International Relations Commons^™

We Do Indeed Reap What We Sow, Walter Lotze

Human Rights & Human Welfare

When violence first broke out in Tunisia in January 2011, few observers would have predicted that waves of unrest would engulf North Africa and the Arab world. When demonstrations swiftly spread to Algeria, Sudan, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, and Jordan, observers hastened to place bets on which regime would be the next to fall. That Hosni Mubarak would be felled next came perhaps as no surprise; Egypt had for years been on a knife’s edge, liberalizing and modernizing society while closing all space for political and social participation. Most analysts then turned their attention to Sudan, Yemen, and Bahrain, predicting that …

The Materialization Of Human Trafficking In The Middle East And Impediments To Its Eradication, Mindy Mann

Human Rights & Human Welfare

As a continental hub that connects Asia, Africa, and Europe, the Middle East offers a strategic location for the trafficking of persons from poor to richer states. Extreme poverty, coupled with the corporate and royal wealth of the Gulf States, creates a regional dichotomy in which Middle Eastern states serve as ‘source,’ ‘transit,’ and ‘destination’ countries for human trafficking. Discrepancies in defining human trafficking within the region, as well as the controversial and illicit nature of the practice, cause research to be sparse and with very few first-hand sources. Nevertheless, this paper examines available literature on the subject and addresses …

Introduction: Human Rights In The Middle East And North Africa (Mena), Raslan Ibrahim

Human Rights & Human Welfare

The wave of revolutions and popular uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) at the dawn of 2011 highlights the inescapable relevance and impact of human rights on the region’s politics and security. The Arab regimes’ violations of human rights and lack of respect to the human dignity of their citizens are in fact the seeds of the Jasmine revolution in Tunisia, the rebellion of the Egyptian people against Mubarak regime, as well as the ongoing uprisings across the rest of MENA. The women and men who are protesting in the streets of Egypt, Bahrain, Libya, Syria, Yemen, …

Dying For Love: Homosexuality In The Middle East, Heather Simmons

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Today in the United States, the most frequent references to the Middle East are concerned with the War on Terrorism. However, there is another, hidden battle being waged: the war for human rights on the basis of sexuality. Homosexuality is a crime in many of the Middle Eastern states and is punishable by death in Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iran (Ungar 2002). Chronic abuses and horrific incidences such as the 2009 systematic murders of hundreds of “gay” men in Iraq are seldom reported in the international media. Speculation as to why this population is hidden includes the …

American Overreach: Strategic Interests And Millennial Ambitions In The Middle East, Asli Bâli, Aziz Rana

Cornell Law Faculty Publications

This article argues that American actions in the Middle East designed to advance democracy and/or ‘moderation’ tend to yield perverse outcomes that frustrate the aspirations of local actors while undermining the values purportedly being promoted by the US. In order to explain these contradictions, we emphasise the linkage between policies of democracy promotion and long-standing American commitments both to millennialism and geographical omnipresence. As a result of these policies and geopolitical vision, we argue that ‘democracy promotion’ often devolves into a simple defence of American interest – by producing electoral outcomes intended to strengthen local agents seen as compliant with …

Komsumuz Ame-Irak (Our Neighbor Ame-Iraq), Cuneyt M. Yenigun

Cuneyt M. Yenigun

This article elaborates Iraq's Invasion in 2003 and potential consequences in the country and the region.

Peace From Below: Recent Steps Taken Along The Track-Two Diplomacy Path, Michael Thomas Kuchinsky

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Peacemakers in Action: Profiles of Religion in Conflict Resolution. Edited by David Little. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

and

Peace Out of Reach: Middle Eastern Travels and the Search for Reconciliation. By Stephen Eric Bronner. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2007.

Memory And Violence In Israel/Palestine, K. M. Fierke

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Israeli and Palestinian Narratives of Conflict: History’s Double Helix, edited by Robert I. Rotberg. Indiana University Press, 2006.

and

Memory and Violence in the Middle East and North Africa, edited by Ussama Makdisi and Paul A. Silverstein. Indiana University Press, 2006.

Allen Keiswetter On Women In The Middle East: Past And Present By Nikki R. Keddie. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. 416pp., Allen Keiswetter

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Women in the Middle East: Past and Present by Nikki R. Keddie. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2006. 416pp.

