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Holding Hormuz Hostage
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Could Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz be a mere bluff?
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Issue 1569
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January 2012
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The New Face of Syria
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Burhan Ghalioun: Al-Assad’s regime is over
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Issue 1568
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November/December 2011
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10 Myths About the Arab Spring
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Over six months since the fall of Ben Ali, 10 writers examine the popular myths surrounding the Arab Spring and its future
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Issue 1567
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October 2011
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The Arab Predicament Revisited
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Middle East unrest and the future of the Arab republic
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Issue 1562
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April 2011
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Kuwait at 50
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| Half a century after independence, Kuwait’s bitter experience with pan-Arabism and ongoing regional power plays have affected its growth
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Issue 1561
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March 2011
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The Burned Generation
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| The death of Mohammed Bouazizi may have sparked a revolution in Tunisia, but what of the millions of unemployed youth in the Arab world?
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Issue 1560
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January 2011
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The Middle East US Diplomacy Unveiled
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Published diplomatic cables push transparency limits, but many Americans disagree
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Issue 1559
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December 2010
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Shattered Expectations
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A global survey shows a steep decline in US approval ratings in Muslim count
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Issue 1555
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July 2010
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J Street vs AIPAC
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| J Street has grown since its inception as a force to be reckoned with in American politics. In this issue Steven Glain discusses how the differences between J Street and AIPAC, including their respective influence on politics, might impact the US’s foreign policy in the Middle East.
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Issue 1553
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June 2010
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Ten Steps to Downing Street
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| As the first ever three-way race, with 44 million registered voters, the 6 May general elections in the UK are sure to be thrilling. With an outdated parliamentary system, the expenses scandal and a shattered economy, Labour’s 13-year reign may be threatened by Britain’s desire for real change. Writer Nicholas Blincoe takes you through the ins and outs of general elections in Britain
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Issue 1552
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May 2010
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Iraq’s Grave Crisis
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| The world is watching as the final votes are counted in Iraq’s latest election. The polls have closed, but the hard part is still to come. Al-Maliki and Allawi, the two principal contestants now need to form a coalition government for the smooth transition of leadership. Balloting so far has been marked by acute sectarian polarisation in Shiite-Sunni allegiance. The formation of a cross-sectarian coalition government will ultimately dictate the success of Iraqi democracy. Failure to negotiate may result in a relapse into sectarian violence and even military takeover.
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Issue 1551
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April 2010
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Enter The Dragon
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| Recent proposals to guarantee oil supplies to China in exchange for its cooperation in confronting Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program betray the emergence of China as a central issue in Gulf Security. Regardless of whether these proposals are adopted, they mark a turning point in China’s rise. The question now is: will Beijing become a constructive player in Gulf security or will it only pursue its narrow energy interests?
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Issue 1550
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March 2010
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Dr. Ahmadinejad: How I stopped Worrying And Learned to Love The Bomb
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| There are significant parallels between Ahmadinejad and Kubrik’s most memorable character, Dr. Strangelove. Dr. Strangelove was an extremely trigger-happy, suspiciously double-talking character that so many in 1960s America feared—the same kind of characterization, in fact, that many in the Western media have now branded upon Ahmadinejad. But is there really a madman lurking far beneath the placid surface of Iran’s President?
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Issue 1549
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March 2010
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Who will have the last dance?
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| Despite having spent the latter parts of the ‘90s courting Europe, since 2009 Turkish attention, both politically and economically, has started to look East rather than West. Is this a sign that Turkey, grown tired of its role as the perpetual suitor of Europe, finds the position of regional leader more congenial? Turkey wants to be a major player in the Middle East, and what is crucial to understand is that the AKP’s diplomatic opening has been successful in large part because Turkey is a much more powerful country trade-wise than it was a decade ago.
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Issue 1548
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March 2010
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Friend or Foe?
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| Too many disruptive and unpromising events have been going on just before elections in Iraq, and the promise of a truly democratic state where the rule of law prevails seems grim. These elections will determine much of Iraq’s near future, not only the internal balance of power but also Iraq’s diplomatic relations with other Arab countries, with the US, and with Iran.
