dec 16, 2025

What will 2026 bring for the Middle East and North Africa?

As 2025 comes to a close, our senior analysts unpack the most prominent trends and topics they are tracking for the new year.

Read More

News Update: November 25, 2011

MENASource
Dec 7, 2025

One year after Assad’s fall, here’s what’s needed to advance justice for Syrians

By
Elise Baker and Ahmad Helmi

The second year of a post-Assad Syria requires structural reform, victim-centered leadership, and international reinforcement.

Democratic Transitions
International Norms

News Update: November 25, 2011

MENASource
Nov 20, 2025

Saudi Arabia’s next horizon: Building human capital beyond Vision 2030

By
Khalid Azim

Riyadh still needs to take fully support small and medium-sized enterprises—the true engines of job creation.

Economy & Business
Middle East

Stay Updated


Content

MENASource

Nov 25, 2011

News Update: November 25, 2011

By Mara Revkin

The SCAF has appointed 78-year-old Kamal Ganzouri as Egypt’s new prime minister. Ganzouri previously served as Mubarak’s prime minister from 1996-1999. A military source said that Ganzouri will be tasked with forming a salvation government to replace Sharaf’s cabinet, which collectively resigned last week. Protesters have overwhelmingly rejected news of the appointment, with thousands rallying […]

MENASource

Nov 25, 2011

Is Kamal Ganzouri the Answer?

By Michele Dunne

The reported SCAF appointment of Kamal Ganzouri to head a new cabinet, replacing Essam Sharaf, is one of several steps the military leadership is taking to try to quell demonstrators’ anger without meeting their main demand:  that the SCAF relinquish power now.

MENASource

Nov 24, 2011

News Update: November 24, 2011

By Mara Revkin

Members of the SCAF and High Electoral Commission announced at a press conference that parliamentary elections will be held on schedule next week, despite escalating violence. The SCAF offered "regrets and deep apologies" for the deaths of protesters but is continuing to refuse calls for an immediate end to military rule. Meanwhile, fourteen political movements […]

MENASource

Nov 23, 2011

News Update: November 23, 2011

By Mara Revkin

Protesters overwhelming rejected the SCAF’s offer to expedite the transition to civilian rule through a popular referendum. Demonstrations continued in several cities on November 23, with additional casualties reported in Alexandria, bringing the official death toll to 35. Meanwhile, a number of major political parties are reportedly considering calling on the SCAF to postpone the […]

MENASource

Nov 23, 2011

Violence Clouds Upcoming Elections

By Mohamed Elshahed

Less than five days before the first post-Mubarak elections, the situation in Tahrir Square is the worst it has been since Mubarak stepped down on February 11 earlier this year. The level of force and the brutality of the security forces surpass anything that was seen in a single incident during the 18-day uprising. The […]

MENASource

Nov 23, 2011

Poll Shows Most Egyptians Planned to Vote Before Violence

By Mara Revkin

A new Gallup poll based on surveys conducted in September reveals that most Egyptians planned to vote (74%) and expected the elections to be fair and honest (71%) before massive anti-military demonstrations erupted last week. But the latest confrontation between the military and protesters could unravel the existing transitional roadmap and elections schedule. Major political parties […]

MENASource

Nov 22, 2011

Dispatch from Tahrir Square: By Tarek Radwan

By Tarek Radwan

Tarek Radwan, an Egyptian human rights activist, has been on the ground in Tahrir Square since the outbreak of protests on November 18, leaving only briefly to update his Facebook and Twitter feeds, he says. Tarek offers this snapshot of the defiant mood on the ground, shortly after a disappointing speech by Field Marshal Tantawi, […]

MENASource

Nov 22, 2011

Video: SCAF Offers Referendum on Power Transfer

By Mara Revkin

In a televised speech on November 22, Field Marshal Mohamed Hussein Tantawi expressed “regret” over the clashes in Tahrir Square and announced several concessions: The SCAF is prepared to hold a referendum on immediately transferring power to civilian authority if people demand it. Tantawi pledged to hold presidential elections no later than June 2012 and […]

MENASource

Nov 22, 2011

New Poll Shows Disillusionment with Military Rule

By Mara Revkin

Reverting to one of Mubarak’s favorite tactics, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) is trying to delegitimize the demands of street protesters by claiming that the crowd in Tahrir Square is an unruly collection of hooligans, radical soccer fans and religious zealots who do not represent Egyptian public opinion. On November 21, SCAF […]

MENASource

Nov 22, 2011

The SCAF’s End Game

By Magdy Samaan

“I want the country to be cleansed” said activist Ahmad Harara, a young dentist in his thirties who lost his right eye in the beginning of the Egyptian Revolution on January 28 and lost his left eye last Saturday, November 19, when he was shot by police snipers.  Rooftop snipers have not been seen since […]

Load More