North Africa

Egypt and Libya: A Fatal Embrace?

By Karim Mezran

The stalemate emerging from the armed political conflict in Libya today suggests that neither the Islamist-backed Operation Dawn nor the more secular Operation Dignity movements have the capacity to dominate the other.

Cairo Court to Consider Facebook, Twitter Ban in Egypt

A Cairo administrative court announced on Thursday that it will hear a lawsuit calling for a ban in Egypt on Facebook and Twitter. The first session in the trial will take place on November 18. The lawsuit, filed by lawyer Mohamed Hamed Salem, calls for the social networking sites to be blocked until they obtain […]

Egypt between Two Billboards

By Mina Fayek

As President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi headed to New York at the end of September to attend the United Nations 69th General Assembly, an advertising campaign was simultaneously launched in the city. Large billboards popped up across New York promoting ‘The New Egypt,’ featuring the tagline, ‘Peace, Prosperity and Growth.’ The source of funding for the […]

Egypt’s Boycott of the Turks

Egyptian authorities have never really cared for their Turkish counterparts, particularly given the close relationship between them and the Muslim Brotherhood under ousted-president Mohamed Morsi. Tensions spiked after the military takeover of Egypt’s political arena on July 3, 2013.

Talk of an Egyptian Boycott of Turkish Goods Won’t Do Anyone Any Good

By Dominic Dudley

Over the past few weeks Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has taken almost every possible opportunity to publically criticize the July 2013 coup that brought President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to power in Egypt in place of Ankara’s hapless ally, Mohamed Morsi.

Tunisia’s Politicians Must Manage Expectations

By Scott Mastic

Turbulence seen across the Middle East and North Africa has caused most observers rightly to see Tunisia as the last best chance for a democratic outcome to the 2011 Arab Spring.

Egypt in Focus: President Sisi in Power

By EgyptSource

Gaining a new president roughly five months ago, Egypt’s domestic and foreign policies are slowly beginning to take shape. An energy crisis, subsidy cuts, and a grand megaproject remain at the forefront of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s economic policy, while his foreign policy focuses on alliances with the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and mending US-Egypt relations. […]

Tunisia Prepares For Its Ultimate Democratic Ordeal

By Christine Petré

As Tunisia prepares for upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections, low turnout or time constraints are a main concern. Aside from the fact that they have their own ramifications for political legitimacy, Tunisian leaders also fear that militant groups could compound the legitimacy problem by disrupting the elections and potentially destabilizing the Arab Spring country’s democratic […]

Independence of Egyptian Media At Stake

By Khaled Dawoud

In a speech delivered in early August at the opening of an ambitious Suez Canal development project, President Abdel-Fatah al-Sisi said, “I demand that Egyptians should be united, and the media has a great responsibility to help achieve that goal. I envy late leader Gamal Abdel-Nasser because when he spoke, he had all the media […]