INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

During the past few months, the international community has been following closely the Crimea crisis as well as the events in Syria and Iraq. Due to the latter's explosive nature, the situation slowly developing in the Maghreb countries failed to make a strong impact on the news. Priorities, however, are shifting and interest in the Maghreb - Algeria and Libya in particular - is coming back to the forefront.

Boko Haram famously came to the forefront in 2009 with a string of attacks in Northern and Central Nigeria. At its early beginnings in 2002 , it was merely identified as a Sunni religious anti-western movement attempting to fill the void left by the progressive parties of Nigeria. However, successive Nigerian administrations, through a series of misguided political decisions, eventually turned the movement into an insurgent, radical and brutally violent group that would demand the spotlight in the African continent for the better part of the 21st century. Often regarded as sub-Sahara’s greatest security threat, the name “Boko Haram” translates as “forbidden book” or “western education is a sin” in the Hausa language, and represents the will to reject any and all “westernization” of Nigerian society and culture.

The relationship between the current Egyptian administration and the Egyptian religious authority of al-Azhar has been going through some changes in the past few months. Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s ascension to the Presidency in 2014 was welcomed by the Coptic Christian community of Egypt and was supported by the al-Azhar University. Nonetheless, efforts to renew the Egyptian national identity and to push for a “religious revolution” in Egypt was met with discomfort, discontent, and, in some circles, distrust. The role of the al-Azhar university and its Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, as a leading authority on Sunni Muslim affairs within Egypt was believed to being sidelined. Consequently, a light should be shone on the intricacies of the different points of contention which dominate the political and religious fora in Egyptian society.

Throughout the years 2011-2012, the waves of the Arab Spring uprisings hit Egypt, paving the way for the party of the Muslim Brotherhood to win the first elections following the removal of former President Hosni Mubarak from power. The focus of the newly-elected government to implement Sunni Muslim values and the rule of Sharia law eventually led to its downfall, via a coup orchestrated by the military, in 2013. A new military government led by Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was soon placed into power and won the elections that followed. This situation sparked an already present discussion on the degree of implementation of secular values within the Egyptian society, as well as within the Egyptian institutions.

Η κατάσταση στην Υεμένη διαιωνίζεται από το 2014 και την εξέγερση των Χούθι κατά της κυβέρνησης του προέδρου Μανσούρ Χάντι. Ωστόσο, οφείλουμε να ανατρέξουμε στα γεγονότα των προηγουμένων ετών, ώστε να εντοπιστούν τα αίτια της σημερινής πραγματικότητας, τόσο στο εσωτερικό της χώρας όσο και στις σχέσεις με την Σαουδική Αραβία και τα Ηνωμένα Αραβικά Εμιράτα.

Ανατρέχοντας στις τεταμένες τουρκο-συριακές σχέσεις της δεκαετίας του 1990, αναδεικνύεται η μείζονα σημασία του κουρδικού στοιχείου τόσο στα εσωτερικά όσο και στα εξωτερικά πράγματα της Τουρκίας. Κατά τη διάρκεια αυτής της δεκαετίας, η δράση των ανταρτών του PKK (Εργατικό Κόμμα του Κουρδιστάν) στο εσωτερικό της Τουρκίας αποτελούσε το βασικό ζήτημα εθνικής ασφάλειας των τουρκικών κυβερνήσεων.

Although the states in the Middle East were largely defined in terms of national identity during the 20th century, a number of recent developments leading up and during the Arab Spring help shine a light on matters of state, national and religious cohesion.

In the past few years, relations between Turkey and Israel have been strained. The current status quo that resulted from the 2009 Davos World Economic Forum, and especially the Mavi Marmara incident in 2010 could only be described as an unraveling of the Turkish-Israeli ties of the 1990s and early 2000s. It certainly seems that the previous mutually beneficial strategic and economic partnership between the two countries is a thing of the past. However, the situation is not as it seems.

2014 is the year in which old and new challenges will arise for Israel. As the state heads towards the 66th anniversary of its independence, it faces roadblocks that – in a nutshell – impede the urgency of its finding a solution for its political, financial and refugee crisis. This article lays out the current major issues that confront Israel, prompting a discussion.

Η επόμενη μέρα της κατάρρευσης της Σοβιετικής Ενωσης και της εγκατάστασης της «Νέας Τάξης Πραγμάτων» στις αρχές του 1990 οδήγησε στην εντονότερη προσέγγιση μεταξύ της Τουρκίας και του Ισραήλ. Με ορίζοντα δεκαετίας, οι σχέσεις τους καλλιεργήθηκαν, δίνοντας νέα πνοή τόσο στη διμερή τους συνεργασία σε οικονομικό, στρατηγικό και αμυντικό επίπεδο όσο και στις προσπάθειες ομαλοποίησης των διακρατικών δεσμών με τα γειτονικά τους κράτη.

Over the past few months, a growing number of jihadist attacks have taken place in western countries. These attacks were linked to the activities of the Islamic State (IS) and were carried out under its mandate. The questions that arise immediately from the current situation are whether these attacks are organized by IS (formerly the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria); if any comparison to previous al-Qaeda-organized attacks is feasible; and, finally, whether their rise should be cause for concern in terms of a new approach regarding domestic and international security.

This article seeks to contrast Egypt’s leadership role in the Middle East after the Second World War with the one Turkey is currently aiming for, while emphasizing the fundamental changes that occurred in Middle East countries during the second half of the 20th century

The refugee issue within the Maghreb area cannot be limited to the recent exodus of refugees from Syria due to the ongoing civil war. The region of the Maghreb is comprised of four countries: Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. This region on the northern part of Africa represents a nexus for the people of two different continents whose endgame is to get to Europe.

The Tunisian Revolution of January 2011 ushered a new era in the states of the Arab World. While its repercussions were plainly perceived in the cases of Libya and Egypt, one needs to assess the revolution’s lasting effects in Tunisia, as well as its influence on the democratic process of the rest of the Maghreb countries.

Syria has been, for the past couple of years, on the forefront of what remains of the Arab uprisings of 2011. Although recent developments have focused on the actions and the rise to power of the Islamic State, domestically as well as internationally, light should also be shed on the other active jihadist-oriented groups, by taking into account their respective genesis, affiliations and prospects.

The US policy for the Middle East is dictated by a number of factors, one of which is the energy dimension. Energy seems to be the driving force in developments recently, a statement made even more relevant by the many natural gas discoveries that have occurred in just the span of a few years in the Eastern Mediterranean basin.

The Syrian Crisis begins in 2011 as part of the Arab Spring movement. The Republican Party won the 2008 Presidential elections and is at the helm of the initiative to handle the situation. Its willingness and affinity for military intervention make an eventual occupation of Syria the only viable resolution of the civil war.