Skip to main content

Home/ CULF 3331: "Middle Eastern Revolutions"/ Group items tagged 2015

Rss Feed Group items tagged

tdford333

Monthly Drone Report, March 2015: US drone strikes drop 50% as chaos envelops Yemen | T... - 0 views

  • Monthly Drone Report, March 2015: US drone strikes drop 50% as chaos envelops Yemen
  •  
    Drone strikes and casualties dropped by about 50% in the first quarter of 2015, compared with the final three months of 2014. US officials told the Associated Press that CIA drone strikes would continue but that there would be "fewer of them", amid concerns about the lack of on-the-ground intelligence or coordinating partners.
tdford333

Why Yemen has come undone - CNN.com - 0 views

  • EmailFacebookgigyaS
  •  
    As the United States has closed its embassy and withdrawn its last troops, Yemen has slid into total chaos, with rebels and jihadists on both sides capturing military bases and seizing tanks and heavy weapons.
sgriffi2

Shaima Sabbagh killing sparks protest - 0 views

A small group of women were protesting peacefull in downtown Cairo on Thursday against security forces after female activist Shaimaa Sabbagh was shot dead on the eve of the anniversary of the Jan...

#womensrights #women #egypt #feminism f

started by sgriffi2 on 09 Apr 15 no follow-up yet
tdford333

Drone Strike in Yemen Said to Kill Senior Qaeda Figure - NYTimes.com - 1 views

  • Drone Strike in Yemen Said to Kill Senior Qaeda Figure
  • Jan. 31, destroyed a car in Shabwah Province, in southern Yemen, killing four of its members who were inside. One of them, the statement said, was Harith al-Nadhari, an ideologue who had publicly praised the attack on the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo.
  • Houthi fighters forced the resignation of President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi on Jan. 22
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • The Houthis, though bitter enemies of Al Qaeda, have publicly opposed American drone strikes in Yemen. But they have apparently done nothing to interfere with the strikes since they took de facto control last month, and the American military has said the strikes will continue.
  • Mr. Nadhari praised their actions and said that France would face further attacks if it did not halt its “aggression against the Muslims.”
fcastro2

Syria rejects foreign ground troops to fight ISIS - 0 views

  •  
    Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem stated on Monday, February 9, 2015 that they will not allow foreign ground troops on its territory to fight ISIS. While Syria does not want foreign ground troops, they did ask to coordinate with Jordan against ISIS but Jordan did not respond to their request. For now, Jordan and Syria are not coordinating against terrorist attacks by ISIS and Syria will not take aid from other foreign states.
  •  
    Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem stated on Monday, February 9, 2015 that they will not allow foreign ground troops on its territory to fight ISIS. While Syria does not want foreign ground troops, they did ask to coordinate with Jordan against ISIS but Jordan did not respond to their request. For now, Jordan and Syria are not coordinating against terrorist attacks by ISIS and Syria will not take aid from other foreign states.
mcooka

Egypt overturns death sentences for 149 Islamists - Al Arabiya English - 0 views

  • An Egyptian court has decided on Wednesday to overturn death sentences for 149 pro-Islamists, according to an official source and reported by AFP.
  • he court ordered a retrial for the defendants over the attack, which killed 13 policemen near Cairo on August 14, 2013, the day police shot dead hundreds of Islamist demonstrators in the capital.
  • he court had also sentenced 37 people to death in absentia,
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • even people have been executed for political violence since Mohamed Mursi's ouster, including six who were convicted of belonging to an Islamist militant group.
  • Hundreds of Islamists have been sentenced to death since the military toppled Islamist president Mursi in 2013.
    • mcooka
       
      There's this turn around of hatred towards muslims because of Mursi's short reign. Lots of backlash 
  •  
    While a short article, it tells of much to come in the future. Egypt overruled 149 death sentences for Islamist. These were the results of mass trails which were made in February 2015.
  •  
    While a short article, it tells of much to come in the future. Egypt overruled 149 death sentences for Islamist. These were the results of mass trails which were made in February 2015.
mcooka

