In The News

In Arab World, Bin Laden’s Confused Legacy

Anthony Shadid, David D. Kirkpatrick May 2, 2011
There’s a vast disconnect between the Middle East’s uprisings – a quest for democracy – and rigid religious controls promised by Al Qaeda. An operation, authorized by US President Barack Obama, tracked Osama bin Laden to a compound in Pakistan, killing the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks in New York and Washington. For youthful Arab populations, the events that put bin Laden on a global most-...

Palestinian Unity Raises New Problems as It Solves Others

David E. Miller April 30, 2011
Internal Palestinian politics and their relations with world have been turbulent since the Islamist resistance group Hamas won a majority of parliamentary seats in January 2006. Rival groups Fatah and Hamas reached an agreement to be signed 4 May, calling for an interim government and elections within a year. The agreement does not detail long-held differences on statehood, peace talks with...

The West Likes Democracy for Some Arabs, But Not Others

Dilip Hiro April 22, 2011
The US has reasons for hurrying some Arab authoritarian leaders to the exit and not others. Syria and Bahrain are cases in point, explains author Dilip Hiro. Citizens of both nations resist leaders from minority sects and ongoing discrimination. Syria is 68 percent Sunni, run by a president, an Alawi, which is a Shia sub-sect; Bahrain is 70 percent Shia with a Sunni king. Syria has long defied...

Guide to Reform the Middle East? Try East Asia

Humphrey Hawksley April 20, 2011
Opposition movements in the Middle East and North Africa enjoyed early successes in Tunisia and Egypt, yet the struggle proves hard in Syria, Libya, Bahrain and Yemen. The outcomes – new democracies or brutal crackdowns – could alter the region’s relationships in unimaginable ways. East Asia is a model of what can go wrong then right: US failure to deliver democracy to Vietnam four decades ago...

How a Persian Gulf Backwater Became an International Power Broker

Sonia Verma April 20, 2011
Qatar, an independent state since 1971 and long overshadowed by richer neighbors, raises its profile by taking advantage of global trends. The country of 1.4 million – 200,000 of whom are Qatari – arms Libyan rebels, hosts US Central Command headquarters, shelters Saddam Hussein’s widow, and serves as the base for the Al Jazeera global news network. Huge natural gas reserves enriched the country...

Rebels Hijack Gaddafi's Phone Network

Margaret Coker, Charles Levinson April 18, 2011
As protests surge, autocratic governments immediately shut down communications. The story of how skilled expatriates moved in to restore phone and internet services for Libya reads like a high-tech spy thriller. A Libyan-American telecom executive, 31 and raised in Alabama, organized a team of techie friends to assist in reopening communications for rebel forces. “[T]he network has enabled rebel...

China’s Foreign-Policy Balancing Act – Part I

Jonathan Fenby April 13, 2011
Every move of fast-rising China in international affairs is closely studied for a shift from old patterns. Some analysts expect China to shoulder new global responsibility; others anticipate continuation of policies upholding national sovereignty. This two-part YaleGlobal series analyzes China’s approach in determining foreign-policy priorities. China’s evolving policy on Libya reveals its...