CULF 3331: "Middle Eastern Revolutions"

More information on the Za'arari camp that our speaker was discussing with our class yesterday. I found it interesting that Jennie Corbett, a policy analyst for Europe's RAND Research Institute, described the "acts of resilience and entrepreneurship" as "more poignant and impressive" vs. our speaker yesterday who said NGOS/UN groups should not use the term "resilient" so robustly.

Jordan has taken in 628,175 Syrian refugees and Zaatari, one of the refugee camps, has grown from a temporary settlement into an informal city. Stores, school, hospitals, and mosques have been established, but many refugees still hope to one day return to Syria.

This article chronicles a reporter's trip to Yemen and summarizes the beginning of the war. They witnesses how the civil war has affected its people.

While not directly intervening, the United States has been quietly aiding the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen by providing intelligence and weapons. According to the author, this comprises U.S. interests and its moral standing.

Since the Syrian crisis involves the possibility of a president stepping down, it is being more and more compared to Egypt and Nasser's reign. Assad wants the comparisons to stop because he believes that the Syrian state is different than that of Egypt's.

Millions of Yemenis are in need of aid. Civilians are being targeted by both the Houthi rebels and Saudi forces.

This article shows just how dangerous it is in Syria. Strikes on hospitals and schools are just the tip of the ice berg on how these people are taking hits.

The whole Syrian civil war began when 15 kids were arrested for writing anit-government things. Protestors began to fill the streets, peacefully, in 2011. The government opened fire on the protestors.

A Syrian no-fly zone has been proposed that could potentially bring safety to tens of thousands of Syrian refugees. Russia is the main obstacle in the way of implementing the zone, reluctant to end its airstrikes. 

This article describes how 92% of married women in Egypt have suffered female genital mutilation. Earlier this year, an Egyptian doctor Raslan Fadl was convicted of manslaughter and performing female genital mutilation that led to the death of a 13-year-old Sohair el-Batea. He was only sentenced 2 years in prison.

This article in 2015, describes what women face everyday on Egypt streets. Eman Helal often wears a gas mask and helmet when she photographs protests. She knowns that this protective gear provides her an extra level of security from men in public. It has been said that physical attacks on women by groups of men have increased in Egypt since the start of the Arab Spring.

Dozen of diplomats, civil servants, and women's right advocates from Egypt and Japan were at Cairo together discussing potential partnership concerning the economic and political empowerment of women. This will be considered the first partnership between Egypt and Japan concerning women's issues.

This article/video is from pbs.org, talking about the revolution that happened 5 years ago at Tahrir Square. Women were apart of the revolution, by participating and leading protests. They were able to safely join men to protest, but changed later on. Female protestors were being sexually assaulted. Because of these assaults, laws are now being implemented in Egypt.

President Assad believes that there is no cease fire in sight for the civil war raging in Syria.He told a group in Damascus on Monday that "no one" was capable of bringing about the necessary circumstances for a planned truce to take effect later this week. But in his comments on the proposal, Assad seemed skeptical about whether a halt in the conflict was possible.

People often fall victim to human trafficking, especially in the Middle East. The different forms of human trafficking are considered a contemporary form of slavery. Many of the human traffickers are often migrant workers.

The kafala system is used to monitor migrant laborers in parts of the Middle East. The system works by requiring the unskilled laborers to have an in-country sponsor who is responsible for their visa and legal status. This system is often criticized because it creates easy opportunities for the employers to exploit the workers.

Manola is now only 20 years old, but a few years ago she heard about a program in Lebanon. Next thing she knew she was on a plane with 11 other girls on their way to their personal nightmare. In Lebanon, Manola was a housekeeper who was abused, raped, and beaten regularly.

This was probably the most interesting article I have read about education in the MIddle East. It is from the "Humanitarian practice Network". This article is about Turkey and the Syrian refugees, who are not documented as refugees, and the growing desire for improvements to education. Right now, the education which is in place for Syrians is adequate for a temporary stay of preserving knowledge. It is not designed to be used long term, to advance students, or to prep them for universities. This article looks at those issues and tensions which are happening currently in Turkey

This article highlights how the UNICEF is attempting to care for Refugee children. This article specifically focuses on Za'atari which is located in Jordan. It looks at the factors which negatively affect the children, the role of the teachers, and the steps to resolve the issues.

The amount of human trafficking victims in the Middle East is 68%. Of the amount of people who are victims, one in four of them is a child. A reason for people falling victim to human trafficking is extreme poverty, entrenched inequality, and a lack of education and opportunity.