Syria Under Fire as Assad Slowly Loses Supporters
August 8, 2011 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
Another stark reminder of the astounding brutality displayed by the Assad regime in Syria surfaced last week when the Guardian translated and published a harrowing account of Syrian woman Samar Yazbek’s shocking torture at the hands of Syrian authorities.
Two huge men entered the room. They stood in readiness, in plainclothes. One of them stood to the right and the other to the left. With a signal from his eyes, each seized me by the shoulders, though not roughly. They seized me as if I were some object, easy for them to move. I did not resist when they started to lift me out of my chair. I even stood up, surprised at what was happening…
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Tent Protests and Economic Inequality in Israel
August 5, 2011 | Tzvi Fleischer
As the tent protest movement continues to dominate headlines inside Israel, one of the facts often heard in explaining the background to its growth is that economic inequality inside Israel is very high…
Such claims are not necessarily wrong, but they do oversimplify a complex reality. Those widely cited OECD income inequality numbers reflect in part the diverse, multi-cultural nature of Israeli society…
Just What Exactly is Going On in Egypt?
August 5, 2011 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
While most eyes have been directed at the public spectacle of the trial of former dictator Hosni Mubarak, a less visible but far more important trial has been facing Egypt as a whole. As Sharyn outlined on Wednesday, the increasing show of strength by Islamist forces in Egypt has dramatically altered the fabric of Egypt’s revolution.
The watershed moment came last Friday, when Islamist groups flooded Tahrir square – which had been occupied for months by liberal activists attempting to pressure the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) – in order to reclaim the revolution from the “infidel liberals”. The square was promptly emptied by the armed forces, leaving the heart of Egypt’s revolution lying empty and posing numerous questions about the future.
The Brookings Institute’s Khaled Elgindy has written a detailed outline of the broad political landscape currently displayed in post-revolutionary Egypt…
Iran’s economic management is the regime’s weak spot
August 5, 2011 | Allon Lee
Iran’s economy appears so inherently fragile, that concerted external financial pressure on its energy sector could bring the regime to its knees and Washington Institute for Near East Policy analyst Patrick Clawson shows how it can be done:
If oil prices decline — or, more important, if the United States and its allies can dissuade countries and companies from paying for Iranian oil (Washington has no objections if they receive said oil, only if they pay for it) — then the Islamic Republic could face serious problems paying for the checks to which the Iranian people are rapidly becoming accustomed.
Iran Bans Waterfights and Steps Closer to Nuclear War
August 5, 2011 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
As reported by MEMRI, Iranian summers just became a little less enjoyable when the Iranian Parliament moved to ban watergun fights, after pictures of a waterfight in a Teheran park were posted online. Unfortunately, this was not the most absurd statement made by an Iranian official this week (in fact, with Iran’s “moral police” patrolling the country, it is all too believable).
The cake in fact goes to Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who made yet another claim that Iran’s clandestine nuclear program, while off-limits to International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors, is in fact for peaceful purposes. As reported by Reuters:
“When we say we don’t want to build an atomic bomb it means we really do not want to build an atomic bomb”…
Israel’s “Tent Protest” Movement/ Inside the Egyptian Revolution
August 5, 2011
This Update features material explaining the Tent protest movement which continues to dominant the news inside Israel. It also offers an inside view from Cairo on the precarious state of the Egyptian revolution.
We lead with a useful BICOM (Britain-Israel Communications and Research Centre) backgrounder on the tent protests. It offers some detailed explanation of the make-up and goals of the movement – which began over housing but has now increased its demands to incorporate many other social issues – as well as its implications for the Netanyahu Government. It explains that the timing of the movement, which follows on from some previous public campaigns, but is also facilitated by summer vacation and pleasant weather, and relative quiet on the security front.
UN ‘Statement’ on Syria and Western Policy Options
August 4, 2011 | Sharyn Mittelman
Following on from Daniel’s blog post regarding the UN Security Council ‘statement’ condemning the violation of human rights in Syria, this blog post considers the weaknesses of the UN statement in that it did not call for regime change, support the Syrian demonstrators or contain provisions for punitive measures or sanctions. In light of the UN’s inability act, this blog looks at Western policy options that could put pressure on Assad to go.
Media Week: Uni scholars miss the mark; None so blind…; All at sea
August 4, 2011 | Allon Lee
ANU PhD scholar Lee Schrader writing in the Canberra Times (22/7) doubted “whether any compromise is possible under the Netanyahu leadership, regardless of regional developments.” Schrader’s assessment is unduly harsh considering Netanyahu implemented a ten-month unilateral settlements building freeze in 2009 as a gesture towards restarting peace talks. With one month left of the freeze Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas took up the invitation but then only wanted to discuss extending the settlement freeze.
What of Turkey if the Palestinians and Kurds get their way?
August 4, 2011 | Allon Lee
If two million Palestinians in the West Bank deserve a state, what of the 18 million Kurds in the region who have endured 100 years of persecution?
This is the tantalising question posed by Israeli analyst Dr. Guy Bechor who argues that Turkey should be careful what it advocates on behalf of Palestinians as it seeks regional popularity and leadership.
Iran arms Syria as UN shifts into low gear
August 4, 2011 | Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz
The forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stepped-up their assault on the opposition stronghold of Hama yesterday. As reported by Nada Bakri for The New York Times:
Ignoring mounting condemnations, the Syrian military sent tanks, armored vehicles and snipers on Wednesday into the symbolic center of Hama, a rebellious city that has emerged as a linchpin of the nearly five-month uprising, in what appeared a decisive step by President Bashar al-Assad to crush opposition to his rule.
The military’s assault on Assi Square, the scene of some of the biggest demonstrations against Mr. Assad’s leadership, was an event that many activists and residents had thought impossible, evidence of the government’s determination to retake by force a city that suffered one of the most brutal crackdowns in Syrian history in 1982.
This blog has been closely following the situation in Syria…
