Original news, features, opinions from Chicago to Jerusalem
Algeria: Egyptian Scenario will Fail There are some similarities between Egypt and Algeria. Both countries have armies that have been in power since they gained it, and both armies appointed presidents of their own. By Abdennour Toumi Algerians are still marching, demanding the fall of what remains of the regime, while the country’s strongman, General…
Is Algeria facing a brain drain? The phenomenon of departures abroad has slowed lately because of the Hirak’s dynamic of renewed hope, but the temptation is growing strongly. By Abdennour Toumi Algerian “brain-drain” may well be one of the major challenges facing the new government that emerges from the election results. The country ranks 85…
Algerian Hirak: From Algeriana to My Best Enemy The Hirak idealists have now clashed over a systemic concept of how to approach this election and who leads what. By Abdennour Toumi Today Algerians are caught between the regime’s ruse and its mosaic opposition’s idealism. Eleven Fridays have passed since the people of Algeria stood up…
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Algerian Political Opposition: It’s the System, Stupid The Algerian regime has been preventing any emergence of any independent elite or leader to the system. By Abdennour Toumi Algerian Hirak has entered its 11th Friday as the protesters’ demands begin to narrow down, but are still unrealistic. This is how General Ahmed Gaïd Salah, the Military…
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Professor Abbassi Madani: Sweet Legacy of Sour Political Destiny In choosing exile in Qatar, he left behind a divided Islamist leadership in a deep political identity crisis. By Abdennour Toumi Wednesday marked the passing of Professor Abbassi Madani, longtime militant Islamist leader and the last Algerian Islamist Movement voice of the liberation war and post-Independence…
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Algeria and Sudan: The next (but not last) Arab Spring cycle By Ghassan Michel Rubeiz State building takes decades not years. It is easier to topple dictators than regimes, and it is faster to change regimes than ideas. Protestors need to agree and organize to make a good transition to democracy. State building requires review…
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Is the Algerian National People’s Army a Republic Coterie? To better understand the Algerian Army, there are two important dates to remember, August 20th, 1955 and notably, August 20th,1956. By Abdennour Toumi The French philosopher Voltaire once said about the Prussian army: “where some States possess an army, the Prussian army possesses a State.” Arab…
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Will Algerian military serve people or regime? By Ghassan Michel Rubeiz The chief of army in Algeria has a chance of becoming the hero of the century. Will he take this opportunity? Algerians reject their newly appointed Interim President Abdelkader Bensalah. This caretaker leader was approved this week by the parliament. He is expected to…
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Arab American group leads delegation to Tunisia The Arab American Institute Foundation (AAIF) led a delegation of 10 Arab American elected officials and policy practitioners on an experiential learning trip to Tunisia between March 7 and 18th, 2019. The trip was part of the inaugural peer cohort of the U.S.- Tunisia Peer Exchange Program, supported…
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Algeria: Freedom and Shakespeare The Street should be attentive in its exigent demands and comportment with the Army, usually the Military don’t like disorder or to be ordered. By Abdennour Toumi Former President Bouteflika and his siblings are finished finally, a political drama ending with the political death of its main character, a Machiavellian figure…
Lessons for Sudan’s and Algeria’s reformers from Arab Spring realities By Ghassan Michel Rubeiz The recently sparked public unrest in Sudan and Algeria are not receiving the media attention they deserve. An earlier round of public protest in the Arab world has discouraged many sympathizers of reform. True, the 2011-2012 uprising in Tunisia advanced the…
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Algerian Islamists: From Political Reality to Dialectical Crisis Identity People are more accustomed to the experience of political hopes frustrated than of hopes fulfilled, they bear a crown of disappointment which weighs heavily on them all. By Abdennour Toumi The recent events that have been shaken Algeria’s regime have shaped a protest movement that its…
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Algeria The People Speak: What’s Next? Algerian generals who have been trying to bring about some change to their people would benefit from reading the Chilean story. By Abdennour Toumi A country which only three weeks ago was still regarded as hopeless. The day of glory the people of Algeria have waited for so long…
Algeria: The Regime Is Saying, Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me! When the President returned though, the people began to sense the smell of hate, intolerance and simply death. By Abdennour Toumi Sunday night Algerians went to bed with two pieces of sorrowful national news. First, they waited for long hours to hear that President Bouteflika…
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A Cri-de-coeur for Dignity and Stability Algerians are scrupulously suspicious of the number five (al-Khamsa) or Fatma’s hand. By Abdennour Toumi Thousands of Algerians across the country head to the streets, breaking the wall of shame the regime and its acolytes built to silence any opposition voice. Fear is no longer a factor in the…
Why General Ali Ghediri’s candidacy is way too early? A retired-General who wants to revolutionize Algeria’s political establishment, he has a story to tell, so let history be the judge. By Abdennour Toumi I want to ask retired General Ali Ghediri, former Human Resources Director at the Algerian Defense Ministry, to give one reason why…
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Algeria’s State: Between Deep State’s Denial and Opposition’s Delusion Political debate between competing interests does not necessarily have a malign effect on the search for accountability. By Abdennour Toumi Last week Algeria’s ruling coalition endorsed President Abdelaziz Bouteflika as its candidate in the April, 2019 Presidential election, despite his poor health — however, the 82-year-old…
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Algeria Migration Policy: National Security Concerns Vs. Humanitarian Morality Algeria’s migration policy reflects the interdependence of its domestic national security and to some extent regional foreign policy priorities and objectives. By Abdennour Toumi The first ever international agreement on the migration crisis aimed at coordinating action on migration around the world was signed by a…
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