Middle East

Construction of the Water Discus underwater hotel of Dubai may be begun soon, and it will be finished in five years, according to Colin Simpson of the UAE’s The National. This video gives an overview:

Arab Spring

‘The 19th Day of the Egyptian Revolution’: What the Egyptian Press is Saying about Today’s Mass Protest

Juan Cole

Via the USG Open Source Center, report on Egypt press for June 30, 2013 (arrangement and headings by JC), regarding the massive demonstrations throughout the country by leftists, liberals and Muslim centrists against the presidency of Muhammad Morsi, elected one year ago, who represents the religious Right and is seen by many Egyptians arrogant, high-handed […]

Egypt

Duelling Demonstrations Divide Egypt over Morsi and Fundamentalism

Juan Cole

Tens of thousands of leftist, liberal and centrist protesters gathered in Tahrir Square on Friday for “The Last Warning” aimed at President Muhammad Morsi of the Brotherhood. Morsi has ruled Egypt for the past year, after winning the presidential election in June of 2012. He has made a series of arrogant and polarizing policy decisions […]

Egypt

Clashes in Egypt during Morsi protests

Juan Cole

Egypt is beset today with dueling large protests for and against President Muhammad Morsi. In some places, as in Alexandria, they turned violent, and in the provinces a number of headquarters of the Muslim Brotherhood have been occupied or burned. I’ll do a summary tonight. Channel 4 News has raw video of clashes

Domestic Surveillance

Top Ten Ways the Beltway Press will treat Gen. Cartwright differently from Snowden

Juan Cole

NBC reports that Gen. James “Hoss” Cartwright is under investigation as the source for David Sanger’s 2012 New York Times article revealing that the United States is behind the Stuxnet computer virus, which was used to infect computers at Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facilities and at the Bushehr nuclear energy plants and delay their going […]

Tunisia

Under European Pressure, Tunisia suspends Sentence of 3 Protesters who Bared Breasts

Juan Cole

A Tunisian court has given suspended sentences to three European members of Femen (2 French, 1 German) who had bared their breasts in public to protest the jailing of a Tunisian woman who had made her statement in the same way. They had been found guilty of public indecency and sentenced to four months in […]

Egypt

Egypt: Morsi Fails to Appease Critics as Violence breaks out in Provinces

Juan Cole

Egyptian President Muhammad Morsi gave a major speech on Wednesday, commemorating his first year in office and attempting to mollify his political opposition, which is planning to try to unseat him with massive street demonstrations on June 30. A defiant Morsi criticized the opposition and the judges and asked that criminal investigation be launched into […]

Egypt

Egypt’s ‘Rebellion’ Movement Plans Protests as Generals Warn they’ll Intervene

Juan Cole

Egypt is facing its severest crisis since the January-February 2011 revolution against dictator Hosni Mubarak as the country moves toward nation-wide protests on June 30. The elected president, Muhammad Morsi, has been extremely destabilizing for Egypt. His high-handed and erratic policies have polarized the country. Even many supporters of political Islam have been put off […]

Qatar

Millennials take over Qatar, but Real Change has Yet to be Accomplished

Juan Cole

The quirky Emir of Qatar since the mid-1990s, Sheikh Hamad b. Issa al-Thani, stepped down in favor of his fourth son, Tamim, 33, this morning. It is a historical step and insofar as it might form a precedent in the Gulf Cooperation Council of 6 Gulf sheikhdoms heretofore mainly ruled by old men, it is […]