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# The Week in 1 Minute: Cities in conflict: (February 11 – 17 on openDemocracy)
- URL: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/week-in-1-minute-cities-in-conflict-february-11-17-on-opendemocracy/
- Published: 2013-05-23T14:05:31.000Z
- Updated: 2026-04-23T01:26:42.000Z
- Description: The conflict in Syria which began with a peaceful civil movement in Dara’a: Haytham Manna asks if it is possible to build on that when facing the threat of foreign intervention. Kristian Coates Ulrichsen considers the Gulf States’ relationship to the conflict, and Rita sends a message to openSecur
- Author: openDemocracy Supporters
- Tags: The Week in 1 Minute, #Migrated, #en, #Import 2026-04-09 17:36, #appended-excerpt

Meanwhile, Hicham Yezza, in [This week’s window in the Middle East](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/23bcd97e73&ref=opendemocracy.net), finds [an Algerian lesson](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/3ad342ee43&ref=opendemocracy.net) for the Tunisian crisis, [Corinna Mullin](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/962a18f2c7&ref=opendemocracy.net) ponders a **counterrevolutionary moment in Tunisia**, we visit Bab al Shams with Omer Hariri, where Palestinian activists are [occupying their own land](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/c9885175d6&ref=opendemocracy.net), and 50.50’s Leila Zaki Chakravarti considers the impact of [blood, football and politics](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/fab9d490fb&ref=opendemocracy.net) on two cities in Egypt.  
  
A sneak-peek at [upcoming documentary, *The Plastic People*](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/0b82dfeb7a&ref=opendemocracy.net) offers **an examination of deportation**, and American news reports on the continuing separation of families through [Obama's "Secure Communities" initiative](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/e0c9e5c0d3&ref=opendemocracy.net). We look at [deportation in Britain](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/3f17ca8e3c&ref=opendemocracy.net), and also, with [Sean Byers](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/a31b4f51fd&ref=opendemocracy.net), at the incremental progress towards the end of violent protests in Belfast.  
  
[David Krivanek](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/a3f6f82f40&ref=opendemocracy.net) from *Can Europe make it?* explores the arguments of [Ben Ward](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/6d3a2bf0c3&ref=opendemocracy.net) from Human Rights Watch about how to **defend Europeans from their own intolerance**. Rasmus Boserup and Mona Sheikh invite Europe to [rethink its interventions](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/2d5e6cd135&ref=opendemocracy.net).  
  
There are accusations of [torture in Greece](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/d5663324de&ref=opendemocracy.net), [corruption in Spain](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/8f67239aba&ref=opendemocracy.net), [bank scandals in Italy](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/5ee627817c&ref=opendemocracy.net) in the run-up to [the elections](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/54414648a3&ref=opendemocracy.net), [threats to education in Hungary](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/a1dec702f2&ref=opendemocracy.net), and Alex Sakalis is keeping [a careful eye](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/6216abe1a8&ref=opendemocracy.net) on **the Catholic church in Croatia**.  
  
For OurKingdom, [Ron Israel](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/2f328df2d1&ref=opendemocracy.net) asks what it means to be a "Global Citizen" while [Owen Worth](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/8c3d6164d8&ref=opendemocracy.net) calls for a left political alternative to Bretton Woods. [John Mills](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/4af39b4f8e&ref=opendemocracy.net) looks at the **weakened democratic control of British industry**, and how that has undermined the UK manufacturing base.   
  
Over on oD Russia, [Jeremy Noble](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/18ad0259c7&ref=opendemocracy.net) examines five years of **the best of Russian photography**, and we discover [Russia's push to create "virtual borders"](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/a0e39e5b32&ref=opendemocracy.net) by registering foreign websites. [Michael Allen](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/06406ade59&ref=opendemocracy.net), [Pavel Chikov](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/3db134b528&ref=opendemocracy.net) and [Almut Rochowanski](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/276374a927&ref=opendemocracy.net) survey the future for the funding of Russian NGO’s.  
  
[**Cities in Conflict**](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/b55a32027c&ref=opendemocracy.net) is a fresh openSecurity series exploring how an insidious set of boomerang effects link security doctrine in cities in the global North with those in the South, whether in [Beirut](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/236557c9a2&ref=opendemocracy.net), [Athens](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/cc5ed16526&ref=opendemocracy.net), [Bogota](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/c1220e7168&ref=opendemocracy.net), [Jerusalem](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/f500bb95b6&ref=opendemocracy.net) or Mumbai. [Andy Yee](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/0df6d3f88e&ref=opendemocracy.net) ponders China’s self-defeating war with information and [Paul Rogers](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/7614e5cddb&ref=opendemocracy.net) tracks the ‘remote control’ militarism of the United States.  
  
  
Don’t miss:

- [Jim Sleeper on gun control and a violent culture](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/28e5af9185&ref=opendemocracy.net)
- [Donatella Della Porta on Can democracy be saved?](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/1be6522735/id=1739&ref=opendemocracy.net)
- [Mark Leonard on the State of the Union address](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/811c9b71ff&ref=opendemocracy.net)

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The **conflict in Syria which began with a peaceful civil movement in Dara’a**: [Haytham Manna](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/dd8bb4f4eb&ref=opendemocracy.net) asks if it is possible to build on that when facing the threat of foreign intervention. Kristian Coates Ulrichsen considers [the Gulf States’ relationship to the conflict](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/6bde78ac74&ref=opendemocracy.net), and [Rita sends a message](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/8f8911a581&ref=opendemocracy.net) to openSecurity’s first conference on [Syria's peace: what, how, when?](http://cts.vresp.com/c/?openDemocracy/b4cfbd4fcb/7262321cfa/30cb14f50e&ref=opendemocracy.net)