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

New Atlanticist

Jan 18, 2012

Egyptian Style Democracy

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

U.S. democracy-building organizations — one Republican, one Democrat, both funded by the U.S. taxpayer — that have been telling Egyptians how to be good democrats, how to demonstrate peacefully and have truly free elections didn’t sit too well with the Egyptian military, which has ruled Egypt since 1952. The only real democracy Egyptians have known […]

North Africa

Event Recap

Jan 17, 2012

Egypt: What Does an Islamist Majority in Parliament Mean for the Transition?

By Jason Harmala

The Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted an off-the-record discussion of Egypt’s landmark parliamentary elections on January 17.

North Africa

New Atlanticist

Jan 11, 2012

Threats to Watch in 2012

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

On Dec. 18, 2010, a police slap of a vegetable-cum-fruit peddler in the Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid triggered an “Arab Spring” that no one had forecast and that quickly spawned a long, dark Arab winter. Before the end of January 2011, violent unrest had spread to Egypt. By Feb. 11, after 18 days of […]

Libya North Africa

Event Recap

Dec 2, 2011

Discussion on Egypt with Bahey El Din Hassan

By Jason Harmala

The Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East held a lunch discussion with Bahey El Din Hassan, Director of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) and one of Egypt’s leading human rights activists, on December 2.

North Africa

Event Recap

Nov 30, 2011

Dispatch from Port Said: An Observer’s Perspective on Egypt’s Pivotal Elections

By Jason Harmala

On November 30, the Atlantic Council organized a conference call briefing with Michele Dunne, director of the Rafik Hariri Center, who called in from Cairo to provide a firsthand perspective on Egypt’s fiercely contested parliamentary elections.

North Africa

New Atlanticist

Nov 29, 2011

The Role of the West in a Libyan Trial of Saif al-Islam Qaddafi

By Yuvaraj Sivalingam

The international community played a critical role in aiding the Libyan rebel campaign that ultimately led to the ouster and death of Muammar Qaddafi. Now, the international community may yet play another crucial role as Libya attempts to demonstrate its ability to prosecute prominent members of the former regime in a manner that upholds international standards […]

Libya

Issue Brief

Nov 21, 2011

A US-EU action plan for supporting democratization: Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia

By Danya Greenfield

In advance of the US-EU summit on November 28 in Washington, DC, the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East and Transatlantic Relations Program released “A US-EU Action Plan for Supporting Democratization: Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia.” In partnership with the Polish Institute for International Affairs (PISM), the Atlantic Council developed an action plan […]

Libya North Africa
Egypt’s Parliamentary Elections: Expectations and Challenges

Event Recap

Nov 15, 2011

Egypt’s Parliamentary Elections: Expectations and Challenges

By Adrienne Chuck

The Hariri Center co-hosted a panel discussion with the Wilson Center and the Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) previewing Egypt’s upcoming parliamentary elections and announcing the launch of EgyptSource, a new blog featuring Egyptian perspectives on the transition, on November 14.

North Africa

Event Recap

Nov 15, 2011

Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East Launches New Egypt Resources

By Jason Harmala

November 15 marked the launch of EgyptSource, the new blog by the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East which follows Egypt’s transition and provides a platform for Egyptian perspectives on the major issues—economic, political, legal, religious and human rights—that are at stake in the post-Mubarak era.

North Africa

Issue Brief

Nov 14, 2011

Egypt’s imperiled transition: Pakistan on the Nile?

By Michele Dunne

A new issue brief by Hariri Middle East Center director Michele Dunne explores the troubled state of Egypt’s democratic transition.

North Africa

Experts