Human Rights And The War On Terror Second Edition: Introduction, Jack Donnelly

Human Rights & Human Welfare

“9/11 changed everything.” Not really. In fact, there has been far more continuity than change over the past six years in both international and domestic politics. Nonetheless, human rights often have been harmed—although not by terrorism but by “the war on terror.”

The Effects Of The Madrid And London Subway Bombings On Europe’S View Of Terrorism, Katie Friesen

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Terrorism within Europe, until 2004, was limited to internal, historical conflict between the state and dissenting factions, such as Spain’s Euskadi Ta Askatasuna (ETA) or the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in the United Kingdom. Islamic violence was strongly linked to the Middle East, as well as to America’s “War on Terror” initiative following the attacks of September 11. However, after the Madrid bombings in 2004 and the London subway bombings in 2005, Islamist terrorism has not only become a very real threat, it has also developed into an issue with which Europeans identify personally. The bombings resulted in mass casualties …

Human Rights And The War On Terror: Complete 2005 - 2007 Topical Research Digest, Jack Donnelly, Simon Amajuru, Susannah Compton, Robin Davey, Syd Dillard, Amanda Donahoe, Charles Hess, Sydney Fisher, Kelley Laird, Victoria Lowdon, Chris Maggard, Alexandra Nichols, Travis Ning, Toni Panetta, Greg Sanders, James Smithwick, Angela Woolliams, Chris Saeger, Sarah Bania-Dobyns, Eric Dibbern, David Gillespie, Latife Bulur, Katie Friesen, Arika Long, Arianna Nowakowski, Joel R. Pruce

Human Rights & Human Welfare

“9/11 changed everything.” Not really. In fact, there has been far more continuity than change over the past six years in both international and domestic politics. Nonetheless, human rights often have been harmed—although not by terrorism but by “the war on terror.”

Trends. Double Standards On Double Standards: War With Iraq And The Middle East Peace Process, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This Trends article discusses the nature of public statements from two national governments – the United States and the United Kingdom – in reference to a potential war with Iraq. Of special interest is the possible double standard pertaining to the differences in the international treatment of Iraq vs. the role of Israel in the Middle East Peace Process.

Trends. Facts And Conclusions In The Mideast, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses relations between Israelis and Palestinians, and a United Nations report involving the Jenin refugee camp.

Trends. The Error Of The Fundamental Attribution Error: The Character Assassinations Of Sharon And Arafat, Ibpp Editor

International Bulletin of Political Psychology

This article discusses the propagandistic language surrounding Ariel Sharon and Yasir Arafat in the context of Middle Eastern politics of Israel and Palestine.

Mission: Democracy, Sheila Carapico

Political Science Faculty Publications

Incumbent national leaders invite foreign election monitors only when it is in their interest to do so. Rarely is significant financial assistance "conditional" on holding elections, although it does improve a regime's image abroad to do so. For governments being observed, the trick is to orchestrate the process enough to win, but not enough to arouse observers' suspicions.

Nuclear Pariahs And Regimes In The New World Disorder, Wayne F. Lesperance Jr.

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This thesis discusses the role of pariah states vis-a-vis the nonproliferation regime. Specifically, the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) is analyzed to determine, first, whether Iran is a pariah, second, the potential threat the IRI poses to the Persian Gulf region and third, the possible international responses that may be undertaken to address Iranian pariahtude in the nuclear field. Through the course of this thesis regimes are defined as a set of implicit and explicit rules, principles, norms, and decision-making procedures around which actor's expectations converge and which govern relations among states. Pariahs are defined as …

The United Nations And Human Rights, Larisa Gabriel

Faculty Book Chapters

"First presented at the 1994 Cairo Papers Annual Symposium"

The Roots Of Turmoil In The Egyptian Organization For Human Rights: Dynamics Of Civil Institution-Building In Egypt, Mohamed El Sayed Said

Faculty Book Chapters

"First presented at the 1994 Cairo Papers Annual Symposium"

At The Crossroads: U.S. National Interests In The Gulf And The Middle East, Khalid I. Dekhayel

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The United States not only has profound interests in the Middle East but, as the dominant international power, has an obligation to help· achieve peace and stability in that part of the world. As such, it should strive to play the leading role of championing a just and lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians because the conflict in reality is not an Arab-Israeli one but is Israeli-Palestinian at its core. There are, of course, many barriers in the way of reaching that goal. Chief among them are the extremists on both sides. But the United States is in a unique …