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Today’s Washington Post‘s describes “America on the installment plan”: Absent an agreement to fund the government until the end of the fiscal year in September, Congress has passed six short-term stopgap measures, one after another. The current one lasts until April 8. The short-term extensions have kept the lights on. But the uncertainty over [...] Today an international coalition began attacking military forces loyal to Libyan leader Moammar al-Qadhafi, with the official aim of protecting civilians in rebel-held areas of the country, especially the major city of Benghazi. The Obama administration is working hard to ensure that this is not perceived as an American operation. I believe this scenario [...] Recent days have seen Moammar Qadhafi’s forces advancing steadily against Libya’s rebels and gathering for a final assault on their stronghold in Benghazi. The United Nations Security Council just voted in favor of strong action: “The United Nations Security Council approved a measure on Thursday authorizing “all necessary measures” to protect Libyan civilians from [...] 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 [...] 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, [...] Greetings from the 2009 annual meeting of the Middle East Studies Association, where I’ve had the pleasure of attending four panels so far, all of which were interesting. One which probably has some interest for readers was Islamist Parties and the Political Process, which examined Islamist political movements in Morocco, Kuwait, and Algeria with [...] |
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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