An end to the stalemate in Bahrain?

Apparently, and according to the BBC, Bahrain's Justice Minister has invited a string of opposition representatives to enter into "peace talks", that is, negotiations with the aim of putting an end to the impasse that has plunged the tiny country into instability and frustration. Nonetheless, I highly doubt talks may one day lead to the authorities' making the kind of concessions the opposition (and notably, the Shia community) have been demanding for years within the framework of their own characteristic "Bahraini Spring", moreover if we take into account politically motivated arrests go on (and several activists remain in jail), public gatherings are still banned, torture is widespread and freedom of expression has never been granted to the island inhabitants.

Comments

What about Lebanon?

I would never dare to think I have enough knowledge so as to freely talk about this issue and produce a meaningful article, but I will try to write down what I have understood so far (I already had to edit as I misunderstood some facts, thanks Louis!). Lebanon and Syria have always been deeply interconnected. Both countries were part of the Ottoman Empire, both countries were under the dominance of France's colonization, both countries share an extremely complicated ethnic/religious division, and both countries political scenes still depend on the other's. More recently, Syria was a key player in the brokering of the 1989 Taif Accords putting an end to Lebanon's civil war, and its troops (and many authorities) stayed in the country (allegedly guaranteeing the non resumption of violence) until 2005, when the country's population unanimously demanded their retreat. It all started in Tripoli, Lebanon's second largest city, next to the country's northern borde...

A Palestinian Spring?

I won't sum up the evolution and characteristics of the Arab Spring for you, you are all aware of them. I won't even enter into the debate on the term "Arab Spring" and its real meaning (at least, not now!). But I have to admit I really like the sound of it, moreover when it is used to add a new country to this encouraging domino effect movement, and that seems to be the case of Palestine. Nonetheless, this case presents a new surprising feature... It looks like one of the leaders of the country the events are taking place in is actually supporting the uprising!! So... who/what do the people go against (besides, as always, the Israeli occupiers)? Well, they are mainly demonstrating against the other visible authority of the Palestinian Authority. Wouldn't it be nice if I put names to all of these characters? A (key?) meeting of the Arab League was held last week in Cairo (President Morsi surprised us again with flammable declarations about Syria, he does se...

No one is innocent these days... (updated)

A ridiculous film (" Innocence of Muslims ") has sparked a heated reaction throughout most of the Muslim World, outrageously entailing the deaths of four people in Libya, other deaths in other countries, and dozens injured elsewhere, as María Sánchez Muñoz reported on her note . This events are also fanning debates on various issues: is Al-Qaeda involved in some of these attacks? Is there an actual link to the "Arab Spring"? What should the U.S. (and particularly Mr Obama, completely immersed in its campaign and an easy target for the Republicans) do? What should the leaders of these countries (all eyes on Mr Morsi, again) do? Are we bound to face similar issues every few years (remember the Danish cartoonist´s controversy ? At least there was some quality in these drawings!) or is there a rational way out? It all started in Cairo, where the grand mufti of Egypt spoke out last Sunday against a film that he condemned as "offensive to all Muslims"...

Discovering MENA and other thoughts

Search This Blog