Tunisia

Ahmet Erdi Ozturk says that the sphere of authority of Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs should be redefined. A post from Cairobserver argues that Cairo has a strong potential for civic tourism, in which visitors come to see the city itself instead of only specific sites, that has not been tapped. Mohamad-Salah Omri discusses Tunisia’s recently approved constitution, claiming that it is important both for its content and for the process from which it resulted.

Matthew Vickery discusses the Saharawis, people of the Western Sahara, and their largely unheard calls for self-determination. Shaimaa Abu Elkhir says that Tunisia’s draft constitution needs stronger guarantees for press freedom. Al-Masdar, a useful and comprehensive online resource for teachers and students of the Arabic language.

Karl Sharro provides, in comical fashion, a guide to Syria’s moderate rebels. Sara Salem reviews the Egyptian military vis-à-vis the 2011 uprising. Alaya Allani argues that Tunisia’s Islamists promote an Islamist identity and not a modern Islamic one.

Amr Shalakany analyzes the Egyptian July 8 constitutional declaration, arguing it establishes a de facto state of emergency in Egypt. In the wake of last week’s political assassination in Tunisia, Andrew Lebovich and Aaron Y. Zelin examine links between the alleged assassin and terrorist groups in North Africa. Tarek Megerisi and Michael Meyer-Resende emphasize the necessity of a constitutional consensus in Libya to avoid the political turmoil unfolding in Egypt and Tunisia.

Musa al-Gharbi claims that the Arab Spring has failed to render al-Qaeda irrelevant, and it is now on the verge of resurgence. Tunisia-Live’s live blog for updates on Thursday’s assassination of Mohammed Brahmi, leader of the opposition Popular Movement Party in Tunisia. Hani Al Masri examines the limitations on the Palestinian Authority’s position in the new peace negotiations.

Steve Negus, writing on Arabist.com, reviews President Mohammed Morsi’s first year. A visual of Qatar’s ruling family, the al-Thani dynasty, depicting family dynamics of the recent succession. Ishac Diwan and Hedi Larbi question how political Islam in Tunisia can be a constructive player in a democracy.    

This article was originally published on The Atlantic on Monday, May 12, 2013. Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Qandil announced a cabinet reshuffle recently that included a number of new ministers from the ranks of the Muslim Brotherhood’s leadership. This development seems to have confirmed the worst fears of the Egyptian opposition, which has raised concern over the "Brotherhoodization" of the country. Although the increased representation of the Brothers in the government is cause for alarm for Egypt’s secularists and liberals, they should be concerned about a quieter, but more worrying process -- the Islamization of Egypt’s political institutions -- which is likely to be far more durable than the Brotherhood’s grip on political power. This phenomenon is not just underway in Egypt, however. Islamist power and the Islamization of society are what the the future holds for Egypt, Tunisia, post-Assad Syria, and likely other countries in the region. Given that the noticeable evidence of the Islamization in the Middle East is few and far between, the idea that Islamization is the trajectory of the region might seem misplaced. Egypt’s Muslim Brothers and Tunisia’s Ennahda have not declared alcohol forbidden, forced women to don the hijab, or instituted hudud punishments (i.e., specific punishments for specific crimes set forth in the Qur’an or hadiths). Continue reading here...

“Their lives are worthless when it comes to the interests of Egypt and Egyptians…I am a president after a revolution, meaning that we can sacrifice a few so the country can move forward. It is absolutely no problem.” –Egyptian president Mohammad Morsi responding to violent clashes between members of the opposition and the Muslim Brotherhood “Yesterday I was really surprised by the comment issued from the White House that it was not possible to increase the range of the Patriot missiles to protect the Syrian people…I’m scared that this will be a message to the Syrian regime telling it ’Do what you want’.” –Moaz Alkhatib, leader of the Syrian National Coalition, in an interview with Reuters “Sometimes…a girl contributes 100 percent to her own raping when she puts herself in these conditions.” –Adel Abdel Maqsoud Afifi, an Egyptian police general, lawmaker and ultraconservative Islamist “Homs is burning and no one cares.” –An unidentified Syrian activist “All those you attacked in your interview in Al-Akhbar are more honorable than you, even Antoine Lahd because while he only collaborated with Israel, you served as an agent for Abu Ammar [Yasser Arafat] – the late head of the Palestinian Authority – as well as for ousted [late] Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and the Soviets and the U.S. and Syrian President Bashar Assad and Israel.” –Free Patriotic Movement representative Naji Hayek speaking about Progressive Social leader Walid Jumblatt “The majority want a compromise…It’s impossible to bring things back under control as they were.” –Roaa Salem discussing the views of fellow students at Damascus University on the Syrian civil war “I think they need a second revolution…We prefer not to choose from bourgeois political parties.” – Armazan Tulunay, a young revolutionary socialist at the World Social Forum at Manara University in Tunisa

Haifa Zaaiter argues that the "Harlem Shake" craze that has hit Tunisia may end up disarming the Salafists of their most potent weapon: denouncement of apostasy. The Impatient Bedouin reflects on the recent outburst of violence in Jordan’s parliament over the country’s decision to raise fuel prices last week. Mustafa Akyol recalls his interview this past Monday with Sheikh Mouaz al-Khatib, the President of the National Coalition for Opposition Forces and the Syrian Revolution.