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Issue 1547
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March 2010
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A Tale of Survival and Broken Promises
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| The Dubai crisis is not a world crisis but a crisis for the UAE federation. The crisis will considerably affect the economic and political position of the sheikhdom within the federation by unsettling the balance of power between Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The crisis is also a blow to those devising post-oil developmental strategies for Middle Eastern countries.
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Issue 1546
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February 2010
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Next to Normal
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After Prime Minister Hariri was finally able to cobble together a fragile coalition government, there is now some promise of a future closer to normal than anything the country has experienced since before the civil war. “Next to normal” in Lebanon means something modest—political conflicts have become routinized, channelled within existing institutions, and less likely to drive the country into violence.
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Issue 1545
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February 2010
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Keynes Trade Mark
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Although relentlessly compared to the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Global Financial Crisis has not produced an equally catastrophic collapse of the trade regime. What one does see is a change in official discourse, a come back to the era of big government. This trend, however, is not without consequences to the global economy.
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Issue 1544
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February 2010
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How Al-Qaeda Turned Algerian
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The advent of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb was a shocking turn of events for Algeria. Although violent Islamist groups had been present in the country during the black decade of the civil war, these organizations were nationalist groups and their violent tactics never compared to those employed by al Qaeda. Drawing from Algeria’s history, Filiu explains how Al-Qaeda’s infiltration in the country grew and stymied between the 90’s until today.
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Issue 1543
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February 2010
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Rigging The Game
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Independent oil producers are increasingly vulnerable, in comparison to governments of the developing world, whose national oil companies control the future of global energy consumption. However humbling the rise of the NOC may be for the majors, most oil experts say it is a positive development for the industry as a whole.
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Issue 1542
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January 2010
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Obama’s Arc of Crisis
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The first year of Obama’s administration has passed so quickly that it would be unfair to focus only on reviewing the events of the past twelve months without examining with equal vigor the trends that Obama’s election and foreign policy have set in motion and scenarios for the year ahead.
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Issue 1541
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January 2010
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Generation X
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The advent of a powerful middle class promises an empowerment of this important sector of society, including the youth that composes it. Despite these promises however, challenges remain in the way of the youth’s ability to achieve its potential.
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Issue 1540
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January 2010
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The Heat is On
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From wars over the collapse of water supplies, to the extinction of coastal fish stocks and the end of industries like agriculture and tourism, climate change threatens to destabilize the Middle East in the mid-term far more than any form of violent extremism or tyrannical government.
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Issue 1538
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December 2009
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Assad Phase II
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Shaking off the enormous pressure put upon him by the West when he first took office, Bashar Al Assad is now virtually unchallenged, and Syria is being courted by the Americans, the Europeans and the Arabs. This redemption – and the restoration of Syria as an indispensable Middle East player – owes much to the power of unintended consequences.
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Issue 1537
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December 2009
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What Lies Beneath
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All signs indicate that Iran is playing a vital role in supporting the Houthis. Yahya Al-Houthi, the political representative of Houthis abroad, implied, in one of his press interviews, that his group has opened channels of communication with members of the Iranian government.
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Issue 1536
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December 2009
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7 Years of AKP Rule
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The rise of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), a party rooted in Turkey’s Islamist opposition, to government in 2002 introduced new social, political, and foreign policy winds across the Turkish society. After seven years of AKP rule, the Anatolian Turks are bending over to the power of the AKP, orthopraxy and the Islamist mindset in foreign policy are taking hold.
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Issue 1534
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November 2009
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The End of Jihad
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Thirty Years after the attacks on Mecca, Professor Jean Pierre Filiu, traces the evolution of this tactic. Highlighting the rise of nationalist and revolutionary jihad, Filiu illustrates how modern attempts of jihad are demonstrative of a crisis within Al-Qaida.
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Issue 1533
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November 2009
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Arab Facebook
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The virtual world offers new opportunities for political expression and communication. Why political discussion has migrated to the Internet is obvious.
