Libya
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Libya's Tawergha People Barred from Return
Collective Punishment
Ever since August 2011 armed groups from Misrata have been preventing about 35,000 Tawerghans from returning to their homes. They accuse Tawerghans of fighting with pro-Gaddafi forces during the 2011 conflict and committing war crimes in Misrata. A field report by Valerie Stocker
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No-fly Zone for Syria
Last Chance to End the Misery
The imposition of a no-fly zone in 1991 against the regime of Saddam Hussein worked wonders for Iraqi Kurdistan. Twenty years later, a no-fly zone in Libya led to resolution of the conflict there. Why shouldn't it also be tried in northern Syria? A commentary by Silke Mertins
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Interview with Robert Fisk on the War in Syria
A War That Won't End
President Bashar al-Assad's troops in Syria are gaining ground. British Middle East reporter Robert Fisk met some of them when he visited the front lines earlier this month. Interview by Michael Hartlep
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Justice in Libya
Lacklustre Approach to Reforms
Establishing a democratic constitutional state in Libya is proving to be a painstakingly slow process. This is partly because a reform of the legal system is long overdue, and also as a result of the vigilante justice administered by armed brigades. Beat Stauffer reports
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Essay by Nawaf Obaid
The Collapsing Arab State
The Arab Spring has toppled some regimes, though not others. But, more important, everywhere in the Arab world – and beyond – it has called into question the viability of the nation-state. An essay by Nawaf Obaid
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Consequences of the Military Intervention in Mali
A Tinderbox Situation
Algeria and Morocco granted France permission to use their airspace in its campaign against militant Islamists in Mali. But Arab experts fear that the Mali intervention could push many young Muslims into the arms of the Jihadists. By Siham Ouchtou
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The Uprising of Women in the Arab World
Fighting Patriarchal Tyranny
The group "The uprising of women in the Arab world" is taking a courageous stand for gender equality. However, the activists face significant resistance: from old ways of thinking, patriarchal chauvinism – and even from Facebook. Laura Overmeyer reports
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Refugees in Libya
Scapegoats for the Crimes of a Few
The oasis city of Tawerga was completely destroyed in the Libyan civil war. Its dark-skinned inhabitants are still on the run. Former rebels accuse them of war crimes and are carrying out vigilante justice. Markus Symank has the details
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Libya's Unchecked Weapons Trade
''Gaddafi's Gangster Mentality Lives On''
They smuggle weapons, drugs and refugees: Criminal networks are controlling eastern Libya. The government has pledged to offer the impoverished region economic alternatives. By Markus Symank in Benghazi
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Two Years after the Arab Revolution
Disillusionment in the Middle East
Syria is caught up in a civil war, Islamists are in power in Cairo and Tunis, Turkey is caught between fronts and the Mideast peace process is stalled. What to make of the region two years after the Arab Revolution? By Bettina Marx
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The Rule of Law and the Crimes of the Gaddafi Regime
The Victims Demand Justice
The Libyan revolution did not happen on the spur of the moment, but resulted from a long-standing anger, and it was paid for with human lives. Now, the crimes of the Gaddafi regime have to be investigated. An essay by Libyan political activist Hadija Ramadan al-Amami
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Domestic Political Crisis in Libya
Stability on Trial
Challenging times ahead for the Libyan government: less than four weeks after his election, Prime Minister Mustafa Abushagur has been removed from office by a vote of no-confidence. The security situation remains precarious, as a campaign to disarm the militias continues to make halting progress. More information from Hanspeter Mattes of the GIGA Institute of Middle East Studies