President Morsi seems more interested in consolidating the power of the Muslim Brotherhood than in governing.
Both the Muslim Brotherhood and Egyptian Opposition Act as If They’re Playing a Zero-Sum Game
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Middle East & North Africa
President Obama Stands Poised to Reward Assad’s Biggest Supporter
Russia throws good money after bad at the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
“Non-Member Observer Status” a Hollow Victory for Abbas
The vote exposed the Palestinian Authority’s failure to address the continuing statelessness of its people.
The Roundabout Road Back To Tahrir
Given the thousands of people returning to Cairo’s Tahrir Square and growing discontent over the economy, security, and civil liberties, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi may have inadvertently provided his critics with a temporary unifying device: rallying to defend the rule of law.
“Argo” and Hollywood’s Muslim Problem
Surely, I thought, the critically acclaimed Argo would be an intelligent film. Directed by noted progressive Ben Affleck, I had high hopes that the film would tackle complex subject matter in a responsible and nuanced way. But while well-intentioned, Argo failed to deliver, falling into the common Hollywood trap of making Muslims into a monolithic Green Menace.
Tunisia’s Labor-Led Siliana Uprising Honors the Memory of Labor Leader Farhat Hached
It was a protest against the government’s fixation with shifting Tunisia in a more religious direction while failing to address its appalling poverty.
Hamas Helped, Israel Handicapped by Threats to Their Respective Publics
Fundamental differences exists between Hamas in Gaza in 2012 compared to 2008.
Hitham’s Tale
In the latest eight-day conflict, six Israelis were killed by Palestinian rocket fire. In Gaza, however, Israeli bombs killed 179 Palestinians—a substantial portion of whom were civilians, including several dozen women and children. One of them was Hitham’s oldest child, who was visiting relatives in Gaza.
Syria and the Semantics of “Civil War”
The semantics of war have been thoroughly debated over the years—one man’s terrorist, as they say, is another man’s freedom fighter. And just as calling the participants in wars by different names affects our feelings toward them, so what we call each war itself is also very important.
Iron Dome’s Effectiveness Is Not an Argument for Missile Defense
The odds that missile defense can protect a state from inter-continental ballistic missiles armed with nuclear weapons are slim to nonexistent.