DancesWithCamels

The fluidity of events in the Middle East is unfolding at a dizzying pace. Yes, Mubarak seems ageless and his rule eternal but keep in mind he dyes his hair and even Castro recently stepped down. Regardless, just because governments of the region seem engrained and stable doesn’t mean that extreme shifts in strategic power have not occurred since the Iraq war rocked the foundations of the regional balance of power. Iran today is rising, though not as mighty as its bluster might suggest, the U.S. policy of containment directed at the country since the revolution has essentially dissolved leaving analysts and policy makers proffering a range of interpretations on how to deal with her next. Of immediate concern is discerning the interconnectedness of the major conflagrations in the Middle East. Iran’s rise and influence in Lebanon, Jihadi bases on the Afghani-Pakistani border and their regional networking, the steady flow of massive foreign populations to and from the Gulf states and technological advancements in communication have all contributed to expanding the Middle East. The glory days of the Cold war are gone and with it the simple distinctions which often characterized that world view. No longer is the Arab world the mover and shaker of the region but rather the non-Arab powers of Iran, Turkey and Israel. America’s move into Iraq created new problems in the region, and perhaps made more acute very old ones with roots in the past. The al-Wahsh section of the website hopes to provide insight into current events while keeping these notions of a region in transition in mind. Furthermore, historical topics are also fair game. Questions and commentary on historically controversial episodes will be posted from time to time in the hope of generating dialogue that aspires to offer analysis about this place we call the Middle East in the hope that we can better understand it.

Yellah

Al-Wahsh