What Islamic exceptionalism means for democracy
Islam is exceptional in how it relates to law, governance and politics, and plays an outsized role in public life in the Arab world, Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Shadi Hamid… Read more »
Category: Islamists
Sadr poll win highlights potential for non-sectarian politics in Iraq?
An Iraqi nationalist cleric who led two uprisings against US troops has taken a surprise lead in parliamentary elections, fending off Iran-backed rivals and the country’s incumbent prime minister, the… Read more »
Lebanon ≠ Hezbollah: only limited election success for pro-Iran party
Hezbollah and its allies have won a small majority of seats in Lebanon’s first parliamentary election in nearly a decade, boosting its influence and giving its patron Iran greater sway… Read more »
Public protests and prospects for reform in Iran
Over the last few months, Iran has experienced a series of street protests in rural areas and social arenas once seen as the key support base for the Islamic Republic,… Read more »
The Awakening of Muslim Democracy: a New Political Islam
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is one of a crop of present-day political leaders who value the respectability an ostensibly democratic election confers but don’t want to risk actually losing the vote, the… Read more »
Iran’s economic crisis a consequence of political malaise: creates options for shift in regime?
All this week panicked Iranians have gathered in throngs outside banks and other financial businesses hoping to buy dollars, as the government seeks to head off a collapse in the… Read more »
How to undermine violent extremism
Why do some individuals engage in political violence in Yemen, while others do not? A new RAND report, Undermining Violent Extremism in Yemen, examines the role that social, political, and… Read more »
Polls expose Lebanese fears yet Hezbollah ‘disinclined to foment domestic unrest’
With little over a month to go before Lebanon’s first national vote in nine years, experts are gauging the pulse of the electorate, tuning in to elements including turnout,… Read more »
Can Saudi Arabia help win ‘Islam’s War of Ideas’?
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is in Washington, D.C., March 19-22, the third stop on his first foreign trip as crown prince, notes the Project on Middle East Democracy: Mohammed… Read more »
Rise of Islamism in Malaysia and Indonesia jeopardizing democratic gains?
The rise of Islamism in Malaysia and Indonesia could have severe consequences for the two states’ societies, political systems, and overall stability, says a leading analyst. Malaysia’s prime minister, Najib… Read more »