Making Sense of the Arab Spring: Listening to the voices of Middle Eastern activists

Development ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 232-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kawa Hassan
Keyword(s):  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Making Sense ◽  
The Arab Spring

scholarly journals Arab Spring Failure: A Case Study of Egypt and Syria

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-53
Author(s):  
Raid Khan ◽  
Amna Mahmood ◽  
Asif Salim
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
The Military ◽  
Democratic Norms ◽  
Rule Out

The Arab Spring was assumed to reform the prevailing regime pattern and to bring socio-economic reforms. However, it failed to get its intended outcomes at large. The objectives of the revolution that are to bring a positive transformation in the social, economic, and political domains were not attained effectively and was considered a failed revolution in the case of Egypt and Syria. The present paper focuses on exploring the reasons and factors behind its failure in the particular context of Egypt and Syria. Although Egypt observed regime transition from dictatorship to democracy, yet within one and a half year, a military coup overthrew the democratically elected government of Mohammad Morsi, and the military regime was reinstalled. In the case of Syria, since 2011, a civil war is going on where Bashar-ul-Asad still holds dictatorial powers. The study reveals that the lack of stable political institutions, weak democratic norms, and the absence of a vibrant civil society paved the way for state authorities to rule out the attempts of protestors. Excluding a few of the countries, the rest of the Middle Eastern countries are still ruled by the powerful elites. The successes of the Arab Spring are still to be awaited.

The Influence of the Arab Spring on the Tourist Industry in Egypt

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Stoyanova-Encheva ◽  
◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Radical Change ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Tourist Industry ◽  
North African ◽  
Political Situation ◽  
Political Protests ◽  
Economic Collapse ◽  
The Arab Spring

Egypt is a country that fascinates with ancient treasures that have become a heritage, but the unstable situation in the country leads to an outflow of tourists and subsequently causes economic collapse. The beginning of the Arab Spring in December 2010 marked the beginning of a radical change in the political and economic structure of North African and Middle Eastern countries. After the Arab Spring protests, the socio-economic and political situation in Egypt is constantly changing. Numerous political protests, political assassinations of key figures and a number of terrorist attacks have taken place, which lead to the complete decline of the tourism industry both in the country and throughout the region.

Coup-Proofing in the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) Region

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek Lutterbeck
Keyword(s):  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Common Finding ◽  
North African ◽  
Mena Region ◽  
Internal Security ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
The Military

Coup-proofing—that is, measures aimed at preventing military coups and ensuring military loyalty—has been a key feature of civil–military relations in Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) states. Just as the MENA region has been one of the most coup-prone regions in the world, coup-proofing has been an essential instrument of regime survival in Arab countries. The most commonly found coup-proofing strategies in the region include (a) so-called “communal coup-proofing,” involving the appointment of individuals to key positions within the military based on family, ethnic, or religious ties; (b) providing the military with corporate and/or private benefits in order to ensure its loyalty; (c) creating parallel military forces in addition to the regular military, so as to “counter-balance” the latter; (d) monitoring of the military through a vast internal security and intelligence apparatus; and (e) promoting professionalism, and thus political neutrality, within the military. The experiences of the “Arab Spring,” however, have shown that not all of these strategies are equally effective in ensuring military loyalty during times of popular upheavals and regime crises. A common finding in this context has been that communal coup-proofing (or militaries based on “patrimonialism”) creates the strongest bonds been the armed forces and their regimes, as evidenced by the forceful suppression of the popular uprising by the military in countries such as Syria, or by parts of the military in Libya and Yemen. By contrast, where coup-proofing has been based on the provision of material benefits to the military or on counterbalancing, as in Tunisia or Egypt, the armed forces have refrained from suppressing the popular uprising, ultimately leading to the downfall of these countries’ long-standing leaders. A further lesson that can be drawn from the Arab Spring in terms of coup-proofing is that students of both military coups and coup-proofing should dedicate (much) more attention to the increasingly important role played by the internal security apparatus in MENA countries.

scholarly journals Arab Spring vs. Zero Problems Policy Impact of the Arab Spring on the Trade Expansion of Turkey

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 21-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Engin Sorhun
Keyword(s):  
Arab Spring ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Arab Countries ◽  
Trade Volume ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Trade Expansion ◽  
Trade Potential ◽  
The Arab Spring

Although Turkey has historically concentrated its trade with the European Union (EU) it has diversified its trade markets with the neighbouring regions and different group of countries during the last decade. Among them, Arab countries have come into prominence. Especially, following the “zero problems with neighbours” policy (ZPN), pursued by Turkey since 2002, the trade volume with the Middle Eastern neighbours has increased faster than that with its traditional partners. Nevertheless so called “Arab Spring” has started to manifest its effects on this trend. It deteriorates not only the economies of the concerned countries but also Turkey’s trade expansion. This paper aims: (i) to test through a gravity model the positive impacts of the ZPN policy and the negative impact of the Arab Spring on the trade expansion with the Spring Countries; and (ii) to reveal the positive impact of the policy change and the negative impact of the uprising movements on the realization of trade potential by Turkey in the Spring Countries.

scholarly journals Conflicts in the Middle East: prospects for escalation in the context of general regional instability in the 2020s

2021 ◽  
pp. 120-132
Author(s):  
A. Malashenko
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
The United States ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Significant Extent ◽  
Gulf States ◽  
The Persian Gulf ◽  
The Arab Spring ◽  
Made In

The article analyses Middle Eastern conflicts in the early 2020s. The main focus is on the situation in Syria, Libya, and Yemen, three Middle Eastern conflicts that are progressing, with no solution in sight. These conflicts motivated by social, economic and political reasons became a progression of those protests that have started in 2011 and have been called “The Arab Spring”. These “revolutions” have been promoted by Islamist movements and groups whose activity became one of key factors of perpetual tensions in the region. So far, attempts by conflict parties to find consensual solutions have remained rather unsuccessful. Positive resolution of actual and potential conflicts in the Greater Middle East to a significant extent still depends on external regional and non-regional actors, such as Russia, Turkey, Iran, and the United States. However, each actor involved in these conflicts and in conflict management pursues its own goals. These actors try to retain their positions and influence in these Middle Eastern countries and in the region as a whole. According to the forecast made in the article, more conflicts in the region may be foreseen (in Iraq, the Persian Gulf states etc.) that could form the next wave of the “Arab Spring”.

Relations Between Qatar and Saudi Arabia After the Arab Spring

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 113-134
Author(s):  
Abdul Rezak Bilgin
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Arab Spring ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Historical Background ◽  
New Era ◽  
Bilateral Relations ◽  
Regional Dynamics ◽  
History Of ◽  
Classical Realism ◽  
The Arab Spring

The Arab Spring initiated a new era in the history of the Middle East and significantly shifted regional dynamics. It profoundly marked the history of the region and affected relations between Middle Eastern countries. Qatar–Saudi Arabia relations have likewise been profoundly impacted by it. This study focuses on how the Arab Spring affected relations between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and on how the regional power struggle and rivalry between Riyadh and Doha were exacerbated during that period when disagreements and clashes escalated and deepened between both countries. It also emphasizes the causes of tensions that emerged during the period of the Arab Spring between both states. Using classical realism as a theoretical framework in approaching the issues at hand, the study begins by outlining the historical background to Qatar–Saudi Arabia relations. It then describes the policies of Qatar and Saudi Arabia towards the Arab Spring and explores the problem areas in their bilateral relations. Finally, the sanctions imposed against Qatar are also discussed.

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