Middle East Research and Information Project

Critical Coverage of the Middle East Since 1971

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Lynne Barbee

Lynne Barbee is an editor of this magazine and works at Georgetown University's Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.

Two Books on Eritrea

The war in Eritrea is one of the least studied contemporary conflicts. Only the recurrence of massive drought and famine in the region has prompted the cursory media attention now given to this 24-year-old national liberation struggle. These two books add significantly to the sparse literature on th

Lynne Barbee • 2 min read

MER Article

With the WSLF

I traveled into Ogaden with the Western Somali Liberation Front (WSLF) for five days in August 1980. We drove about 230 miles across open savanna in broad daylight, crossing the main road between the Ethiopian garrisons in Degabur and Gebredarre. On the third day we reached a town of over 10,000, a

Lynne Barbee • 1 min read

MER Article

Letter from the Horn

Khartoum, May 1980: Hundreds of Eritreans, Ethiopians and Somalis were rounded up and put in prison in nearby Omdurman when Ethiopian leader Menguistu Hailemariam visited here May 25 to help celebrate the eleventh anniversary of Sudanese President Jaafar al-Numayri’s seizure of power. The purpose of

Lynne Barbee • 7 min read