Arab Awakening's columnists offer their weekly perspective on what is happening on the ground in the Middle East. Leading the week, Doha debate reveals gulf between locals, its elite and expatriates
The manner in which the Syrian crisis has been addressed by western polities signals a shift, at least for now, in how acts of war are deliberated by those governments considering military intervention. But how significant is this? There is both some good and bad news in this regard.
The use of chemical weapons in Damascus should, at the very least, give us pause to reflect on the principles guiding our nuclear weapons policies.
Though postponed, the US still threatens to attack Syria to punish the Assad government for the use of chemical weapons. But it would be illegal, and ineffective - helping neither the people of Syria, nor the principles of Responsibility to Protect (R2P). A contribution to the openGlobalRights deb
Grasping at vague notions of Kosovo as a ‘good war’ may be expedient - any precedent will do in a pinch. But this comparison is inaccurate and dangerously misleading.
The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine has failed to build an international consensus for action to protect civilians in Syria. Worse, R2P’s implicit support for military action without UN authorization has contributed to the UN’s paralysis. A contribution to the openGlobalRights debate, R2P
The long-run viability of Syria will depend on economic recovery, it will not be decided by military victory on whichever side.
Two out of three Lebanese believe that the conflict in Syria could lead to a new civil war in Lebanon. For many, the question is not if there is going to be a war or not, but when it is going to break out.
Syria shows the difficulty of translating Responsibility to Protect (R2P) into action, but we must if R2P is to be more than a fancy acronym. But any military intervention must be linked to dialogue towards a political solution, and if such action proceeds without UN authorization it risks further
Arab Awakening's columnists offer their weekly perspective on what is happening on the ground in the Middle East. Leading the week, Syria: waiting for the Tomahawk
Opposing military intervention in Syria is not support for the brutal Assad regime. The BRICS countries can rely on strong legal and political reasons against such intervention; the Responsibility to Protect language is easily manipulated. Prudent internationalism is the better way – supporting ne
