The Middle East Journal back issues from January 2003:
Editor's note
Jan 01, 2003; ... A quarterly publication cannot and does not attempt to achieve the sort of timeliness typical of the daily or weekly media, and The Middle East Journal, with a (sometimes lengthy) peer review process, can rarely hope to echo the headlines. This issue, however, is fortunate to contain an article ...
Saddam Husayn and civil-military relations in Iraq: The quest for legitimacy and power
Jan 01, 2003; ... This article addresses civil-military relations in Iraq under Saddam Husayn over the past thirty years. Historically, the Iraqi armed forces have intervened regularly in the political process of the country. This has been to the detriment of political stability, the ability of Iraq to play a ...
Iran at a crossroads
Jan 01, 2003; ... Iran today is a society immersed in a dynamic debate regarding the essence and direction of the Islamic Republic. Six years after the election of the moderate President Muhammad Khatami, his attempt gradually to liberalize the theocracy has been stymied by a determined conservative backlash ....
The landscape of factional politics and its future in Iran
Jan 01, 2003; ... This article offers a schematic overview of factional politics in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In addition to the divisions between those who oppose the Islamic Republic and those who support it, there has come to be a lively debate and competition among the major factions of those supporting ...
Pivotal state or energy supplicant? Domestic structure, external actors, and Turkish policy in the Caucasus
Jan 01, 2003; ... Turkish policy in the Caucasus is examined by exploring whether Turkey may be looked upon as a so-called "pivotal state" or "energy supplicant." Employing a domestic structural approach, the impact on policymaking in Turkey of various governmental institutions and influential business ...
Socio-economic development in Iran through information and communications technology
Jan 01, 2003; ... The impact of technology on social indicators has produced some positive results in both developing and developed countries. This article presents the preliminary findings on the impact of information and communication technology in the US and in Iran. It also examines how the social-economics ...
Fighting honor crimes: Evidence of civil society in Jordan
Jan 01, 2003; ... During 1999, a group of young Jordanians formed the Campaign to Eliminate So-called Crimes of Honor as a grass-roots signature-collecting effort intent on repealing the law that grants reduced penalties for "honor crimes." Their efforts were ultimately defeated by a Parliament vote and quiet ...
Chronology: Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Jan 01, 2003; ... July 16, 2002 - October 15, 2002 AN, Arabic News (arabicnews.com) BBC, British Broadcasting Company (www.bbc.co.uk) FT, The Financial Times NYT, The New York Times RU, Reuters (reuters.com) WP, The Washington Post WSJ, The Wall ...
Chronology: Palestinian affairs
Jan 01, 2003; ... Palestinian Affairs See also, Arab-Israeli conflict, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Syria Jul 26: The Palestinian Health Development Information and Policy released findings that 75% of Palestinians live under the poverty line, with an average of two dollars per day [AN, 7/27] ...
Chronology: Afghanistan
Jan 01, 2003; ... Afghanistan See also, Pakistan Jul. 23: A ceasefire was negotiated in the Herat province following heavy fighting between troops loyal to Ismael Khan, and those under the command of Amanollah Khan. [BBC, 7/24] Jul 27: Four American soldiers and two of their Afghani ...
Chronology: Caucasus and Central Asia
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Afghanistan Sep. 19: Moody's, a credit rating agency, upgraded the investment rating of Kazakhstan to investment grade status. The credit rating was "Baa3," a status equivalent to that given to Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Among the most oil-rich of states in the region, ...
Chronology: Egypt
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Arab-Israeli Conflict Jul. 16: Egyptian President Husni Mubarak spoke via telephone with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, discussing among other things the situation in the occupied territories. [AN, 7/7] Jul. 20: President Mubarak met in Geneva with Saudi ...
Chronology: Iran
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Lebanon Sep. 17: Responding actively to President Muhammad Khatami's recent public announcement that hard-liners were aiming to stymie his reform program, the judiciary shut down two reformist newspapers. The press has been the battleground between Khatami (and other ...
Chronology: Iraq
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Arab-Isaeli conflict, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey Sep. 4: In a meeting of the Arab League in Cairo, Members of the League and its Secretary General `Amr Musa urged Iraq to comply with requests to let weapons inspectors back into the country. [FT. 9/5] ...
Chronology: Israel
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Arab-Israeli conflict, Palestinian affairs, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria Jul. 28: The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced that it would fire Noreen Okarol, the media attache in the Israeli embassy in Ireland, following her public criticism and condemnation of the recent Israeli raid ...
Chronology: Jordan
Jan 01, 2003; ... Jul. 30: Jordan's King `Abdullah II, was reported to have warned the United States not to attack Iraq. He also expressed his disappointment with the Bush administration in putting off peace efforts in the region and opening up a "pandoras box" by trying to oust Saddam Husayn. [NYT, 7/30; BBC, 8/ ...
Chronology: Kuwait
Jan 01, 2003; ... Oct. 8: One US Marine and two Kuwaiti assailants apparently linked to al-Qa`ida were killed on Failaka Island in the Persian Gulf, off the shore of Kuwait City. The Marines were involved in a training exercise when they were fired on by two men in a truck, to whom the Kuwaiti government referred ...
Chronology: Lebanon
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Iran Sep. 16: US international water law experts and mediators arrived in Lebanon today to help ease the growing tensions between Lebanon and Israel over the proposed Hasbani river project. Lebanon has also asked the UN to denounce Israel's continued threats over the ...
