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jreyesc

Nimmi Gowrinathan | Understanding and Combating Female Extremism | Foreign Affairs - 1 views

  • Those who ask it assume, first, that women are more peaceful than men by nature; and second, that women who participate in armed rebellion are little more than cannon fodder in a man’s game, fighting foolishly for a movement that will not benefit them.
  • rooted in identity
  • between Sunni and Shiite Muslims
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • with several smaller minorities caught in between
  • To be sure, for women, gender and politics can overlap in ways that they do not for men.
  • female Tigers cited rape, or the fear of rape, by government forces as a central reason for joining the movement.
  • Women fight for personal as well as political power, often sacrificing one for the other.
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    This article talks about the women of ISIS and what are some factors that lead to them joining ISIS or other rebellion armies around the world. The article also speaks about how for women, gender and politics overlap in a way that is doesn't for men. Sometimes in times of conflict women have to join these group in order to survive. 
sgriffi2

The Female Political Rockstars of Egypt - 0 views

http://www.ahmedrehab.com/blog/2011/12/women-in-egyptian-elections-social-voting-and-political-rock-...This source is an article written from the first person perspective of an Egyptian woman. The ...

#women #egypt #vote

started by sgriffi2 on 04 Mar 15 no follow-up yet
fcastro2

France, Britain dismiss calls to renew relations with Syria's Assad | Reuters - 0 views

  • France and Britain dismissed on Friday any suggestion of restoring relations with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, saying this would likely end all hope of a political transition and push moderates into the arms of radical Islamist groups.
  • With the rise of Islamic State insurgents, some European |Union member states are critical of the position in Paris and London and say it might be time to re-establish communication with Damascus given that a four-year-old revolt has failed to overthrow Assad
  • "In reality, Bashar represents injustice, chaos and terror. We, France and Britain, say no to all three
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  • the French and British foreign ministers hit back at those who sought a rapprochement with Assad by saying he was using the fear of Islamic State, which has seized wide areas of northern and eastern Syria, to win back international support
  • This week a four-man cross-party delegation of French parliamentarians traveled to Syria and some met with Assad, and triggering a national debate on the issue
  • countries would have to work with Assad to defeat Islamic State, while the U.N. envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said earlier this month that Assad must be part of the solution for defusing the conflict in Syria
  • An initially peaceful street uprising against Assad has spiraled into a civil war that has seen a level of suffering some diplomats see as justifying contacts with Damascus in pursuit of a political solution
  • Britain and France see Assad's departure as a precondition of peace negotiations but the collapse of his government has become less likely as the war grinds on inconclusively
  • For our own security, we must defeat Islamic State in Syria. We need a partner that can act against extremists. We need a negotiated political settlement
  • compromise would be needed between elements of the existing government and relatively moderate opponents of Assad.
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    Both Britain and France have shunned Syrian President Assad in their quest to fight terrorism. They oppose all that the Syrian government stands for and this is why they will continue to dismiss the Syrian government and any ties with them. 
allieggg

US weighs sanctions on Libyan factions to try to halt proxy war - 1 views

  • US sanctions would be separate from potential United Nations sanctions that aim to pressure Libyan factions and militias to take part in UN-backed political negotiations to be led by UN envoy Bernardino Leon.
  • The possibility of using UN sanctions to help bring about political talks has been aired publicly.
  • US officials declined to say who they might target with sanctions or why they felt it necessary to look at US. penalties separate from the United Nations. Nor would they detail what sanctions they would propose.
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  • If applied, the United Nations sanctions would target individuals or groups involved in the fighting, rather than their foreign backers, and would freeze their assets as well as impose travel bans.
  • struggling for power and control of its oil wealth.
  • two potential reasons for unilateral US action.
  • United Nations moves slowly or not at all, US penalties could be imposed whenever Washington wished.
  • US sanctions could be especially worrisome to Khalifa Haftar, a former Libyan army general who fled to the United States after breaking ranks with Gaddafi and returned to launch a campaign against the Islamists in Benghazi.
  • Western officials believe the involvement of outside powers such as Egypt and the UAE is exacerbating the conflict and that the two countries are arming and funding the more secular forces.
  • Haftar, according to Western officials, has become the major proxy in Libya for Egypt,
  • UAE sees Egypt's leadership as a firewall against militants and has given Cairo financial and military support
  • Saudi Arabia, a supporter of Sisi, is sympathetic to the Egyptian and Emirati involvement in Libya but is not believed to have played any direct role,
  • Qatar and Turkey. Qatar, officials said, has given arms and money to Islamist militias while Turkey has offered moral support.
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    The UN is pushing for sanctions to put pressure on Libyan factions and militias to take part in political negotiations. These sanctions would target individual groups rather than the foreign backers involved in the proxy war and would freeze their assets and impose travel bans. US officials have introduced the possibility of using their own sanctions separate from the UN for a few reasons: UN sanctions move slowly if not at all, Washington could impose them whenever they wish. The US places more emphasis on the importance on external actors in the conflict than domestic groups, explaining that these countries are actually intensifying the conflict. 
allieggg

