I was mentioning to friends how I really wanted to pack my camera gear and head to Egypt to take photos of the events unfolding along the Nile. I’m not going to go but it is tempting to be on the ground during these tumultuous times.
I have, like many, been following the events quite closely. I find that the Western media have a very superficial understanding of what is happening but, luckily, Al Jazeera and European media outlets have better coverage. I was quite surprised at this article in Le Monde in an interview with an Egyptian general who argues that Egypt is the only country to successfully defeat a militant and political Islam in the 1990s under Mubarak and will again, with the appropriate use of force.
More here.
The most thoughtful coverage is found at the Arabist blog here that includes an article from Paul Sedra, in Jadaliyya pointing to an important departure in the traditional reading of Egyptian nationalism:
“For an arm of the government to reference Copts as a target of violence—much less reference the Copts as a distinct community at all—is a stark departure from a long-standing policy of refusing the acknowledgment of sectarian divisions within Egyptian society.”
Original story is here.
I, like many, am quite concerned with the events unfolding in Egypt. It appears that the USA has decided to withhold any further aid dollars to the military government but that shortfall was quickly made up for by the Saudi’s who have agreed to make up any funding shortfalls.
Stability over justice is the new phrase to keep in mind for this region!
More to come on this topic.
Update: interesting analysis at Dissent here.