“U.S. Strategy in the Middle East: An Address by Senator John McCain”
At an event hosted by the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution on June 6, 2013 at 2:15pm, Senator John McCain gave his first public remarks on the conflict in Syria and his thoughts on wider Middle East policy for the first time since he visited Syria last month. Brookings Institution Vice President and Director for Foreign Police Martin Indyk provided introductory remarks and Senior Foreign ...
June 7, 2013
Category: al-Qaeda, Civil-Military Relations, Conflict, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Foreign Aid, Hezbollah, Iran, Islamist movements, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, NATO, Palestine, Political Islam, Political transition, Sectarianism, Secularism, Syria, Turkey, UAE, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: “Subcommittee on Middle East and North Africa Hearing: A Crisis Mismanaged: Obama’s Failed Syria Policy”
On Tuesday, June 5, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs held a hearing titled “Obama’s Failed Syria Policy.” Mr. Tony Badran, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Ms. Danielle Pletka, Vice President of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies at the American Enterprise Institute, and Dr. Jon Alterman, Director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, testified. The committee’s chairman, Rep. ...
June 6, 2013
Category: al-Qaeda, Civil-Military Relations, Conflict, Congress, Congressional Hearing Notes (House), Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Foreign Aid, Gulf, Hezbollah, Iran, Iraq, Islamist movements, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, NATO, Palestine, Political Islam, Protests, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Uncategorized, US foreign policy, US politics
POMED Notes: National Endowment for Democracy (NED) Panel – “Democracy Think Tanks in Action”
The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) hosted a panel titled “Democracy Think Tanks in Action: Translating Research into Policy in Young and Emerging Democracies” on June 3, 2013 at their office on F Street in Washington, DC. Christopher Walker of the International Forum for Democratic Studies (a component of NED) moderated the panel, which featured report contributors Orazio Bellettini, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Grupo FARO in Ecuador and Sami ...
June 4, 2013
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Event Notes, Freedom, Human Rights, Lebanon, NGOs
Lebanese Parliament to Vote on Term Extension
Photo Credit: The Daily Star/Hasan ShaabanLebanese parliament speaker Nabih Berri called for a vote on extending the body's mandate on Friday, despite the Cabinet's decision to hold elections as scheduled earlier this week. On Monday, the ...
Syrian Rebel Chief Sets Precondition to Peace Talks
In a letter to Secretary of State John Kerry obtained by The Cable, General Salim Idris, commander of the Syrian opposition fighting force, reiterated his request that the United States provide the opposition with weapons and ...
May 23, 2013
Category: Conflict, Diplomacy, Featured, Hezbollah, Jordan, Lebanon, Political transition, Sectarianism, Syria, US foreign policy
State Department Human Rights Country Report: Lebanon
The State Department's annual report on human rights in Lebanon described the country's most significant human rights abuses as "torture and abuse by government and other security forces, harsh prison and detention center conditions, and limitations on freedom of ...
April 26, 2013
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Category: Civil Liberties, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Journalism, Lebanon, US foreign policy
April 20, 2013
Category: Bahrain, Civil Liberties, Courts and Judiciary, Egypt, Elections, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Political transition, Qatar, Reform, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, UAE, US foreign policy, Yemen
POMED Notes: “The Arab Awakening and the New Sectarian Divide”
On Wednesday, April 10th, The Brookings Institution held an event titled “The Arab Awakening and the New Sectarian Divide.” It featured Geneive Abdo, Middle East/Southwest Asia Fellow at The Stimson Center and Nonresident Fellow at Brookings, and Kristin Smith Diwan, Assistant Professor of Middle East Politics at American University. Daniel Byman, Research Director and Senior Fellow at Brookings’ Saban Center for Middle East Policy, moderated the event. For full event notes ...
April 10, 2013
Category: Bahrain, Conflict, Event Notes, Iran, Lebanon, Political transition, Sectarianism
April 6, 2013
Category: Elections, Featured, Hezbollah, Islam and Democracy, Lebanon, Parliament, Sectarianism
Analysis: Why did the Lebanese PM Resign?
Writing for The New Yorker, Dexter Filkins suggests that the recent resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati was "sparked by the civil war" in Syria. While Mikati's decision to resign followed disagreements over internal issues, like the establishment of an election supervisory body, the country's politics are increasingly polarized by loyalties to the opposing parties of the Syrian conflict. Specifically, Filkins argues that Hezbollah's opposition to extending the term of Major General Ashraf Rifi, ...
POMED’s Weekly Wire – February 25
POMED's Weekly Wire newsletter for the week of February 25th is now available. In this edition, we cover the following top stories: Sec. Kerry Preps for Egypt Visit, Morsi Announces Election Date Sen. Corker Meets with Tunisian Officials, New PM Chosen Lebanese Legislative Committees Approve Draft Elec. Law Yemeni Dialogue Planning Stalls amid Resignations, Protester Deaths Iranian Supreme Leader Meets with Reformists To continue reading the full Weekly Wire, click here.
February 20, 2013
Category: Civil Liberties, Elections, Featured, Hezbollah, Lebanon, Legislation, Parliament, Sectarianism
Freedom House: “Middle East Gains Provoke Intensified Repression”
Freedom House released on Wednesday a report titled "Freedom in the World 2013: Middle East Gains Provoke Intensified Repression." Freedom House found "impressive gains" in the past year despite being a region "notable for sectarian polarization, ...
December 31, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Congress, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Elections, EU, Featured, Jordan, Lebanon, Muslim Brotherhood, Political transition, Protests, Reform, Syria, US foreign policy
Assad VP: Absolute Victory No Longer an Option
The U.S. Department of State called on both sides of the Syrian conflict to “stop unlawful attacks on civilians and comply with international law” on December 17. The call came after reports that a number of civilians had ...
December 18, 2012
Category: Diplomacy, EU, Featured, Freedom, Hezbollah, Human Rights, Lebanon, Palestine, Political transition, Reform, Syria, US foreign policy
Wilson Center Releases Arab Spring Paper
To mark the 2nd anniversary of the Arab Spring, the Woodrow Wilson Center released a report, titled "Has the Arab Spring Lived up to Expectations?" The report features opinions from 39 experts from the Middle East, North Africa, ...
December 17, 2012
Category: Algeria, Bahrain, Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Economics, Egypt, Featured, Freedom, Gulf, Human Rights, Iran, Iraq, Islam and Democracy, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Political Islam, Political transition, Protests, Qatar, Reform, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, Yemen
Carnegie: Can Lebanon Survive the Syrian Crisis?
The Carnegie Endowment released a new paper written by Paul Salem, titled "Can Lebanon Survive the Syrian Crisis?" The paper addresses the current political climate in Lebanon, and how the Syrian crisis has affected the situation on the ...