Five years into the Syrian crisis and with an all-out war on its doorstep, Lebanon is experiencing ever-worsening repercussions of its neighbour’s collapse. Yet the small country remains resilient, despite the influx of a million Syrian refugees, the regional turmoil, current tensions over a vacant presidency, and the fact that its institutions are barely functioning.… Read More With Syria in turmoil, little Lebanon remains in limbo
On 18 December 2010, a man in Tunisia burned himself to death in protest of police corruption and ill treament. The following months, uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt led to the overthrow of their heads of state and sparked a wave of protests throughout the Middle East and North Africa, now commonly referred to as the “Arab Spring”, “Arab… Read More The Arab Spring: Five Years Later
After years of hard negotiations, Iran and six world powers reached a comprehensive long-term deal on Iran’s nuclear programme in July 2015, marking a rare diplomatic success in the Middle East. Moderates and reformists hoped that the nuclear accord would rehabilitate Iran’s international image and allow Tehran to be a regional economic player and force… Read More Regional Turmoil in the Gulf: Iranian Perspectives
In March 2015, in the small Middle Eastern country of Yemen, a long-running political crisis escalated into a full-fledged war. Air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition, fighting on behalf of the disposed government have hit nearly as many civilians as rebels. The main fight is between forces loyal to the beleaguered President, Abed Rabbo Mansour… Read More Yemen: a full-fledged war
Violence in Israel has been rising for months, with attacks spreading beyond East Jerusalem and the West Bank. At the time of writing seven Israelis and around 32 Palestinians, including eight children, have died in more than two weeks of bloodshed, fueled in part by Muslim anger over increasing Jewish visits to the al-Aqsa mosque… Read More #Intifada?
Until recently, Russia, in conjunction with China, prevented any attempts at the UN to condemn the Assad regime in Syria, ensuring that no motion could proceed even if there was the will from others states. Even when the deadlock was eventually broken on chemical weapons in summer 2013, Moscow ensured a favourable outcome for Damascus.… Read More Crisis in Syria: a view from Russia
The capture of Mosul in Iraq by ISIL/Da’esh (the ‘Islamic State’) insurgents and the declaration of the Caliphate during the summer of 2014 gave the political kaleidoscope of the Middle East a profound shaking. Iraq “after Mosul” has presented the Kurdish people with an unprecedented political momentum, one in which they see their aspirations to… Read More °Kurdistan: re-emergence of a traditional regional power?
Blog Smog 