Middle East & North Africa Archives - Page 223 of 595

Iran’s Twitter Revolution

by John Feffer, Patrick W. Quirk | Jun 17, 2009

“Everybody try to film as much as poss[ible] today on mobiles…these are eyes of world,” declared a posting on user Persiankiwi’s Twitter page. The poster urged Iranians to take to the streets on Monday, June 15, and document the government-sponsored crackdown against rallies in support of demands by Mir Hossein Mousavi, the primary reformist challenger. Mousavi allegedly lost in an apparent landslide of nearly two-to-one against incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Iran’s recent presidential election.

Ahmadinejad’s Coup D’Etat

by John Feffer, Bernd Kaussler | Jun 16, 2009

Three days after the presidential elections in Iran and over 48 hours after violent clashes between crowds and security forces across Tehran, it’s evident that what happened was a coup d’état. The military-security establishment and certain elements in Iran’s clerical nomenclature carefully planned a large-scale manipulation of the election. They were evidently prepared for the riots and protest that followed. Anticipating a high voter turnout and victory for reformist challenger Mir-Hossein Mousavi, security forces blatantly took control of the entire election process and virtually declared martial law in Tehran.

‘Palestinians’ without ‘Palestine’

by Ira Chernus, John Feffer | Jun 16, 2009

"Obama welcomes Netanyahu acceptance of Palestinian state," the headlines blared. Well, at least that’s settled. With the U.S. president having shown the Israeli prime minister who is boss, both are headed toward the same long-term goal of a two-state solution — or so it seems.

Obama’s Speech: Vexing Issues

by Emily Schwartz Greco, Adil E. Shamoo | Jun 10, 2009

President Barack Obama began the dialogue between the West and the Muslim and Arab worlds by directly confronting the vexing issues between them. The new tone is devoid of arrogance and emphasizes peaceful coexistence — in contrast to the prior administration’s bellicose tone and militaristic policy.

How Not to Support Democracy in the Middle East

by Emily Schwartz Greco, Stephen Zunes | Jun 8, 2009

President Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo to the Muslim world marked a welcome departure from the Bush administration’s confrontational approach. Yet many Arabs and Muslims have expressed frustration that he failed to use this opportunity to call on the autocratic Saudi and Egyptian leaders with whom he had visited on his Middle Eastern trip to end their repression and open up their corrupt and tightly controlled political systems.

Improving U.S.-Muslim Relations: Obama’s Other Audience

by Emily Schwartz Greco, R.S. Zaharna | Jun 5, 2009

No doubt, commentators around the globe will be assessing how President Barack Obama’s historic speech on strengthening U.S.-Muslim relations played around the globe for a long time. While people across the Arab and Islamic world comprised the president’s target audience, ultimately the U.S. public is pivotal for making that outreach succeed. Despite the promise of a new beginning, American prejudice against Arabs and Muslims has the potential to undermine the effectiveness of U.S. public diplomacy and Obama’s bold outstretched hand.

Changing the Discourse: First Step toward Changing the Policy?

by Phyllis Bennis, Emily Schwartz Greco | Jun 4, 2009

President Barack Obama’s much-anticipated Cairo speech reflected a significant shift away from the ideological framework of militarism and unilateralism that shaped the Bush administration’s war-based policy toward the Arab and Muslim worlds. His "not Bush" focus was perhaps most sharply evident in his public denunciation of the Iraq War as a "war of choice." Obama’s call for a "new beginning" based on "the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition" was followed by a move to shift the official U.S. discourse toward something closer to internationalism — particularly by pointing to parallels between historical (and some contemporary) grievances and treating them as equivalent. This included his reference to the U.S. "role in the overthrow of a democratically elected Iranian government," along with Iran’s "role in acts of hostage-taking and violence against U.S. troops and civilians."

Why the Maghreb Really Matters

by John Feffer, Aminatou Haidar | Jun 4, 2009

The Maghreb is again a major talking point in the United States. In the perceived interests of fighting terrorism and promoting trade, a group of politicians and pundits are urging the Obama administration to side with Morocco and against self-determination for the Sahrawis of Western Sahara. They also urge a regional union for the Maghreb. Yet reaching for a quick fix that supports Morocco’s campaigns in any of these areas would set such a Maghreb Union back years.

Defending Israeli War Crimes

by Emily Schwartz Greco, Stephen Zunes | May 28, 2009

In response to a series of reports by human rights organizations and international legal scholars documenting serious large-scale violations of international humanitarian law by Israeli armed forces in its recent war on the Gaza Strip, 10 U.S. state attorneys general sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton defending the Israeli action. It is virtually unprecedented for state attorneys general — whose mandates focus on enforcement of state law — to weigh in on questions regarding the laws of war, particularly in a conflict on the far side of the world. More significantly, their statement runs directly counter to a broad consensus of international legal opinion that recognizes that Israel, as well as Hamas, engaged in war crimes.

Lessons from Moscow and Tehran

by Emily Schwartz Greco, Benjamin Tua | May 27, 2009

Following three decades of mutually hostile postures characterized by minimal communication and limited and sporadic cooperation, the United States and Iran may be about to reengage more constructively.

Such a development, while important for us, would be of even greater significance for the greater Middle East and beyond. Its impact on a variety of relationships, including that between the United States and Israel, and those between Israel and its neighbors, would be transformative and positive. But much must happen by way of careful and persistent diplomacy to get the various moving parts in place. As Washington proceeds to restructure what is probably the key relationship in the region — namely, that between itself and Iran — it would do well to consider how another country has approached its own relations with Iran, in good times and bad. That country is Russia.