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Issue 1532
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November 2009
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Who Rules Pakistan?
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From the point of view of the administration and development of the state as a whole, it really doesn’t matter whether Pakistan is under a civilian or a military government; for a fundamental political fact about Pakistan is that the state, whoever claims to lead it, is weak, and society in its various forms is immensely strong.
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Issue 1531
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November 2009
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The State of Hamas
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Hamas has managed to consolidate its regime in Gaza through the systematic establishment of internal order and security.
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Issue issue 1530
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October 2009
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Paved with Good Intentions?
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The Political Road to Economic Reform
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Issue 1529
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October 2009
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The Aging Party
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The Muslim Brotherhood has been a fixed, if at times shadowy coordinate in a region molten with change since it was partitioned under Franco-British rule after World War I.
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Issue 1528
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October 2009
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What it Means to be a Houthi
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The Yemeni government currently faces serious opposition from the Houthis, a rebel group whose origins coincide with the socio-economic and political grievances that have been growing in the country.
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Issue 1527
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October 2009
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Made in China
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The Chinese government is genuinely afraid of an escalation of Islamic extremism in the Xinjiang Region of China and the potential destabilization that this will cause.
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Issue 1526
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July 2009
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Lebanon After Elections
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On 7th June 2009, The people of Lebanon went to the polls in unprecedented numbers.
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Issue 1525
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July 2009
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Upheaval in Iran
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The current situation in Iran is as unstable as it is unpredictable. Comparisons between what is going on today and what happened in 1979 are drawn, mainly as a way of grasping in which direction the events will push Iran’s political system. A crucial aspect at the heart of the protests is Iran’s shattered economy, making this revolution the Iranian people revolution.
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Issue 1524
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June 2009
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Who Owns Islam?
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The problem with Islamic movements is that they started their reform programs by advancing the cause Islam and ended up promoting their own cause. In short, they equated themselves with Islam and failed to realize the difference between Islam and their own vision of it. Thus the line of demarcation between the “sacred” and the “non-sacred” has been blurred, resulting in utter confusion
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Issue 1523
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June 2009
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Greater Persia
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After the American elections that gave the much expected victory to Obama, the Iranian presidential elections are also attracting huge attention. The reason for this is that, as it is widely acknowledged, in case any of the opponents of Ahmadinejad is able to force him into to a second round and win, this is likely to produce significant political changes in the region and in Iran’s relationships with the US in particular and the outside world in general.
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Issue 1522
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June 2009
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The Return of Neighbourhood Politics in Lebanon?
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The forthcoming Lebanese elections are generally seen as a rare and real opportunity for the Lebanese people to have a say in their own futures. In spite of this, the fears that regional interests and regional struggles might interfere in the process have not wither way.
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Issue 1521
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June 2009
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After America
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As the date of the American withdrawal from Iraq approaches, there are some imperative measures to be taken and goals to be achieved to help assuring that the recent progresses will not reverse once the American withdrawal takes place
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Issue 1520
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May 2009
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Democracy: The Kuwaiti Flavour
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Kuwait has jumped into the spotlight of Middle East news following a fresh crisis between the government and the National Assembly. The crisis, it is argued, is a direct result of lack of active coordination between the executive power and the legislative power.
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Issue 1519
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May 2009
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The Party versus the Nationalist State
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The case of Hezbollah conspirators arrested in Egypt highlights the dire need to unify Arab ranks in the face of foreign plots that seek to undermine peace and stability in the region.
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Issue 1518
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April 2009
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The Recession’s Exit
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Until six months ago, a popular refuge from the mushrooming recession was the idea that the global economy was reforming itself into regional blocks or corridors that would devolve economic power away from the United States and toward the emerging markets of Asia and the Persian Gulf. It was called “decoupling” and it was thought to represent a higher form of globalization, one in which the world economy could draw on one of several engines for momentum instead of a single, dominant one. All the politicians had to do was to stand back and let it happen.
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Issue 1517
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April 2009
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The Arab Predicament Revisited
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Middle East unrest and the future of the Arab republic
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Issue 1562
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April 2011
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