July 28, 2011
Category: Bahrain, Civil Society, Featured, Military, Protests, Sectarianism, US foreign policy
Senate Women Urge Overturn of Saudi Women Driving Ban
U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA), along with several other Senators, including Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), ...
July 27, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Congress, Featured, Freedom, Human Rights, Saudi Arabia, Women, Women's Rights
House State & Foreign Op’s Bill Makes Significant Cuts
On Wendesday, the House State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittee held a markup session and voted to pass the bill, as is, to the full committee. The bill would dramatically reduce funding to the State Department, USAID and ...
July 27, 2011
Category: Committee Meetings, Congress, Featured, Foreign Aid, Legislation, US foreign policy
Britain Recognizes NTC; Dismisses Libyan Embassy Diplomats
Today, British foreign secretary William Hague recognized Libya's National transitional Council as the legitimate ruling government. He dismissed London embassy diplomats and is "inviting the Libyan National Transitional Council to appoint a new Libyan diplomatic envoy to ...
Egypt: Many Losing Patience, SCAF Causing Divisions
Issandr El Amrani, of the Financial Times, writes that many Egyptians are losing patience with the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) headed by Field Marshall Mohammed Hussein Tantawi. He notes that while many Egyptians appreciated the ...
Summary and Highlights of the FY12 Foreign Relations Authorization Act
On Wednesday 7/20, the House Foreign Affairs Committee convened a Committee markup for consideration of H.R. 2583, the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2012. The markup hearing concluded on the evening of Thursday 7/21, authorizing $48.3 billion in ...
July 24, 2011
Category: Congress, Congressional Hearing Notes (House), Featured, Foreign Aid, Legislation, Reports, US foreign policy
Friday Protests Throughout Syria
Hundreds of thousands protested across Syria in Friday, expressing solidarity for those in Homs. Overnight in Homs five were killed, and an additional six have been killed in protests around the country today. In the first ...
Libya: Rebels and Gadhafi Turn up the Heat
Opposition fighters have chased the majority of soldiers loyal to Moammar Gadhafi from the town of Brega, in preparation for a fresh advance on Tripoli. Massive quantities of landmines have been planted in the city, thereby slowing the rebels ...
Syrian Forces Kill Dozens, Humanitarian Situation Dire
Intense gun fire by state security forces erupted today in the Syrian city of Homs. There are reports of up to 50 deaths in the city since this weekend. In a statement, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights ...
Analyzing the Yemeni Uprising, And Violence Continues
Fighting broke out in Sana'a on Monday for the first time since President Ali Abdullah Saleh left the country for medical treatment in June. Opposition sources reported six people were killed, including a family of five during shelling ...
UAE Begins Blogger Trials
The trials of five bloggers from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) began Monday. The five, Ahmed Mansoor, Nasser bin Ghaith, Fahad Salim Dalk, Ahmed Abdul Khaleq, and Hassan Ali al-Khamis, are accused of "publicly insulting" top government officials. Many of ...
Libya: U.S. Affirms Desire for Gadhafi’s Exit
High ranking U.S. officials, including Jeffrey Feltman, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, met with representatives of Moammar Gadhafi "to deliver a clear and firm message that the only way to move forward is for Gaddafi ...
Jordanian Protests Turn Violent, Journalists Sue
Last Friday, a 2,000 member peaceful march in Amman, that began at the al-Husseini Mosque and ended in front of City Hall, turned violent as security forces attacked protesters and journalists covering the event. At least 17 journalists ...
HRW: Bahraini Government Attacked Medical Staff, Facilities
Human Rights Watch released a report detailing attacks by Bahraini security forces on doctors, nurses, clinics, hospitals, and other medical personnel. The report's summary noted the attacks included, "denial of medical access to protesters injured by security forces; the siege of hospitals and health centers; and the detention, ill-treatment, torture, and prosecution of medics and patients with protest-related injuries." 48 medical personnel remain on trial for protest related crimes.
Ford: “No Evidence” of Reform in Syria
In a telephone interview with Foreign Policy yesterday, U.S. Ambassador Robert Ford said that "I have seen no evidence yet in terms of hard changes on ground that the Syrian government is willing to reform at anything like the speed demanded ...
Clinton Announces Full U.S. Recognition of Libyan TNC
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced on Friday that the U.S. will now recognize the Transitional National Council (TNC), based in Benghazi as the sole legitimate government of Libya. She said, "I am announcing today that, until ...
Egyptian Elections Delayed 1-2 Months
Yesterday, the Egyptian Supreme Council for the Armed Forces (SCAF) announced that elections originally scheduled for September would be rescheduled to October or November. The official announcing the decision said that the electoral process would begin in September, ...
Egypt: 669 Dismissed from Police Force, Protests Continue
According to Bloomberg, unrest persists in Egypt prompting citizens to continue protests and demonstrations in Tahrir Square and other sites throughout the country. Trying to quell demands of the protesters, Egypt has postponed parliamentary elections set to take place ...
Gadhafi Signaling Willingness to Leave, U.S. is Skeptical
New intelligence reports have emerged that Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi may be ready to negotiate a settlement to the current situation. U.S. intelligence has indicated that troops loyal to Gadhafi are increasingly demoralized and that defections in the ...
Analysts Discuss the Moroccan Referendum
In a recent Op/Ed in the New York Times, Ahmed Charai and Joseph Braude lauded the results of the July 1 Moroccan referendum as "the most significant development in the Arab world all summer." They discussed the newly ...