Arab World

A Pew poll shows that far fewer Americans are following events in Egypt closely now than in January-February 2011. Actually, about the same percentage are following it “fairly closely” as then (a quarter now versus 31% in 2011). The big fall-off is in people following events on the Nile “very closely,” which are only 15% […]

Egypt

New Egyptian gov’t on being sworn in, Complains of Turkish Interference in Egyptian Affairs

Juan Cole

Egypt’s appointed interim President Adly Mansour swore in a cabinet of 33 ministers on Tuesday, including 3 women, 7 members of the National Salvation Front, and 5 members of the previous, Hisham Qandil, government who agreed to stay on. The cabinet contains some of Egypt’s best economists, raising hopes that the country’s deep economic doldrums […]

Egypt

The Backlash against Political Islam is not a Backlash against Islam: Egypt and Bangladesh

Juan Cole

There is a big difference between being a believing Muslim and being a devotee of political Islam. Political Islam attempts to make the religion a platform for gaining governmental power. This movement (political Islam or the Muslim religious Right) has been very important in many Muslim countries in the past few decades, but its rise […]

Egypt

Egypt: Prosecutor Comes after Morsi, Muslim Brotherhood, as Divided Mass Protests Continue

Juan Cole

Egypt’s June 30 Movement is calling for big demonstrations on Sunday, saying “no” to “terrorism” and “yes” to the “gains of the Revolution.” The movements appears to be identifying elements of the deposed Muslim Brotherhood government as ‘terrorists’ (as far as I know it is mainly the Sinai Muslim radicals that fit that bill, not […]

Egypt

Egyptian PM Biblawi: Egypt had Left the “Arab Group” to Join the “Islamic Group”

Juan Cole

The USG Open Source Center translates an interview with new interim appointed prime minister of Egypt, Hazem Biblawi, in the Pan-Arab daily, al-Sharq al-Awsat. I have excerpted some of it below: “Interview with Egyptian Prime Minister Dr Hazim al-Biblawi, by Abd-al-Sattar Hatitiah, from Cairo: “New Egyptian Prime Minister in an Interview with Al-Sharq Al-Awsat: Our […]

Egypt

Egypt: Rebellion Movement Pressures President, PM to Pare Claimed Powers

Juan Cole

As Egypt braced for dueling huge demonstrations on Friday, a spokesman for the Rebellion or Tamarrud Movement, Hasan Shahin, said Thursday that the campaign expects the appointed interim president, Adly Mansour, to issue a new set of constitutional guidelines on the transitional government. Those declared a couple of days ago, they said, give too much […]

Syria

Remembering Syria: Homs ‘Ghost Town’ Under heavy Regime Bombardment

Juan Cole

In winter of 2012, the world was mesmerized and horrified as the Syrian Baath regime drew up artillery pieces and its tanks and fired on non-combatant civilian districts. Now, non-combatantants are under artillery barrages, and it seems as though the world is paying no attention. In Homs, according to the official newspaper al-Watan, there was […]

Egypt

Aljazeera’s Conspiracy Theory about Obama and Egypt is Brainless Mush

Juan Cole

Aljazeera Arabic has long since lost a lot of its previous journalisic standards, once its head, Waddah Khanfar, was fired in favor a member of the royal family. Some 22 Egyptian journalists just resigned from Aljazeera in Cairo in protest against its Fox-News-like biases in reporting on recent events. Aljazeera English usually still does a […]

Arab Spring

Middle East Regional Contention over Egypt’s New Government

Juan Cole

The change of government in Egypt produced starkly different reactions in various Middle Eastern countries, which tells us something about the situation there. With the exception of maverick member Qatar, the Gulf Cooperation Council, grouping six conservative Gulf oil monarchies, cheered loudest for the military coup made by Brig. Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi against elected […]