POMED Notes: Hearing for the Nominations of Ambassadors to Libya and Chad
On Tuesday, May 7, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing for the nominations of the Honorable Deborah Kay Jones and Ambassador James Knight as ambassadors to Libya and the Republic of Chad, respectively. Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ) presided. For full hearing notes, continue reading or click here for a PDF. Senator Menendez reminded the committee of the increasing strategic importance of the Maghreb and Sahel to America’s long-term security interests, as ...
May 7, 2013
Category: Congress, Congressional Hearing Notes (Senate), Diplomacy, Event Notes, Libya, Political transition, Reform, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: “Amidst Iraq’s Turmoil: What Can We Do?”
The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) hosted a panel discussion titled "Amidst Iraq's Turmoil: What Can We Do?" The event featured Ambassador James Jeffrey, the Philip Solondz Distinguished Visiting Fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy; Daniel Serwer, Senior Research Professor of Conflict Management at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies; Mike Pillinger, Chief of Mission in Iraq for the International Organization for Migration; and ...
May 7, 2013
Category: Conflict, Diplomacy, Event Notes, Human Rights, Iraq, Islam and Democracy, Parliament, Political transition, Reform, Syria, US foreign policy
Deputy Sec. Burns: America and a Changing Middle East
Deputy Secretary of State William Burns spoke at Princeton University on Saturday on U.S. policy toward the Middle East. Burns characterized the region as "a place where American policymakers often learn humility the hard way," noting that change in the region is "rarely neat or linear, but...deeply unpredictable." Despite this assessment, he stated that "the Middle East is a place where people and leaders are capable of great things … and ...
May 6, 2013
Category: Congress, Democracy Promotion, Featured, Libya, Parliament, Political transition, Protests, US foreign policy
POMED Video of the Day: Michele Dunne, Tamara Wittes on Egypt
In an interview with Egyptian channel CBC, Michelle Dunne, Director of the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, and Tamara Wittes, Director of the Brookings' Saban Center for the Middle East discuss the current situation in Egypt. Topics of focus include U.S. policy towards Egypt, the Egyptian opposition, and ongoing negotiations between Egypt and the International Monetary Fund.
May 1, 2013
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Economics, Egypt, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, NGOs, Political Islam, Political transition, Reform
May 1, 2013
Category: al-Qaeda, Conflict, Featured, Iraq, Kurdish Region, Political transition, Protests, Sectarianism, US foreign policy
Bouteflika in “Good Health,” Speculation on Succession Grows
The office of Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika announced that the president suffered a small stroke, revealing the reason for the president being airlifted to a French military hospital outside of Paris on Saturday. The public statement, a first from ...
April 30, 2013
Category: Algeria, Elections, Featured, Islamist movements, Political transition, US foreign policy
Yemeni Court Opens Case Against Ex-President
Human Rights Watch (HRW) praised a Yemeni court order to investigate the country's former president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, and 11 top aides in connection with a fatal attack on peaceful protesters in Sa'ana in March 2011 that killed 45. Calling ...
April 30, 2013
Category: Courts and Judiciary, Democracy Promotion, Featured, Kuwait, Political transition, Yemen
Jordan’s King Discusses Reforms, Syria During Washington Visit
King Abdullah II of Jordan visited Washington this week, meeting with President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, and members of Congress. During their meeting on Friday, President Obama congratulated the king on his recent economic and political reforms ...
April 29, 2013
Category: Conflict, Featured, Foreign Aid, Jordan, Political transition, Reform, Syria, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: “The New Egypt: Challenges of a Post-Revolutionary Era”
The Center for Strategic and International Studies held an event yesterday made up of two panels. The first panel, titled “The New Egypt and the West,” included Mr. Mostafa Al Hassan, Chairman and CEO of Global Consolidated Contractors, Dr. Khaled Ismail, Chairman of Endeavor Egypt, Dr. Manar El-Shorbagy, Former Deputy Secretary General of the Constitutional Assembly, and Mr. Naguib Sawiris, Executive Chairman of the Orascom Group, and was moderated by ...
White House Suspects Chemical Attacks; Syrians Advocate Engagement
The White House today established that the U.S. Government now believes with "varying degrees of confidence" the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons on a small scale against the opposition. However, the Obama Administration stated that, given the ...
April 25, 2013
Category: Conflict, Diplomacy, Featured, Foreign Aid, Political transition, Sectarianism, Syria, US foreign policy
Egypt Revolution “Unpredictably” Reshaping Islamists, Analyst Finds
In a report for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Nathan Brown examines how the Muslim Brotherhood, Salafis and religious institutions in Egypt are being reshaped in fundamental ways by becoming increasingly involved in state politics. "For Egypt, ...
April 25, 2013
Category: Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Islam and Democracy, Islamist movements, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Political transition
POMED Notes – The Stakes in Egypt: Political Action and Democratic Change
The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted an event titled "The Stakes in Egypt: Political Action and Democratic Change." The event featured a presentation from Amr Hamzawy, founder of the Free Egypt Party, and was moderated by Karim Sadjadpour, Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment. For full event notes continue reading or click here for the PDF. Amr Hamzawy began by discussing the events that have unfolded in Egypt over the past week. ...
April 24, 2013
Category: Democracy Promotion, Economics, Egypt, Elections, Event Notes, Human Rights, Islam and Democracy, Muslim Brotherhood, Political Islam, Political transition, Reform
State Department Human Rights Country Report: Yemen
The State Department's 2012 report on the status of human rights in Yemen identified "arbitrary killings and acts of violence committed by the government and various entities and groups; disappearances and kidnappings; and a weak and corrupt judicial ...
April 24, 2013
Category: Civil Liberties, Courts and Judiciary, Featured, Human Rights, Political transition, US foreign policy, Yemen
State Department Human Rights Country Report: Egypt
The State Department's 2012 report on human rights practices in Egypt notes a host of concerns resulting from the country's 2011 revolution and transition to democracy. Among the most problematic were the increased vulnerability of women and minorities ...
April 24, 2013
Category: Civil Liberties, Civil Society, Egypt, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, NGOs, Political transition
Egypt Opposition Warns of “Judges’ ‘Massacre’”
Leaders of Egypt's largest political opposition bloc, the National Salvation Front, have called for fresh demonstrations against the government of President Mohamed Morsi over a draft law to reform the judiciary. The proposed law, drafted by President Morsi's ...
April 22, 2013
Category: Courts and Judiciary, Egypt, Featured, Legislation, Muslim Brotherhood, Political transition
Turkey’s Troubled Politics: Rising Influence and Eroding Freedoms
The Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) presents: Turkey's Troubled Politics: Rising Influence and Eroding Freedoms Friday, April 26, 2013 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm SEIU Headquarters 1800 Massachusetts Ave. NW Click here to RSVP In a time when the Middle East has been experiencing unprecedented political change and opportunities for democratic openings, many observers and analysts have turned to Turkey to be a model of democratic transformation throughout the region. As Turkey rises as a regional power, ...
April 21, 2013
Category: Elections, Featured, Iraq, Kurdish Region, Political transition, Sectarianism
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