Programs

Middle East Programs

Working with our allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

Libya

Content

MENASource

May 28, 2015

Rare Acquittal Renews Protest Law Debate

By Khaled Dawoud

The dozens of lawyers crammed in a small room at Abdin’s Courthouse on May 23 were unable to contain their shock when the judge ruled to acquit all seventeen defendants charged with holding an illegal protest on January 24. The defendants, accused of breaking Egypt’s restrictive protest law, were facing up to five years in […]

North Africa

Event Recap

May 27, 2015

Crisis in Libya: European and Libyan Views

By Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East

On Wednesday, May 20, the Atlantic Council hosted Dr. Mattia Toaldo, Policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, and Abdul Rahman Al Ageli, Cofounder of the Libyan Youth Forum, for a roundtable discussion about the current crisis in Libya. The speakers shared their insights of the nuanced dynamics on-the-ground and Europe’s perspective and […]

Libya

MENASource

May 27, 2015

The New Old Wafd

By Nervana Mahmoud

Egypt’s oldest nationalist party, the Wafd Party, is facing a deep and challenging internal conflict. Despite intervention by Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, a new internal election, and a formal announcement that the crisis is over, the party’s internal problems are unlikely to heal soon. 

North Africa

In the News

May 22, 2015

Hawthorne on Hillary Clinton’s Legacy in Tunisia

By Amy Hawthorne

Newsweek quotes Rafik Hariri Center Resident Senior Fellow Amy Hawthorne on Hillary Clinton’s legacy of progress in Tunisia:

North Africa

Article

May 22, 2015

Tunisia Looks to US to Secure Fragile Democracy

By Barbara Slavin

President Barack Obama hosted Tunisian President Béji Caïd Essebsi at the White House, where they held talks. Ahead of their May 21 meeting, The Washington Post published an opinion editorial, jointly written by the two leaders. Excerpts follow. Helping Tunisia Realize its Democratic Promise Amid the turmoil that so often dominates the headlines, it can […]

North Africa

MENASource

May 22, 2015

Reem Maged versus the Government

By Khaled Dawoud

After a two year hiatus, outspoken television host Reem Maged returned to Egypt’s TV screens, hosting a new program in which she interviews inspirational Egyptian women. Her return was short-lived, with the show suspended after the airing of just two episodes. On May 15, Maged said that ONtv’s director informed her that the third episode […]

North Africa

MENASource

May 21, 2015

Egypt’s Sisi: Reformer or Strongman?

By Dwight Bashir

This past weekend’s mass death sentences handed down to former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi and more than 100 others is another stark reminder of the government’s relentless assault on all forms of dissent in Egypt. By far the biggest targets have been supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood, but also opposition figures, critics, journalists, and rights […]

North Africa

MENASource

May 21, 2015

Train-and-Equip Alone Will Not Help Tunisia

By Haykel Ben Mahfoudh

Tunisia has faced increasingly complex security problems since its uprising in 2011 and in the country’s post-revolution phase. Tunisia’s government has taken some steps towards addressing its security concerns by placing security logistics as a top priority and key political actors—including police unions—have debated security reforms within the public discourse.

North Africa

New Atlanticist

May 20, 2015

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Libya?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Analysts discuss the humanitarian, security, and political crises emanating from a country in chaos  The chaos in Libya that has prevailed since the ouster of Moammar Gadhafi in 2011 has placed both a humanitarian as well as a security crisis on Europe’s doorstep. Libya today has two governments—one in Tripoli and the other in Tobruk. […]

European Union International Organizations

MENASource

May 20, 2015

US Support for Tunisia Needed Now

By Karim Mezran and Lara Talverdian

Tunisia has provided a glimmer of hope in a region that continues to be roiled by the aftermath of the Arab Spring. That hope risks being extinguished as the North African nation now grapples with the daunting challenges of governance.

North Africa

Experts