By Tee Morris
Special Guest Contributor
On the week of September 11, 2012, we watched a textbook example of what happens when you enter a situation unprepared. I speak of the address presidential candidate Mitt Romney delivered in the waning hours of 9/11. Word reached the Romney camp that the United States embassies in both Egypt and Libya were under siege, and so Romney took to the podium with a blasting of President Obama’s lack of action:
By William Tucker
In a preplanned protest, members of the more radical factions of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood scaled the walls of the U.S. embassy in Cairo. The protesters removed the U.S. flag and returned to the outside of the compound. Because the protest was advertised in advance, most embassy employees were sent home beforehand. Embassy guards did fire warning volleys into the air to disperse the protesters.
By William Tucker
Officials in Egypt petitioned the Israeli government to ease restrictions the Camp David Accords impose on military activity in the Sinai peninsula. Israel has approved the measure, thus allowing Egypt to increase its military footprint in the area to better cope with the increase in militancy as evidenced by the attack on Sunday. Cairo has launched a new counterterrorism offensive and the new assets should help.
By William Tucker
The Arab Spring is often celebrated by reciting the roll call of overthrown autocrats. But revolutions, in the end, will be judged primarily by what they build, not what they destroy. And in this respect, a year of revolution has refashioned exhilaration into paradox. – Henry Kissinger
A paradox, indeed. For years the Sinai peninsula has been left underdeveloped. Some have ascribed this to the peninsula’s demilitarization.
By William Tucker
A few hours ago the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), Egypt’s interim ruling government, followed through on its promise to lift the state of emergency that has been in place since the 1981 assassination of Anwar Sadat. In many ways this is certainly a momentous decision, but it does little to change the political reality in Egypt.
By William Tucker
Analyzing the words spoken by political officials can be tricky business, and for the most part, they mean very little without some form of action taking place. That is, rhetoric is just rhetoric until it manifests into something actionable. A case in point is the recent claimed attempt by the Syrian Free Army to assassinate several members of Syrian President Bashir al-Assad’s cabinet.
By William Tucker
CIA head David Petraeus held unscheduled talks with Turkish PM Erdogan in Turkey today. While Iran and Kurdish rebels were certainly discussed, the situation in Syria was reportedly the dominate topic. In Egypt, the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Lt. Gen. Ronald Burgess, is in Cairo for a two day visit. As expected, the topic du jour is Syria.
By William Tucker
The political leadership of Hamas has left Syria for Qatar and Egypt. According to Hamas, the group’s chief, Khaled Meshaal, has moved to Doha and his deputy, Moussa Abu Marzouk, is located in Cairo. This move by Hamas shows that the split between Syrian President Bashir Assad and the militant group is likely permanent. For Hamas, this wasn’t an easy choice.
By William Tucker In the last week both the Egyptian and Israeli governments have increased their respective military presence…
By William Tucker
Several news reports have made the claim that Egyptian security forces have stepped up their presence in the Sinai Peninsula as a result of the increased presence of al-Qaeda militants.