According to the Interior Minister for Administrative Affairs Refat Qomsan, nearly 50,650,000 citizens will be eligible to vote in the parliamentary elections expected in November, which will continue in three stages.  Qomsan also emphasized that in preparation for the parliamentary elections, the Ministry of Interior is "developing new mechanisms to further organize the electoral process to ensure its integrity and transparency." Qomsan said that the new database that was developed for ...

Eric Trager writes on the role of the Muslim Brotherhood throughout the political transition of Egypt.  Trager argues that "The Brotherhood is Egypt's most cohesive political movement, with an unparalleled ability to mobilize its followers, who will serve it extremely well in a country still unaccustomed to voting."  From January through March this year, Trager interviewed about 30 current and former Brotherhood members in an effort to examine its organizational ...

Yemeni politicians abandoned the newly formed opposition council, exposing divisions in the anti-government movement.  The 143 member National Council was formed on Wednesday by two opposition groups to further emphasize their movement against President Ali Abdullah Saleh's regime.  However, on Saturday, nearly two dozen of its members announced their resignation due to a dispute over unequal representation between members of the south and north of Yemen.

In an interview with Reuters, leader of the Front for Justice and Development party, Sheikh Abdallah Djaballah, said that the Algerian government has failed to address the undemocratic system and has instead tried to hand out money to appease popular dissent. He said, "The regime wanted to fix the problem financially by saying that the crisis is social and that raising wages will be enough... It is true that the social aspect ...

Al-Wefaq, Bahrain's largest Shiite group, reported on Friday that it would boycott the parliamentary elections taking place next month.  Khalil Marzooq, a leader of Al-Wefaq, said at a rally near Bahrain's capital that "if the party participates in the September elections, it will be giving the government a stamp of approval."  He added that the group disagrees with how security forces treated protesters. Anthony Mathew Jacob writes in Tehran Times that ...

On Friday, the International Foundation for Electoral Systems hosted a panel discussion entitled: “Women in the Middle East: Attitudes and Advocacy in an Opening Political Space.” The discussion was part of the Interaction Forum. The panelists included Rola Abdul-Latif, IFES Senior Research Specialist; Rana Jarhum, Advocacy and Senior Media Specialist, WATAN Coalition (The Yemeni Women for Social Peace Campaign); and Carla Koppell, Senior Coordinator, Office of Gender Equality & ...

On Wednesday, the Middle East Institute hosted a panel discussion entitled: "Syria on the Verge: Implications for a Nation in Revolt." The panelists included Radwan Ziadeh, Director, Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies; Ausama Monajed, Director, Strategic Research & Communications Center, London; Amb. Theodore Kattouf, Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria; and Andrew Tabler, Next Generation Fellow, Program on Arab Politics, Washington Institute for Near East Policy. The discussion was moderated by ...

Nathan Brown writes on what the U.S. policy is toward engaging the Muslim Brotherhood in an article entitled, "What Does the U.S. Want to Talk to the Brotherhood About?" According to Brown, the Obama administration is not going to engage in "some grand dialogue between the United States and the Islamist movement but instead a slow and limited resumption of normal diplomatic contact with a leading social and political actor."  Brown ...

Kareem Fahim describes the "deep frustration" experienced by residents of Sidi Bouzid, as a microcosm of dissatisfaction with the progress of the political transition. He notes how most residents blame "the lack of progress here on the transitional government, which has moved slowly to address one of the revolution’s central complaints — youth unemployment — especially here in the towns of central Tunisia, where the uprising began." Similarly, Ellen Byrne discusses the growing ...

The comments last week by Cherif Bassiouni, leader of the Independent Commission of Inquiry tasked with investigating the crackdown in Bahrain, continue to spark controversy. The Bahrain Youth Center for Human Rights (BYCHR) sent an open letter to Bassiouni, expressing disappointment in his comments. In contrast to Bassiouni's statement, "many, if not most, have told us that they are genuinely afraid of the consequences of their testifying once your esteemed Commission has left." And the BYCHR condemned Bassiouni ...

According to U.S. and Bahraini officials, both countries renewed a defense pact in 2002 that allows the U.S. to access bases in Bahrain until 2016. Had this early renewal not occurred, the pact would run out in October 2011. Bahrain is currently, the home for the U.S. Fifth Fleet and the defense pact allows allows the U.S. to "preposition its military equipment."  Additionally, it allows for consultations if security crises ...

Activists in Egypt called for a massive protest in Tahrir Square next Friday in an effort to denounce military assaults on protesters.  Additionally, activists released a statement condemning the use of  force against activists and protesters after military forces cleared the sit-ins in Tahrir Square on August 1.  According to the statement, activists had planned to suspend protests during Ramadan, however, after the use of force against protesters they called ...

Young people have been an important component of the revolutions happening across the Middle East, but most of the activists have decided against joining the new governments and are instead heading back to the streets. Writer Sara Sorcher asserts that they don't have a "coherent message." Sorcher is concerned that youth groups, who plan on participating in upcoming fall elections, may not have a clear agenda due to a lack ...

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad issued a decree today authorizing a multi-party political system. The state-run SANA News Agency reports that the law is designed for "activating the political life and citizens' participation." The law was previously adopted as a draft law. Assad's decree circumvents the need for Parliamentary approval, and the law is effective immediately. Assad also issued a decree reforming the general elections law, designed "at improving the election process" and protecting ...

After discussions on Tuesday, Iraqi leaders gave the government permission to begin negotiations with the U.S. about keeping troops in the country after the end of the year. A joint statement issued after the meeting said, "The leaders agreed to authorise the Iraqi government to start the talks with the United States that are limited to training issues." Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari noted that Iraq might still insist that the American military withdraw ...

Egyptians joined soldiers on Monday to drive out pro-democracy protesters from Tahrir Square and some lined the streets to applaud the soldiers, while others "ganged up" on activists as they fled the square.  Today's crackdown followed massive demonstrations on Friday where Islamists joined together against the liberal and secular youths by calling for an Islamic state. AlMasry AlYoum reported a series of violent brawls and street fights between street vendors and ...

Joint Chiefs chairman Adm. Mike Mullen said today that if U.S. troops remain in Iraq past the end of the year, they must be granted immunity from prosecution. Mullen told reporters in Baghdad that an agreement would have to be approved by the Iraqi Parliament and "would include privileges and immunities for our American men and women in uniform." Calling for the Iraqi government to expedite its decision, Mullen said, ...

A group of 26 political parties and movements announced that they will temporarily terminate their sit-ins in Tahrir Square during Ramadan, emphasizing that they will return once the month is over.  They released a joint statement on Sunday that said they will use "diverse methods to put pressure towards achieving the rest of the goals of the revolution, starting with the demands of the families of the martyrs and the ...