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Today saw protests throughout Iraq, and six protestors were killed by government security forces. As with other recent protests in Iraq, these are connected to the broader wave of protests in the Arab world these past two months, but Reidar Visser usefully highlights their specific Iraqi context: “Indeed, the striking aspect of today’s demonstrations [...] Libya’s unbalanced dictator Moammar Qadhafi is hoping to avoid the fate of Tunisia’s Ben Ali and Egypt’s Mubarak by lashing out forcefully. Reports today show an escalating massacre of anti-government protestors, a massacre carried out by aerial bombardment and heavy artillery, killing hundreds. There have been defections, not only among the diplomatic corps, but [...] As I’ve commented before, Yusuf al-Qaradawi matters, as a conservative Sunni Islamist who appeals to massive youth audiences through television even as the older generations remember his connection to Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna. On Friday, he gave a sermon in Midan Tahrir. I can’t find a complete English text, but here is some [...] The Los Angeles Times provides useful background on Libya: “The eastern region has long been marginalized by Kadafi, and anger has been growing over failed economic reforms, especially for the jobless young. There is also lingering hostility over the 1996 deaths of hundreds of inmates from the east killed in a massacre at Abu [...] Issandr thinks that Libya’s protests are currently the most important: “Libya shares something important with Egypt and Tunisia: an aging leader (41 years in power) faces a looming succession crisis in which the leading candidates are his own sons. I simply don’t think that’s an acceptable outcome for any republic in the 21st century, [...] Over the past few days, Bahrain has emerged as a country whose anti-government protests are fairly serious, as demonstrators camped out at the Pearl Roundabout in what was probably a conscious imitation of the Tahrir Square protests in Egypt. Last night, the regime cracked down: “Troops and tanks have locked down the Bahraini capital [...] With the fall of long-time Egyptian President Husni Mubarak, many fear that Egypt will evolve into a theocracy under the control of the Muslim Brotherhood. In that light, this statement is significant: “Preserving the people’s freedom is more important than setting up a system of Sharia (Islamic law), even though freedom remains part and [...] |
Blake Hounshell (aka praktike), our co-founder and main man, is managing editor of Foreign Policy magazine. He's now reporting on the Egyptian Revolution from Cairo. 
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