2015 Education Year: Challenges ahead | Yemen Times - 1 views

  • n Nov. 24, the prime minister declared 2015 “Education Year,” highlighting the need to improve the country’s educational system and its importance for Yemen’s future prosperity
  • An ominous reminder came just 20 days after the prime minister’s announcement, when an explosive-laden car detonated at a checkpoint in Rada’a, killing 16 girls who were passing on their way home from school. The tragedy provides some indication of the immense challenges facing government and Yemeni society if 2015 is really to be a year for education.
  • Speaking at a ceremony honoring the nation’s highest-achieving students for the 2013/14 school year,
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • eeting these lofty goals will require a range of initiatives—repairing infrastructure and building new facilities, providing sufficient learning materials, narrowing teacher-student ratios, and addressing gender disparities—especially in rural areas, where underfunding and conflict have compounded the problems facing schools ther
  • Mohammad bin Mohammad, a school teacher in Erman Primary School in the Ans area of Dhamar governorate, which accommodates 110 children from first to sixth grade, says many of his students are forced to take their lessons sitting on the ground. “Students don’t study in proper classrooms. Let alone having enough labs, chairs or tables,” he said.
  • Addressing security concerns and providing necessary infrastructure are fundamental prerequisites, but staffing and improving access to education for girls remain high on the agenda.
  • Government expenditure on bonuses amounts to YR60 million ($279,000) for the current fiscal year, and is expected to reach 271,696 employees nationwide working in the education sector, according to the Ministry of Education.
  • In areas where female enrolment and retention in school is significantly lower than the national average, the government also offers conditional cash transfers to families to encourage them to allow their girls to attend school.
  •  
    This article highlights some of the challenges with improving girls education. Yemen has very little resources so taking resources from one place and giving to another-is basically like taking from students sitting on the dirt and giving to students sitting on rocks. There is also high security concerns. Many religious sects don't believe women should receive education.  So girls and schools are being terrorized on the way to school. Some families don't believe the cash transfer is worth loosing children. 
hwilson3

Just a moment... - 0 views

  •  
    This article discusses the measures put into place to monitor the media in Egypt during the 2015 election. Such rules include not asking people who they are voting for outside of the polls, and not including personal views into reports.
  •  
    This article discusses the measures put into place to monitor the media in Egypt during the 2015 election. Such rules include not asking people who they are voting for outside of the polls, and not including personal views into reports.
fcastro2

UN, Russia take lead in Syria diplomacy - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East - 0 views

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Egypt on Feb. 9-10 signals a “new phase” in Russian diplomacy in the Middle East.
  • Despite deteriorating ties with the United States and NATO countries over Ukraine, Maxim Suchkov writes, "Russia is anything but isolated, while Europe is no longer the promised land for the state that seeks recognition of its global influence."
  • Egypt and Russia have “shared positions on a number of regional issues; closely aligned interests (particularly on fighting international terrorism); a successful track record of bilateral cooperation on various fronts; and a strong personal bond of trust between respective leaders.”
  • ...12 more annotations...
  • Egypt’s leadership has grown frustrated with US admonitions and criticisms of its governance record, and from Cairo’s perspective, bewildering discussions of conditions on US military aid
  • Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is hardly ready to ditch his country’s long-standing ties to the United States, the prospect of Russian arms and assistance could prove a useful complement to what some in Cairo consider more uncertain US support, especially as Egypt faces an ongoing terrorist insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula.
  • Naumkin adds th
  • Russia also considers Egypt an ally in its efforts to broker a political settlement in Syria
  • as a result of the Russian president’s visit to Cairo, the parties might agree to pool their forces in the context of a Syrian settlement.
  • It might be understandable for some analysts to dismiss the Moscow conference, given the diplomatic false starts over four years in a conflict that has left more than 150,000 dead, 7.6 million displaced, 3.2 million refugees, 12.2 million in need of humanitarian assistance and at least 680,000 injured, according to the United Nations.
  • Syrian opposition figures were not allowed to participate in the Jan. 26-29 Moscow conference as representatives of opposition parties, such as the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces (SOC), the leading umbrella group based in Turkey
  • The absence of the SOC and other representatives of the external opposition no doubt limited the potential impact of the conference,
  • Participants agreed to an 11-point list of “Moscow Principles” and a four-point “Appeal to the International Community” affirming the need to fight terrorist organizations such as the Islamic State (IS), rejecting outside interference and calling for increased humanitarian aid, while agreeing to meet again in a month’s time.
  • acknowledged the possibility for other organizations to play a role in future talks
  • Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vigorously supported the law, claiming its passage is essential in defending democracy
  •  “Success tempted the AKP, prompting it to revert back to its Islamism and initiate a much more ambitious narrative of building a new regional order, and even a new global order. Meanwhile, Erdogan turned into an unquestionable leader who is not limited by facts and creates his own facts, as envisioned by his Islamist ideology and extraordinary intuition. In the eyes of his hard-core supporters, he is not a mere political leader who formulates pragmatic policies. He is a total leader who redefines everything.”
fcastro2

