Current Analysis Displaced Syrians As in Iraq, the internal war in Syria has forced hundreds of thousands of people to leave their homes. Some 155,000 Syrians have registered [http://www.irinnews.org/Report/96136/Briefing-The-mounting-Syrian-refugee-crisis] with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq or Turkey Chris Toensing • 1 min read
Current Analysis Egyptian Politics Upended When he took office on June 30, President Muhammad Mursi of Egypt looked to have been handed a poisoned chalice. The ruling generals of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) had tolerated a clean presidential election but then had hollowed out the presidency, saddling Mursi with an executiv Mona El-Ghobashy • 18 min read
Current Analysis To Save Syria, Work with Russia and Iran As the violence intensifies in Syria, external powers, including the United States, are embracing increasingly belligerent positions. Indeed, in recent days the United States and Turkey have announced plans to study a no-fly zone after calls by many American commentators for a more direct military r Aziz Rana, Aslı Bâli • 3 min read
Current Analysis The Left, the Jews and Defenders of Israel When Menachem Begin first visited the United States in December 1948, a host of Jewish notables including Albert Einstein, Hannah Arendt, Irma Lindheim (former president of Hadassah), Seymour Melman (former president of the Student Zionist Federation) and the biblical scholar Harry Orlinsky wrote to Joel Beinin • 13 min read
Current Analysis Tripoli's Troubles to Come Tripoli is the epicenter of a high-stakes conflict unfolding in Lebanon. In 2012 alone, armed clashes have erupted six times, in mid-February, thrice in May, again in early June and most recently in late July, between Sunnis and ‘Alawis there. The firefights in Lebanon’s second city, a port town of Maren Milligan • 18 min read
Current Analysis Plain Old Murder Drones are President Barack Obama’s weapon of choice in the war on terror. Since taking office, he has ordered over 280 drone strikes in Pakistan alone. That’s more than eight times as many as George W. Bush authorized and doesn’t even count the scores of other unmanned attacks in Somalia and Yemen Chris Toensing • 2 min read
Current Analysis My 50 Minutes with Manaf During one of my regular visits to Syria, I was with a group of friends at one of the bustling new restaurant-bars that dotted Damascus’ old city, around Bab Touma. Some places were more popular than others, frequented by internationals and a particular stratum of Damascene society that included som Bassam Haddad • 8 min read
Current Analysis How the Army Won Egypt's Election Jubilant chants echoed far beyond Tahrir Square when the Muslim Brothers' candidate, Muhammad Mursi, was confirmed as Egypt’s first civilian president last week. Mursi’s election was lauded across the globe, and many are hailing today’s “transfer” of power as a triumph for democracy. But there is l Joshua Stacher • 3 min read
Current Analysis Ordering Egypt's Chaos To the left of a makeshift stage in a Cairo five-star hotel, the waiting continued. Ahmad Shafiq, the last prime minister of the deposed Husni Mubarak and one of two remaining candidates in Egypt’s first post-Mubarak presidential race, was three hours late. Fewer than 60 hours were left until voting Joshua Stacher • 12 min read
Current Analysis Understanding the Prospects and Challenges for Another Popular Intifada in Sudan While the attention of the Western and Arab media has focused on the historic victory of the Muslim Brotherhood’s presidential candidate in Egypt, street protests of a scale not witnessed for two decades continued into their second week in Khartoum and other major Sudanese cities. Anti-government pr Merip Intern • 2 min read
Current Analysis An All-Consuming Occupation On June 6, 2012, the Jerusalem Development Authority launched its fourth annual Jerusalem Festival of Light in the Old City. The previous year’s show had been a resounding success, according to sponsors quoted in the Jerusalem Post, with over 250,000 visitors enjoying “art installations bursting wit Rebecca L. Stein • 8 min read
Current Analysis A Revolution Is Not a Marketing Campaign A revolution is not a marketing campaign or a digital social network. Joel Beinin • 2 min read