An interview with anonymous Twitter user @Mujtahidd, who has been tweeting provocative things about Saudi Arabia’s rulers. An article from Muftah, discussing the declining credibility of Tunisia’s Ennahda party. Arun Kapil takes a hard look at Tariq Ramadan’s most recent book.  

Significant Developments Egypt. President Mohammed Morsi issued a decree last night calling for parliamentary elections to begin April 27 and end in late June. The vote will take place in four stages across different regions dues to a shortage of electoral supervisors. The new parliament will then convene for the first time on July 6. A spokesman for the opposition umbrella group, the National Salvation Front, said that it would decide whether or not to boycott the elections early next week. The opposition is unhappy at Morsi’s call for elections amidst political turmoil and that that electoral laws passed by the Islamist-dominated interim parliament are slanted towards the Muslim Brotherhood. Syria. Three car bombings rocked Damascus yesterday, including a massive explosion near Syria’s ruling party headquarters, killing over fifty people. The state-sponsored Syrian Arab News Agency blamed the attack on terrorists while a spokesman for the Free Syrian Army (FSA) denied any involvement. Meanwhile, FSA chief of staff Brigadier General Salim Idriss gave Hezbollah a forty-eight hours deadline on Wednesday in which to cease its military operations in Syria or face retaliation against Hezbollah targets inside Lebanon. The threat came after several days of fighting between Syrian rebels and Hezbollah militants around several small villages near the Syrian-Lebanese border. Tunisia. Tunisian president Moncef Marzouki asked Interior Minister Ali Larayedh today to form a new government within the next two weeks. Larayedh, a hardliner from Tunisia’s ruling Islamist party Ennahda, was selected in an overnight party meeting yesterday after Tunisian prime minister Hamadi Jebali resigned on Tuesday. Jebali apologized to the Tunisian people in a televised address last night for “failing and disappointing” after his own party rejected his proposal form a technocrat cabinet. U.S. Foreign Policy The State Department announced on Tuesday that John Kerry’s first trip as secretary of state will include the Middle East. Kerry departs on Tuesday for Great Britain, Germany, France, and Rome, after which he will travel on to Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. His entire trip will last from February 24 to March 6.  While We Were Looking Elsewhere Israel. Hatnuah party chief Tzipi Livni signed a coalition agreement with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, making her Hatnuah party Likud Beiteinu’s first coalition partner. Livni is slated to join Netanyahu’s government as justice minister and Israel’s chief negotiator with the Palestinians. The agreement reportedly stipulates that any deal Livni might reach with the Palestinians would be subject to approval by the cabinet, the Knesset, and possibly a popular voter referendum. Iran. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reported yesterday that Iran has begun installing newer and more efficient equipment at its main uranium enrichment plant at Natanz. The news came on the same day that a French foreign ministry spokesman confirmed that the P5+1 will make a new negotiating offer with a “significant new element” at the upcoming round of nuclear talks to be held in Kazakhstan on February 26. Palestine. Palestinian protesters clashed with Israeli security forces today in Jerusalem’s Old City and in the West Bank in demonstrations over four imprisoned Palestinians who have been on extended hunger strikes. The Palestinian deputy minister for detainee affairs, Ziad Abu Ein, warned that “if any of the prisoners die, it will set the occupied territories on fire.” Yemen. Three people were shot dead by Yemeni police today as they headed to a rally for southern independence in Aden. The deaths followed clashes between government forces and southern independence movement members yesterday that interrupted a celebration of the first anniversary of Yemen’s presidential election. This Week in History Thursday marked the ninety-second anniversary of the coup that brought Reza Khan, later to be known as Reza Shah Pahlavi, to power in Persia. On February 21, 1921, Reza Khan’s forces of 1,200 men occupied Teheran and forced the dissolution of the previous government. In the aftermath, he was appointed commander of the military and minister of war. A few years later, Reza Khan ousted the country’s titular head and founded the Pahlavi Dynasty. In 1935 the shah changed the country’s name from Persia to Iran