Syria keen on Russian expansion in Middle East - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East - 0 views

  • Syria has called on its Russian ally to expand in the Middle East, by expanding its small pier in the city of Tartus and turning it into a base
  • This has coincided with Saudi Arabia leading a coalition against Ansar Allah in Yemen, with a cover by the United States
  • meeting with a group of Russian journalists March 27, and in response to a question on Damascus’ desire to see a wider Russian activity in the Middle East, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said he certainly welcomes “any expansion of Russian presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, precisely on the Syrian shores and ports.
  • ...9 more annotations...
  • Assad said: “The Russian presence in different parts of the world, including the Eastern Mediterranean and the Syrian port of Tartus, is very necessary, in order to create a sort of balance, which the world has lost after the dissolution of the Soviet Union more than 20 years ago.
  • Syrian president welcomed the Russian presence in his country and the region. “For us, the stronger this presence is in our region, the better it is for stability [in the region], because Russia is assuming an important role in world stability,”
  • Syrian nod is only a repetition of a former call made under the rule of late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad, who saw that the presence of a Russian military representation in Syria in the Mediterranean region contributes to the promotion of the idea of “the balance of terror” against Israel and the United States
  • The talk was, however, halted, until the last two years, when an actual need to promote Russian presence in the Mediterranean emerged in light of the reignition of the Cold War.
  • deployment of missile systems on the Mediterranean coast, as a sort of “symbolic deterrence.” The rumors were repeated as the NATO missile defense project was announced, which was supposed to be deployed in different countries, including Turkey and other countries bordering Russia
  • e US invasion of Iraq, as the US desire to change the face of the Middle East seemed free of any rational considerations. Assad made several visits to Moscow, and although this has not been publicly mentioned, Syrian diplomats and officials stressed to As-Safir that Syria expressed its desire to expand the Russian presence in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly through Tartus, so that it turns into a military presence with limited standards
  • , Russia and Syria signed the biggest deal of its kind to explore oil in the Syrian waters, which covers a 2,190 square-kilometer surface area, and to achieve economic ambitions, namely extracting 2.5 billion barrels of oil and 8.5 trillion cubic feet of proven gas reserves, the oil and gas magazine said back then
  • is understandable, without neglecting the importance of other political and military issue
  • “any decision to modernize the infrastructure of the Russian Material-Technical Support Point in Tartus can only be made after a political decision is taken in this regard, in coordination with the Syrian side.” He explained that any modernization should “take into account the political and military situation in the Mediterranean region,” and therefore “it will include the promotion of all sorts of protection in the facility, including surface-to-air missiles and anti-riots weapons, and will be in coordination with the Syrian side.”
  •  
    Syria is determined to keep Russia in the loop when it comes to its presence in the Middle East. As the United States increases its presence so to those Russia and Syria claims that they encourage Russian presence solely to "keep the balance" in the Middle East. 
hkerby2

Report reaffirms Syria chemical weapons use - Al Jazeera English - 0 views

  •  
    The use of chemical weaponry has been reaffirmed in Syria, even though an effort was launched in 2013 following the Damascus attack to eliminate Syria's chemical weapons. There have been numerous eye-witness reports of helicopter sounds, bomb spotting, and the smelling of chlorine gas. The hope is to destroy all chemical weapon production facilities by June of 2015.
sgriffi2

Egyptian Women in Politics - 0 views

http://egypttoday.com/blog/2015/02/23/women-in-parliament-gender-justice-for-egyptian-women/This source is from the news "Egypt Today" and talks about the struggles women still face in trying to vo...

