Middle East Research and Information Project

Critical Coverage of the Middle East Since 1971

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Vivienne Matthies-Boon

Vivienne Matthies-Boon is assistant professor of international relations of the Middle East at the University of Amsterdam.

Trauma as a Counterrevolutionary Strategy

Recent research in Egypt demonstrates how trauma can be (and has been) weaponized as a counterrevolutionary strategy by military and political elites who seek to maintain and strengthen their economic and political power.

Vivienne Matthies-Boon • 12 min read

Current Analysis

Strangers in the Crowd

“The system of fear is back,” whispers an Egyptian political activist. “It is showing its teeth, saying ‘I’m baaack.’” The protest veteran speaks sotto voce even though he is sitting in his living room. And that, he points out, is the biggest change since the heady days of 2011, after the fall of Hu

Vivienne Matthies-Boon • 6 min read

Current Analysis

Sisiphus

Over three days in late May, ‘Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi, the retired field marshal and former head of military intelligence, was elected president of Egypt with 96 percent of the vote. This tally was far higher than the 51.34 percent recorded in 2012 by the man Sisi helped to depose, Muhammad Mursi, and

Gennaro Gervasio, Vivienne Matthies-Boon, Andrea Teti • 12 min read