The eruption of the Arab revolts in late 2010 and early 2011 put power relations among Middle Eastern countries in a state of flux, and both winners and losers have emerged. But, given that the strengths and weaknesses of most of the actors are highly contingent, the regional balance of power remains highly fluid. Read […]
The Arab Spring, once heralded by many as the beginning of something beautiful and promising, is now a dark nightmare; legions of reactionary interpreters of Islam take hold in North Africa, Syria today is set to become like Yugoslavia in the 1990s, voices of racial and sectarian intolerance abound from Gulf to ocean (as pan-Arabists […]
Here is the genius of Qatar, the peanut-sized Persian Gulf state that provides material support to Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood and possibly some of Syria’s jihadist rebel groups, in a single image: A two-cheeked kiss, in public, between Qatar’s second-most powerful man, the prime minister (and foreign minister), Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, and Haim […]
The “caution” flag is up when it comes to President Barack Obama deciding the validity of claims that Syrian forces loyal to Bashar Al Assad have used chemical weapons. Perhaps it is good for all of that Obama was at the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Centre. I hope Obama visited the “Decision […]
The White House finally made it official last week: Yes, the civil war in Syria is a slippery slope and yes the US is on it. Nobody in the Obama administration actually used those words, of course, but if you paid attention to what officials said, it was clear that President Barack Obama has reluctantly […]
The Arab world has to listen to the voice of its youth. This is the generation that will determine the future of the region as much in how it will be attained. The Arab youth is a factor that cannot be ignored or sidelined as their strength is in their numbers, aspirations and voice. A […]
The re-election of Khalid Mesha’al, the “relative pragmatist” leader of the Gaza-based Palestinian faction Hamas, is very likely to raise hope that the two most prominent Palestinian political groups may shortly join forces, now that the chances of peace talks between the Palestinians and the Israelis could be at their doorstep. Read Here – Gulf […]
We have had enough of this ridiculous, two-year-old question: Did the Arab Spring have any impact on the six Arab Gulf states of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and the UAE? The one-word answer is an emphatic yes. Obviously these states not only survived the tough challenges of the two-year-old Arab Spring, but also […]
Dubai needs to focus on sustainability, community development and citizen engagement if expats are to feel a sense of attachment to the city and stop looking at it merely as a great employment and investment destination. Read Here – Gulf News
Would Turkey be a moderating influence on political Islam, in particular on the Muslim Brotherhood parties now dominant in much of the new Middle East? Will Erdogan make the country a unique Islamic liberal democracy that will reconcile the Muslim world to the West? Read Here – World Affairs
looking beyond borders 