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Three years in the Middle East & North Africa region, 2010-2013

Harry Hagopian

Abstract

Amid the turmoil hastened by uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa in 2013, and indeed over the past three years, we must not forsake hope about the future of this region – even when its visible signs seem to be eerily absent – argues regional analyst and Ekklesia associate Dr Harry Hagopian. In this briefing paper he offers seven lenses for viewing current and recent events. As to the future, the hope is that the pain and sacrifice involved will prove a valve for genuine change. The MENA region is definitely in for the long haul. There are no easy or neat solutions. But today the road ahead still remains open, albeit bumpy.

It is already three years since the uprisings started in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region, when a seemingly localised event proved to have regional and global consequences.

A street vendor in Tunisia eventually got fed up with his mistreatment by local officials and the rampant corruption in his hometown. So he set himself on fire as a desperate form of protest. But little did Mohamed Bouazizi from Sidi Bouzid know that his self-immolation would trigger one of the most climactic chapters in the contemporary history of this vast region...

* Read the full briefing paper here (*.PDF Adobe Acrobat document, 6 pages, 323kb): http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/files/mena_2010-13.pdf