The Age of Proxy Wars - 0 views

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    This article accentuates the "Age of Proxy Wars" in the Middle East. While Syria and Libya are the 2 most known proxy situations, the article illuminates other states involved as well. We know already about UAE, Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, which this article also brings up, but new information suggests that Bahrain and Kuwait are supporting sides of the regional war as well. While these nations think they're doing their part to support their values, these proxy wars are actually fostering further extremism since people supporting each side do not directly suffer the consequences. The article states that the metastasizing of these jihadist groups is grave threat to US national security, and the US must intervene in order to solve this crisis. The author says the US needs to improve their performance in donor cordination, funding the right groups, as well as be more aggressive in working directly with elections, uncovering networks of money and influence. He says rather than the conduction of elections, we must focus on the nature of politics in general, curbing corruption and embedding sectarian democratic values in their political sphere.
katelynklug

President Sisi's Worldview - 0 views

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    A former senior official at the U.S. embassy in Cairo describes how Sisi's background is shaping his approach to domestic politics, counterterrorism, Israel, and other issues. From the way Sisi is described, his main priority is the domestic economy. He knows that without creating domestic stability through lowering unemployment and generating more capital, he cannot remain in power. In addition, it appears that Sisi is a strong believer of military influence. He has a strategic plan of cooperating with great powers to grow Egypt's reputation. Sisi's plan to create a strong state, while cooperating with other strong states and focusing on military power are all evidence of his political realist tendencies.
micklethwait

French, Egyptian journalists held in café for discussing politics | Mada Masr - 0 views

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    Um, I'm not so sure I want to go back to Egypt anytime soon.
alarsso

Understanding Syria: From Pre-Civil War to Post-Assad - The Atlantic - 0 views

  • xtreme temperatures
  • drought from 2006 to 2011
  • 2001 to 2010, Syria had 60 “significant” dust storms.
  • ...70 more annotations...
  • lessening of rainfall
  • as of the last year before the civil war, only about 13,500 square kilometers could be irrigated
  • agriculture
  • 20 percent of national income
  • employed about 17 percent
  • Syria’s oil is of poor quality, sour, and expensive to refine
  • densely populated
  • less than 0.25 hectares (just over a third of an acre) of agricultural land per person
  • population/resource ratio is out of balance.
  • So it is important to understand how their “social contract”—their view of their relationship with one another and with the government—evolved and then shattered.
  • threw the country into the arms of
  • Egypt’s President Gamal Abdel Nasser
  • or three and a half years
  • part of the United Arab Republic
  • A fundamental problem they faced was what it meant to be a Syrian.
  • 1961 Syrians were thrown back on their own resources
  • The majority of those who became Syrians were Arabic-speaking Sunni Muslims
  • seven and eight in 10 Syrians saw themselves as Muslim Arab
  • being a Muslim Arab as the very definition of Syrian identity.
  • Nationalists took this diversity as a primary cause of weakness and adopted as their primary task integrating the population into a single political and social structure.
  • Israel
  • Looming over Syrian politics and heightening the tensions
  • A ceasefire, negotiated in 1974, has held, but today the two states are still legally at war.
  • or Hafez al-Assad, the secular, nationalist Baath Party was a natural choice: it offered, or seemed to offer, the means to overcome his origins in a minority community and to point toward a solution to the disunity of Syrian politics
  • bridge the gaps between rich and poor
  • socialism
  • Muslims and minorities
  • Islam
  • society
  • hould be modern
  • secular
  • defined by a culture of “Arabism”
  • the very antithesis of
  • Muslim Brotherhood
  • military, which seemed
  • o embody the nation.
  • help the Syrian people to live better provided only that they not challenge his rule
  • his stern and often-brutal monopoly of power
  • foreign troublemakers
  • Hafez al-Assad sided with Iran in the Iran-Iraq war
  • During the rule of the two Assads, Syria made considerable progress.
  • locked into the cities and towns
  • they f
  • had to compete
  • Palestinians
  • Iraqis
  • Syria was already a refuge
  • March 15, 2011
  • small group gathered in the southwestern town of Daraa to protest against government failure to help them
  • government saw them as subversives.
  • He ordered a crackdown
  • And the army,
  • responded violently.
  • Riots broke out
  • attempted to quell them with military
  • what had begun as a food and water issue gradually turned into a political and religious cause.
  • interpretation of Islam
  • the Syrian government is charged with using illegal chemical weapons
  • All observers agree that the foreign-controlled and foreign-constituted insurgent groups are the most coherent, organized, and effective
  • astonishing as they share no common language and come from a wide variety of cultures
  • slam has at least so far failed to provide an effective unifying force
  • all the rebels regard the conflict in Syria as fundamentally a religious issue
  • pwards of $150 billion
  • a whole generation of Syrians have been subjected to either or both the loss of their homes and their trust in fellow human beings.
  • How the victims and the perpetrators can be returned to a “normal life”
  • First, the war might continue.
  • Second, if the Syrian government continues or even prevails, there is no assurance that,
  • t will be able to suppress the insurgency.
  • Third,
  • Syria will remain effectively “balkanized”
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    This article captures Syria's geography, history, and all events leading up to the state Syria is in today.
kkerby223

