Arab Awakening: violent transitions

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Western complicity is fuelling Yemen’s humanitarian crisis

Published on: 5 January 2018

Written by: Stephen McCloskey All articles by Stephen McCloskey

A besieged and starved population has been pushed to the brink of famine. The UK, US and France need to re-evaluate...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

The anti-Islamist campaign and Arab democracy

Published on: 27 October 2017

Written by: Mieczysław P. Boduszyński All articles by Mieczysław P. Boduszyński

Egyptians, Libyans, Tunisians, and other Arabs deserve better than to be told that they must choose between...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Hay’at Tahrir al Sham’s gamble: the failure of blood

Published on: 26 July 2017

Written by: Gregory Waters All articles by Gregory Waters

As HTS grows at the expense of others, opposition representatives will continue to lose negotiating power in the...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Mosul: the looming battle has begun

Published on: 4 November 2016

Written by: Shivan Fazil Sabr All articles by Shivan Fazil Sabr

The Mosul operation marks the return of US forces to Iraq after their 2011 withdrawal. What would a long term...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

On the absence of Arab intellectuals: counter-revolution and the state

Published on: 11 August 2016

Written by: Maged Mandour All articles by Maged Mandour

The inability of the counter-revolutionary forces to appeal to more than the need for security means that the...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Yazidi women sold as sex slaves

Published on: 12 June 2016

Written by: Roshni Kapur All articles by Roshni Kapur

IS militants are now resorting to social media to sell sex slaves online.

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Defeating the Islamic State will take more than gunpowder

Published on: 1 June 2016

Written by: Dylan O’Driscoll All articles by Dylan O’Driscoll

Attempting to defeat IS without beginning to address the political and structural failures that have led to these...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Why many young Arabs join violent radical groups

Published on: 14 March 2016

Written by: Cristina Casabón All articles by Cristina Casabón

The key to combating extremism is prevention. But what are the conditions that lead youth to become radicalised?

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Conflicting interests in crowded skies prolong Syria’s agony

Published on: 14 December 2015

Written by: William Gourlay All articles by William Gourlay

Turkey-Russia spat is a symptom of different, often incompatible agendas.

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

How ISIS provincialised Europe

Published on: 7 December 2015

Written by: Bassel F. Salloukh All articles by Bassel F. Salloukh

A politics of blame, of ‘us’ versus ‘them’, serves only to endorse ISIS’s Manichean worldview. Only an ethos of...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Libya, the Fezzan, egoism and the danger of self-interest

Published on: 1 December 2015

Written by: Abdelkader Abderrahmane All articles by Abdelkader Abderrahmane

The survival of Libya depends very much on the fate of the Fezzan region and on Libyans’ willingness to dialogue and...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Syrian activists are repairing the fabric of civil society, even as it comes undone

Published on: 13 November 2015

Written by: Hania Mourtada All articles by Hania Mourtada

Syria has seen the emergence of a powerful culture of resistance, from subversive graffiti to makeshift hospitals,...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Putin’s partition plans and the politics of cynicism

Published on: 1 October 2015

Written by: Talal Nizameddin All articles by Talal Nizameddin

Russian military involvement appears to be increasingly focused on propping up the Assad regime, contributing to a...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

The siege of Damascus: an account of everyday life in Syria’s savage war

Published on: 1 October 2015

Written by: Peter Oborne All articles by Peter Oborne

Peter Oborne spent two weeks in Damascus and gives a compelling account of people's struggles and steadfastness in...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

'Something wicked this way comes': the Arab transitions (part 2)

Published on: 21 September 2015

Written by: George Joffé All articles by George Joffé

An excerpt from a NOREF report on the background to the current situation in the Middle East, focusing on the...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

'Something wicked this way comes': the Arab transitions (part 1)

Published on: 9 September 2015

Written by: George Joffé All articles by George Joffé

An excerpt from a NOREF report on the background to the current situation in the Middle East, focusing on the...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

The limited effectiveness of US Middle East policy

Published on: 21 July 2015

Written by: Benjamin A. Budde All articles by Benjamin A. Budde

There's not much the US can do in a post-Saddam Middle East except practice containment (and keep up...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

Dialogue in Libya: challenges and conditions of success

Published on: 16 July 2015

Written by: Abdallah Hadeed All articles by Abdallah Hadeed

Steps need to be taken to promote consensus, in order to consolidate the nation to which Libyans aspire. This NOREF...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

A solution for Syria (part 1)

Published on: 16 July 2015

Written by: Bassma Kodmani All articles by Bassma Kodmani

Syria is central to the security and future of the Middle East, but conditions for a resolution of the Syrian...

Published in: North Africa, West Asia

A solution for Syria (part 2)

Published on: 16 July 2015

Written by: Bassma Kodmani All articles by Bassma Kodmani

This excerpt from a NOREF expert analysis outlines the steps that need to be taken to transfer power to a...

Why was a warlord allowed to sue a British journalist?

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