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Journalist Charles Sennott recently returned from Tahrir Square, where he was filming a documentary on the revolution for PBS's Frontline. He describes how various groups of the youth came together to support a common cause. The Muslim Brotherhood had a very strategic role in the revolution. They hesitated to join in the beginning, and then the youth in their group pushed for greater involvement. The Brotherhood brought a lot of organization to the revolution. They positioned themselves as a central force of the revolution rather than a leading player in the uprising. They did not want Mubarak to pin the revolution on them. And it was not their revolution--it was a revolution of all Egyptians. Although the Muslim Brotherhood is aiming toward more of a social movement toward Islamic incorporation into the structure of society, they also want to establish themselves on the political playing field.

So now the Russians are accusing the US of interfering in Syria. Honestly, keeping up with these reports is ridiculous. The supposed "world powers" are constantly aiming falsified accusations at each other. If you're a "world power" shouldn't you at least have ethos?

Another article referring to the upcoming peace talks in Geneva on pi day. This one adds on the future plans for the conflict. It mentions that the aim is to successfully implement the ceasefire, create a transitional body, draft a new constitution, and hold fresh elections.

"merican troops in Iraq are interrogating a leader of the Islamic State after capturing him in a special operations raid, according to national security officials in Washington."

After the the new nuclear deal Iran's focus has been channeled into cyber activity. Iran state sponsored cyber espionage aimed at state department employees has been noted, usually through social media.

In accordance with the new anti-protest law, three of the leaders in Egypt's revolution were sentenced to three years in prison. The new law is aimed at Morsi's Islamist supporters after he was removed from office. More recently, officials have seen the law as protecting against the threat of the youth activists who led Mubarak's overthrow. The activists and other supporters call the law and the imprisonment revenge against their former actions. This sentencing followed new charges against Morsi implicating him in conspiracies to destabilize the country. From prison, one of the activists wrote a letter describing police stations as still torturous, suspicion against the Ministry of Interior, and the return of oppression of freedoms.

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. 

This article basically accentuates the driving factors to the ongoing insurgency of ISIL in Libya and how the threat is even more extreme than that of Iraq and Syria. One is the Islamist ideology in itself, rejecting any form of a modern state and the institutions that accompany its success. For example in Libya the leader of the AS branch declares that his militants will not disarm or demobilize until sharia law is imposed. Second, during Gaddafi's rule he unleashed a crackdown on all Islamic expression. The brutality shown towards Islamic groups during this time has fueled their resentment towards sectarian rule and has urged them to push for the rejection of state institutions even more so. The article explains how Islamic groups have claimed power in both Benghazi and Derna, the latter being the historic recruiting ground for Jihad fighters to Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. The author makes it clear that both military and diplomatic force from the international community is crucial for the reconciliation of security.

In this article for Al Monitor, a news site launched during the Arab Spring which brands itself as "the pulse of the Middle East", a physician from Hamburg talks about her more than 20 years in the Kurdistan Workers Party in a rare interview.

In this article for Al Monitor, a news site launched during the Arab Spring which brands itself as "the pulse of the Middle East", a physician from Hamburg talks about her more than 20 years in the Kurdistan Workers Party in a rare interview.

The Egyptian parliament decided to criminalize FGM. The Child Protection Committee is now in charge of helping girls who are at risk of FGM. 

The author of this article strongly opposes Social Media companies, specifically Twitter censoring ISIS related materials on their website. The author argues it violates free speech and the democratic principles associated with the website, arguing censoring a beheading video would be a slippery slope for future content.

This website shares with us information about Iran's nuclear program. Here you will find daily updates, regarding "assessments of this program, to ongoing diplomatic activity aimed at halting its uranium enrichment activity."

Millions of dollars of US provided military equipment has been destroyed by saudi airstrikes against the Houthi rebels. The power vacuum in the area has allowed AQAP to rebuild itself. U.S. officials said that the CIA's armed drones are still flying over Yemen, prepared to launch strikes against AQAP members.

Millions of dollars of US provided military equipment has been destroyed by saudi airstrikes against the Houthi rebels. The power vacuum in the area has allowed AQAP to rebuild itself. U.S. officials said that the CIA's armed drones are still flying over Yemen, prepared to launch strikes against AQAP members.

ISIL's Hacking Division as of late December have tried penetrating the U.S. national electricity grid. Two hackers were caught, having accessed over 1,305 U.S. military personnel's addresses, locations, numbers and family information. Recent ISIL bloggers have discussed crashing passenger jets by hacking into on-board electronics. Other extremists have discussed triggering a lethal radiation release by sending rogue commands to nuclear power plants.

Pope Francis has decided to take on the task of ending the ongoing religious conflicts that are ripping apart the Middle East and sending millions of people fleeing for their lives. He will get an opportunity when he hosts the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani during his travels to the West.

But the United States might be getting a lot less than it asked for. Since Saudi Arabia's announcement on December 16, questions have been raised about the coalition's membership, its commitment to fighting terror and its overall purpose. Many see the move as aimed at bolstering Saudi prestige and countering Iran more than forming an effective fighting unit.

This article is about the improvement of education in Yemen. Yemen is a very poor country with a large population growth. These programs have created platforms and finances to attract teachers, advocates for girls groups, advocates for education, and have pushed the literacy rate up towards 90%