Make no mistake: Michelle Obama just made a bold political statement in Saudi Arabia - ... - 0 views

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    In this article, Michelles Obama's fashion choices in Saudi Arabia are discussed. Although it is customary and even against the rules for women to show too much skin, Michelle Obama wore a blue flowing shirt with a jacket on top. She is also choosing not to cover her face and hair. This was a direct fashion political statement made by the first lady.
katelynklug

Egypt's Counter-Revolution Youth - 0 views

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    Suleiman al-Hout was refused a license for his food cart in 2007. In retaliation, Hout acted the opposite of Mohammed Bouazizi in Tunisia. He went directly to Mubarak's former party headquarters and told them they had an opportunity to gain his vote by helping him on his food cart license. Since then, Hout was a proud supporter of the National Democratic Party and spent many years growing his business network and promoting the party. Through these tactics, Hout gained political clout and support. He did not benefit from the youth revolution because he was still unable to gain employment and a livelihood. The way Hout runs his political campaign is similar to Mubarak-era tactics. Although Hout was an early supporter of Sisi, he quickly changed his position when he was not given a job in the regime and did not gain any other employment. Now he is running for a seat in parliament, and because of his business connections, he may be successful.
jshnide

Political map - Palestine Link - 0 views

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    The distribution of political mindedness is heavily mixed in the Gaza Strip. Other organizations in the area are also influencing the movements of people in the area.
jshnide

Israel moves to outlaw Palestinian political parties in the Knesset | The Electronic In... - 0 views

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    Israel has moved to prevent Palestinian political parties to be recognized in parliament. The Palestinian minority spokesperson was suspended from the Knesset, causing outrage within Palestine.
jshnide

Israel-Palestine: Political Parties & Factions - 0 views

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    This slideshow summarizes the Israeli and Palestinian political parties and their religious beliefs. Their differences are vast in difference and can be hostile.
yperez2

Egypt's 'Muslim Sisterhood' moves from social work to politics Read more: http://www.a... - 0 views

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    Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood established a sub-organization similar to it. The organization is for women and they are known as the "Muslim Sisterhood".
kbrisba

Tunis Bardo Museum attack: Thousands join protest march - BBC News - 0 views

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    The people of Tunisia responded to the attack on the museum with an anti-terrorism march. The people walked around the streets chanting "'Tunisia is free! Terrorism out!'". Political leaders supported the people on this one. Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi said, "' The Tunisian people proved today that they do not bow to terrorism, and that as one man and one woman, they defend the nation. When Tunisia is targeted, the whole nation stands as one'". The march was to show that they are democratic people, Tunisians are moderate and there is no room for terrorists here. Some leftist political groups chose to boycott the rally because they feel it is a participation of an Islamist party and they are the ones accountable for the rise of Islamic extremism in the country.
csherro2

ALGERIA APPROVES NEW CONSTITUTION - NYTimes.com - 1 views

  • a new Constitution in balloting Thursday, paving the way for a multiparty system for the first time since independence from France in 1962.
  • More than 70 percent of the 10.4 million people who voted favored the constitutional change, the Interior Ministry said.
  • About 80 percent of the 13 million voters
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • He said it will allow his country ''to know more democracy, to assure public and individual liberties, and to establish the sovereignty of the law.''
  • Although it does not specifically authorize political parties to compete with the ruling National Liberation Front, the new Constitution declares ''the right to create associations of a political character.''
  • In November, 92 percent of the voters approved political changes that began reducing the power of the ruling party, the only legal political organization in the nation of 25 million people.
  • The Constitution also guarantees freedom of expression and, within limits, the right to strike.
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    ALGIERS, Feb. 24- The Government announced today that Algerian voters overwhelmingly approved a new Constitution in balloting Thursday, paving the way for a multiparty system for the first time since independence from France in 1962. More than 70 percent of the 10.4 million people who voted favored the constitutional change, the Interior Ministry said.
blantonjack

How U.S. Politicians Are Reacting to the Attacks in Brussels - 0 views

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    "I think it's absolutely horrible," Trump said. "Look at Brussels, Brussels was a beautiful city, a beautiful place with zero crime, and now it's a disaster." He said the Belgian capital "is an armed camp" and added that "Paris is no longer the beautiful City of Lights." The United States GOP party is weighing in on the ISIS attacks, and what they think Obama should be doing. This puts the United States under high alert because several people flock in from the border every day to get to the US.
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