#women #womensrights #egypt #civilrights #vote

started by sgriffi2 on 04 Mar 15 no follow-up yet
aavenda2

The most important thing to understand about the coming oil production cutbacks - 1 views

  •  
    The United States and Canada are cutting back on oil production beginning 2015. The high cost of production in the two countries does now allow it to compete with Saudi Arabia oil and other countries with lower costs as market prices begin to fall
diamond03

Egypt receives 300 recommendations in UN human rights review - Daily News Egypt - 0 views

  • Egypt has been provide
  • with 300 recommendations by the United Nations Human Rights Council
  • recommendations relating to the controversial Protest and NGO Laws, media freedoms, freedom of association, the use of the death penalty, and women’s rights.
  • ...18 more annotations...
  • Egypt received 165 recommendations following its first review in 2010.
  • Seven Egyptian NGOs refused to participate in the UN UPR, citing a fear of reprisals by the Egyptian government.
  • in line with provisions set out in the constitution and “international norms”.
  • 20 recommendations that dealt with the status of civil society organisations in Egypt and called for a revision of the current law
  • 13 times among the 300 recommendations, with calls to amend the law and “bring it in line with international standards
  • Egypt was urged to ratify international conventions on the death penalty.
  • no international consensus on the death penalty
  • Iceland read “Ensure thorough, independent and impartial investigations into the mass killings in [Rabaa Al-Adaweya] Square in 2013 and hold the perpetrators accountable
  • ies” still have death as a punishment within their criminal justice systems.
  • 50 countr
  • The US also recommended that Egypt “release those detained solely for exercising rights to freedom of expression or for membership in a political group, and ensure remaining detainees full fair trial guarantees on an individual level”.
  • included recommendations to tackle corruption, human trafficking, the promotion of human rights, and investment in education for young people.
  • UN human rights representatives
  • not to participate in the review.
  • decided
  • “the appalling deterioration in the state of human rights in Egypt”.
  • “reconsider its policies and orientation before Egypt slides into an abyss of unremitting terrorism and political violence”.
  • Egypt has until March 2015 to respond to the recommendations
  •  
    Egypt received 300 recommendation to review their human rights. The list also stated they wanted to tackle corruption, human trafficking, and human rights. Egypt has until March 2015 to respond. 
kbrisba

New Tunisian PM promises growth, reform and new hope - 0 views

  •  
    Prime Minister Habib Essid of Tunisian promised to stimulate growth. Tunisians are worried about other issues; public spending, including cutting subsidies on basic foods and fuel. Jobs, high living costs, and economic opportunities. The government sees economic growth increasing to 3 percent in 2015 from an estimated 2.5 percent in 2014.
tdford333

US drone strike in southern Yemen kills 3 AQAP fighters | The Long War Journal - 1 views

  • US drone strike in southern Yemen kills 3 AQAP fighters
  • The strike is the third in the province this year.
  • AQAP has re-established its presence in Shabwa as the Yemeni government has been weakened by the Houthi rebellion
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • The US has launched four drone strike in Yemen since the beginning of 2015.
  • The US lost its biggest partner in Yemen when the Houthis took control of Sana’a and forced President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the government to resign.
  • US officials have insisted that counterterrorism operations against AQAP will continue.
  • President Obama previously praised the US counterterrorism strategy in Yemen as “one that we have successfully pursued.”
  •  
    This article is about the a recent US drone attack in Yemen which killed 3 AQAP fighters. Also mentioned are the reassurances of the US that drone attacks will continue.
kbrisba

Tunisia: Flaws in Revised Counterterrorism Bill | Human Rights Watch - 0 views

  •  
    Tunisian government's new draft counterterrorism law would permit extended incommunicado detention, weaken due process guarantees for people charged with terrorism offenses, and allow the death penalty. This bill was sent to parliament on March 26, 2015.
sgriffi2

Sisi honors mother who dressed as man - 0 views

Sisa Gaber Abu Douh, the 65 year old woman who was forced to dress as a man to make money for her daughter, was awarded by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday for working more than 40 years. I...

#women #womensrights #politics

started by sgriffi2 on 24 Mar 15 no follow-up yet
sgriffi2

Women better off under Sisi? - 0 views

This articles discusses whether or not women have more rights under Sisi than they did before his rule. The article actually offers a fairly objective overview of how Sisi has interacted with women...

#women #womensrights #feminism #politics #egypt

started by sgriffi2 on 24 Mar 15 no follow-up yet
sgriffi2

Violence against women in Egypt - 0 views

http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/03/06/making-egypts-streets-safe-for-women/?_r=0This is an article from the New York Times that discusses the violence against women that is so rampant that it is...

#womensrights #feminism #egypt

started by sgriffi2 on 24 Mar 15 no follow-up yet
1 - 20 of 389 Next › Last »
Showing 20 items per page