‘Islam Is Islam, And That’s It’
The Arab Spring was not hijacked
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
A Tunisian Islamist Looks to the Future
Earlier in the week Israel Hayom reported that the new Tunisian constitution may include &ldqu...
Op-eds
Egypt’s Next Big Moment
With only days left before Egyptians are expected to vote in their first elections since the fall of president...
Op-eds
Eclipsed
Until January of this year, U.S. policymakers and American allies feared what Jordan’s King Abdullah II had dubbed the “Shia crescent.” The thinking was that as Iran’s pow...
Op-eds
Next Arab Domino May Be Oil Darling Algeria
The death of Muammar Qaddafi is a cause for joy in Libya, and for concern. Some worry t...
Op-eds
Terrorism and the Coming Decade
Ten years after the 9/11 attacks, US officials are speaking openly of Al Qaeda’s impending death. Defense secretary Leon Panetta declared in early July of this year that the US is “wi...
Op-eds
Qaddafi’s Death Is Our Cue to Act
If true, Qaddafi’s death marks an important milestone — not just for Libya’s transition to a more decent order, but for America’s...
Op-eds
The Arab Winter of Discontent
Ten months on, the Arab explosion has shown its truer – more nuanced and complicated – colors.
Op-eds
Libya: A Valuable Success and a Warning to Tyrants
The imminent collapse of Qaddafi’s regime is a major milestone not simply for the long-suffering Libyan people, but for the broader Arab uprising of 2011. Qaddafi’s ability to cling t...
Op-eds
Why al-Qaeda is Winning
One of al-Qaeda's major goals has been satisfied: America's economy is far weaker now than it was 10 years ago. In 1999, not only was the U.S. economy strong, president Bill Clinton tho...
Op-eds
Why France is Right Abou the Burqa
In his 2009 Cairo address to the Muslim world, U.S. President Barack Obama mentioned no fewer than three times the issue of the headscarf, or hijab. Each time, his purpose was to stress "the righ...
Op-eds
AQAP Leader Pledges Oath of Allegiance to Ayman al Zawahiri
Nasir al Wuhayshi, the leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), pledged bayat, or an oath of fealty, to Ayman al Zawahiri, the new leader of al Qaeda's central command. Wuhayshi a...
Op-eds
Achieving the Impossible
President Barack Obama's response to the spread of unrest across the Middle East has been an unpredictable combination of neutrality (Tunisia), reluctant involvement (Egypt), and force...
Op-eds
Ex-Gitmo Detainee Deported From Italy to Tunisia
Italy has deported a former Guantanamo detainee who was convicted of terrorism-related charges to Tunisia. The ex-detainee, Adel Ben Mabrouk, was convicted by an Italian court after being transfe...
Op-eds
Syria’s Assad No Longer in Vogue
It was slow in coming, but the Arab revolutionary wave of 2011 has reached Syria. Its arrival has forced a reassessment of the Bashar al-Assad regime’s domestic legitimacy and prospects for...
Op-eds
Forget Arab Democracy, Let’s Pretend It’s about Israel
It is no coincidence that the Hezbollah-dominated Lebanese government, a non-standing member of the U.N. Security Council and an Iranian subsidiary, sponsored a resolution last Friday conde...
Op-eds
The Egyptian Army and Obama
An unrelentingly severe critic of the fallen Tunisian dictator Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, my longtime Tunisian taxi driver Moussa, who has lived in Brussels for 20 years, sounded an optimistic note...
Op-eds
Trade Unions: The Revolutionary Social Network at Play in Egypt and Tunisia
Co-Authored with Eric Lee Perhaps the most overlooked factor in the demise of the authoritarian Ben Ali regime in Tunisia, and the weakening of Hosni Mubarak's grip on stat...
Op-eds
Moroccan Exceptionalism?
I recently spent nearly two weeks in North Africa, arriving just before popular demonstrations drove Tunisia's Zine El Abidine Ben Ali from power and leaving just after the protesters occupi...
Op-eds
How Far Will Egypt Tumult Spread?
Immediately after the fall of Tunisia's 23-year dictator, Zine al-Abedine Ben Ali, analysts warned of a domino effect across the Arab world. Would-be democrats in other Arab countries reason...