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Dina Ezzat March 22, 2011
The League of Arab States has broad goals – strengthening ties among member states, coordinating policies and promoting common interests. Rarely does the Arab League embrace military action to restrain a member state or intervene directly in uprisings, notes Dina Ezzat for Al-Ahram in an essay that reviews some league responses to historical conflicts or invasions in the region. Libya is an...

Jasmine, Mideast and Beyond

Nayan Chanda March 22, 2011
Brutal crackdowns on demonstrators in Libya, Yemen and Bahrain may temporarily quiet the protests, but the anger and yearning for rights have not vanished, contends Nayan Chanda, editor of YaleGlobal Online in an essay for the Times of India. He warns, “the mix of combustibles that fuelled the Middle East fire are still smoldering.” Decades of repressive rule, widening income inequality and high...

Europe's Leaders Fear Libya Could Become Next Afghanistan

March 21, 2011
European nations and the US smoothed relations with Libya and were content to sell weapons to Muammar Gaddafi, who now uses them without restraint against his own people. The West squirms as carnage unfolds. Western officials privately wish for a quick end to the conflict with Gaddafi’s assassination, report Spiegel staff. So far, leaders oppose intervention, even a no-fly zone, worried that a...

Libya: When Bombs Fall and Allies Fall Apart

Dilip Hiro March 21, 2011
Protests in Libya against Muammar Gaddafi, in power for 42 years, began in mid-February. As Gaddafi’s repression turned increasingly brutal, calls emerged within the Middle East, Europe and the US for limited intervention – a no-fly zone to stop his forces from launching aerial attacks against civilians and rebels. Decision-makers were divided: Among the concerns was reinforcing the impression...

Holy Smokes! The Saudis are in Bahrain

Rami G. Khouri March 18, 2011
Protests for reform toppled governments in Egypt and Tunisia, and continue to pressure governments throughout the region. But regimes in Libya, Iran and Bahrain are fighting back. Writing for the Daily Star, Rami G. Khouri notes that entry of Saudi and Emirati troops into Bahrain to assist a Sunni regime in subduing Shiite protests raises many concerns: The intervention could heighten Shiite-...

How to Get Gaddafi

Niall Ferguson March 18, 2011
“The reality is that very few revolutions, good or bad, succeed without some foreign assistance,” argues historian Niall Ferguson in an essay for Newsweek. The French aided George Washington with the US revolution; the Soviets armed Mao – and since this essay was published, the UN Security Council voted to authorize military action against Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi. Without foreign support,...

Westward Ho: Asians March Into Africa – Part I

Johan Lagerkvist March 16, 2011
New trade routes are taking hold, linking Africa’s rich resources with the industrial needs in Asia and South America, and this two-part YaleGlobal series analyzes the emerging economic, political and security partnerships. The 2008 global economic crisis and slow recovery for the US and Europe have only reinforced the South-South partnerships, shifting trade relations and fueling economic growth...