Revolutionary Virus Spreads further in Middle East and North Africa: Quarantine Impossible
By Faiz Ahmed
Oakland University
Tunisia’s revolution definitely seems to have sparked the massive revolutionary powder keg that was the Middle East and North Africa. Tunisia and Egypt’s focus is now shifting on Yemen, Bahrain, Morocco, Libya and Kuwait.
In Bahrain, the Shia majority are calling for the abolishment of the Sunni monarchy which is a US ally, and is considered a buffer zone between the Middle East and Iran because of the US naval base there.
The center of the revolt where all the protesters gather is Pearl Square. People from all walks of life have been protesting. However the government has been responding with tear gas and rubber bullets.
The protesters are calling for a constitutional monarchy similar to that of UK and want the sham parliament dissolved. However, a part of the protesting group is calling for the entire dissolution of the monarchy altogether.
The Saudi government has also pledged its undying support to the monarchy of Bahrain and has promised to help the regime no matter what. The Saudi promise to the government of Bahrain came when US Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was visiting Saudi Arabia.
The death toll reached around 10 people last week and the number of people injured is in the hundreds.
The protests are going to grow as more and more people feel resentful of government crackdowns.
The Islamic Action Society, the leading opposition party which is a key player in the protests, has declared that it will not take part in any dialogue with the government.
The masses in the protest seem to have a more religious motivation than Egyptian protesters or Tunisian protesters did.
On the other side of Saudi is Yemen, where protests have been going on since before the Egyptian protests started last month.
The Yemeni situation has always been shaky. The country has a tribal system and each tribe has its own militia.
With the USA pressuring Saleh’s government to take on the AQAP terrorist groups, and with the Houthi insurgents challenging him every now and then, President Saleh had started to look weak and as a puppet of the US, in the eyes of the Yemeni people.
This, coupled with the problem of poverty and unemployment and sectarian rivalries, Yemen was in a very explosive condition.
President Saleh has declared that he will only step down if he loses the next presidential elections. However, the student movement does not seem to believe president Saleh.
There is another country in the gulf that is facing protests, and that is Kuwait.
Certain stateless Bedouin Arab tribes that settled in Kuwait for generations are demanding citizenship rights to be able to get government jobs and free health care. The Kuwaiti state has so far discriminated against this portion of Kuwaiti society.
However, it seems that although Bahrain and Yemen have chances of regime change, protesters in Kuwait are a smaller group, and the majority of Kuwaitis are happy with all the money that they have.
In Morocco, North Africa, protesters clashed with security personnel. The protesters had been calling for reduction in the king’s powers and a more independent judiciary.
There have also been some protests in Jordan. However, King Abdullah responded to the protests by firing his cabinet and instructing the new Prime Minister, Al-Bakhit, to institute reforms quickly. However, protests still continue, as the new Prime Minister seems to be as unpopular as his predecessor.
With all these rapid changes in the geopolitical map of the Middle East, one country is definitely feeling a little hot. Israel is surrounded on one side by unfriendly Syria, Lebanon and Turkey. On the other hand, this new problem of protests in Jordan and the loss of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, which was their best ally, have left the Israeli army and the Israeli politicians very jittery.
It will be important to keep a watchful eye on Israel along with all other revolutionary spots in the Middle East.
First Published With East West Link News - ewlnews.com
Oakland University
Tunisia’s revolution definitely seems to have sparked the massive revolutionary powder keg that was the Middle East and North Africa. Tunisia and Egypt’s focus is now shifting on Yemen, Bahrain, Morocco, Libya and Kuwait.
In Bahrain, the Shia majority are calling for the abolishment of the Sunni monarchy which is a US ally, and is considered a buffer zone between the Middle East and Iran because of the US naval base there.
The center of the revolt where all the protesters gather is Pearl Square. People from all walks of life have been protesting. However the government has been responding with tear gas and rubber bullets.
The protesters are calling for a constitutional monarchy similar to that of UK and want the sham parliament dissolved. However, a part of the protesting group is calling for the entire dissolution of the monarchy altogether.
The Saudi government has also pledged its undying support to the monarchy of Bahrain and has promised to help the regime no matter what. The Saudi promise to the government of Bahrain came when US Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was visiting Saudi Arabia.
The death toll reached around 10 people last week and the number of people injured is in the hundreds.
The protests are going to grow as more and more people feel resentful of government crackdowns.
The Islamic Action Society, the leading opposition party which is a key player in the protests, has declared that it will not take part in any dialogue with the government.
The masses in the protest seem to have a more religious motivation than Egyptian protesters or Tunisian protesters did.
On the other side of Saudi is Yemen, where protests have been going on since before the Egyptian protests started last month.
The Yemeni situation has always been shaky. The country has a tribal system and each tribe has its own militia.
With the USA pressuring Saleh’s government to take on the AQAP terrorist groups, and with the Houthi insurgents challenging him every now and then, President Saleh had started to look weak and as a puppet of the US, in the eyes of the Yemeni people.
This, coupled with the problem of poverty and unemployment and sectarian rivalries, Yemen was in a very explosive condition.
President Saleh has declared that he will only step down if he loses the next presidential elections. However, the student movement does not seem to believe president Saleh.
There is another country in the gulf that is facing protests, and that is Kuwait.
Certain stateless Bedouin Arab tribes that settled in Kuwait for generations are demanding citizenship rights to be able to get government jobs and free health care. The Kuwaiti state has so far discriminated against this portion of Kuwaiti society.
However, it seems that although Bahrain and Yemen have chances of regime change, protesters in Kuwait are a smaller group, and the majority of Kuwaitis are happy with all the money that they have.
In Morocco, North Africa, protesters clashed with security personnel. The protesters had been calling for reduction in the king’s powers and a more independent judiciary.
There have also been some protests in Jordan. However, King Abdullah responded to the protests by firing his cabinet and instructing the new Prime Minister, Al-Bakhit, to institute reforms quickly. However, protests still continue, as the new Prime Minister seems to be as unpopular as his predecessor.
With all these rapid changes in the geopolitical map of the Middle East, one country is definitely feeling a little hot. Israel is surrounded on one side by unfriendly Syria, Lebanon and Turkey. On the other hand, this new problem of protests in Jordan and the loss of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, which was their best ally, have left the Israeli army and the Israeli politicians very jittery.
It will be important to keep a watchful eye on Israel along with all other revolutionary spots in the Middle East.
First Published With East West Link News - ewlnews.com
You are just an ass!! Why don't you stop writing these shit and get a life you fucking moron!!!
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