Middle East

International Community Slams Death Sentence for 529 Morsi Supporters [Update]

By Daniel Stoker

An Egyptian court on Monday sentenced 529 supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi to death for an assault on a Minya police station that left a senior police officer dead. The attack on the police stations occurred shortly after security forces cleared two large pro-Morsi sit-ins on August 14. Said Youssef, the head of the […]

Diplomacy with Iran Through a European Lens

By Nazia Khan

Despite a current political focus on nuclear talks, opening the human rights dialogue with Iran is an essential European Union (EU) priority. Speaking at an Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center roundtable, European Parliament Member Marietje Schaake stressed the need to place human rights at the forefront of the official agenda and to avoid a zero-sum […]

The Week in Egypt – March 24, 2014

By Daniel Stoker

Catch up on the latest out of Egypt every week, with analysis, news updates, photos, videos, and more.

Social Bonds Hold Libya Together, But Stronger Political Bonds Needed to Prosper

By Fadel Lamen

Recent foreign reporting of Libya would suggest that we are on the brink of a civil war. The departure of Prime Minister Zeidan, the inability of the central government to prevent the escape of a mystery oil tanker laden with Libyan oil, the fighting in Sirte: taken together, these portend, in the eyes of outside […]

Syria: Blaming the Opposition

By Frederic C. Hof

Why has Bashar al-Assad been able to hang onto power in western Syria? According to Ambassador Robert Ford, there are three reasons, none of which relates to shortcomings in Western policy.

The Army’s Miracle Cure: Today’s Joke, Tomorrow’s Tragedy

By Mohamed El Dahshan

It was not a cruel joke, and it appears the tragedy endures: on March 23, the Egyptian army’s research unit posted on its Facebook page a link to an online Google spreadsheet, titled “Registration form for Virus C and HIV/AIDS Patient”, for those wishing to book an appointment for treatment. A few hours later, the […]

Addressing Youth Unemployment in Tunisia

By Svetlana Milbert

Three years after Tunisian youth lead an uprising that brought down Zine El Abidine Ben Ali’s autocratic regime and triggered political transitions across the Arab world, they remain economically marginalized with limited socioeconomic opportunities. While the uprising afforded new civil liberties for all Tunisians, persistent high youth unemployment threatens to derail progress.

Youth Activism in the Gulf States: Breaking Taboos

The rise of social media has had a profound effect on youth throughout the world, but in the Gulf in particular this new outlet for information exchange has created a space for activism that was impossible until now. On March 21, 2014, the Atlantic Council launched a new issue brief, “Breaking Taboos: Youth Activism in the […]