Chronology: Libya
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Egypt Sep. 12: The Central African Republic announced that in June it signed a 99-year deal with Libya giving permission to a company created by Col. Mu'ammar Qadhdhafi to dig for oil, uranium, diamonds, gold, and ...
Chronology: Morocco
Jan 01, 2003; ... Sep. 26: French authorities found sophisticated explosives aboard a Royal Air Maroc Boeing 737 jet during a routine inspection. The explosives were found wrapped in aluminum foil, hidden between two seats. Authorities believe what they uncovered was part of a terrorist plot, and have ...
Chronology: Oman
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Afghanistan Sep. 24: On a visit to Washington, Omani Foreign Minister Yusef `Alawi `Abdullah said that if a UN ...
Chronology: Pakistan
Jan 01, 2003; ... Sep. 11: Ramzi bin al-Shibh, an al-Qa`ida member suspected of helping to plan and coordinate the September 11 attacks, was apprehended in Karachi. Nearby, after a three-hour gun battle, a suspected al-Qa`ida cell was captured, with three of its members killed in the action and six Pakistani ...
Chronology: Qatar
Jan 01, 2003; ... Sep. 11: The US announced it would move its 600-person Central Command headquarters from Florida to al-Udeid airbase. The movement was announced to precede a training exercise in November, and the permanency of the shift of location was not commented on. Sep. 12: While denouncing war ...
Chronology: Saudi Arabia
Jan 01, 2003; ... Saudi Arabia See also, Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel Sep. 15: Prince Saud al-Faisal remarked in an interview with CNN that if the UN Security Council adopts a resolution authorizing an attack of Iraq, US troops would be allowed to use US ...
Chronology: Syrai
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Lebanon Jul. 17: President Bashar al-Asad met with the Chairman of the Higher People's Assembly Presidency Commission in the People's Democratic Republic of Korea (PDRK) to discuss furthering bi-lateral relations between the two countries. [NYT, 717] Jul. 29: Syrian ...
Chronology: Turkey
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Caucasus and Central Asia Sep. 20: Turkey's election board disqualified Recep Tayyip Erdogan from upcoming elections. Erdogan leads the Justice and Development Party, an Islamic party that was the front-runner for the November 3 elections. The election board disqualified Erdogan ...
Chronology: United Arab Emirates
Jan 01, 2003; ... United Arab Emirates See also, Egypt Jul. 22: United Arab Emirates (UAE) Red Crescent ...
Chronology: Yemen
Jan 01, 2003; ... See also, Pakistan Sep. 17: Hundreds of US Special Forces troops have been moved into position in Djibouti in preparation for surgical strikes against possible al-Qa`ida members and supporters in Yemen, and especially along the frontier-like Yemeni-Saudi border. [NYT, 918] Sep ....
A Concise History of the Armenian People (From Ancient Times to the Present)
Jan 01, 2003; ... Book Reviews ARMENIA A Concise History of the Armenian People (From Ancient Times to the Present), by George Bournoutian. Costa Mesa, CA: Mazda Publishers, 2002. xiii + 499 pages. Text to p. 114. Time-lines, maps, and plates to p. 183. Part II text to p. 380. Time-lines, maps, ...
Iran's Rivalry with Saudi Arabia between the Gulf Wars
Jan 01, 2003; ... THE GULF Iran's Rivalry with Saudi Arabia between the Gulf Wars, by Henner Furtig. Reading, UK: Ithaca Press, 2002. xviii + 248 pages. Chron. to p. 263. Bibl. to p. 275. Index to p. 288. $49.50. Reviewed by Nader Entessar Iran and Saudi Arabia are two pivotal countries ...
Executive Governance in Israel
Jan 01, 2003; ... ISRAEL Executive Governance in Israel, by Asher Arian, David Nachmias, and Ruth Amir. New York: Palgrave, 2002. xi + 160 pages. Bibl. to p. 169. Index top. 176. $60. This book examines the rise of executive governance in Israel and the Israeli political system's ability to ...
From Tragedy to Triumph: The Politics Behind the Rescue of Ethiopian Jewry / The Ethiopian Jewish Exodus: Narratives of the Migration Journey to Israel 1977-1985
Jan 01, 2003; ... From Tragedy to Triumph: The Politics Behind the Rescue of Ethiopian Jewry, by Mitchell G. Bard. Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers, 2002. xiii + 205 pages. Sel. bibl. top. 208. Index top. 217. $64.95. The Ethiopian Jewish Exodus: Narratives of the Migration Journey to Israel 19771985, by ...
Libya and the United States: Two Centuries of Strife
Jan 01, 2003; ... LIBYA Libya and the United States: Two Centuries of Strife, by Ronald Bruce St John. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2002. 193 pages. Map. Notes to p. 234. Sel. bibl. to p. 245. Index to p. 253. Acknowledgments. $47.50. For nearly two decades, Ronald Bruce ...
Islam and Salvation in Palestine: The Islamic Jihad Movement
Jan 01, 2003; ... PALESTINE AND PALESTINIANS Islam and Salvation in Palestine: The Islamic Jihad Movement, by Meir Hating. The Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies: Tel Aviv, 2001. 138 pages. Notes to p.168. Bibl. to p. 174. Index to p. 180. $14.95. The Palestinian Islamic ...
A History of Saudi Arabia
Jan 01, 2003; ... SAUDI ARABIA A History of Saudi Arabia, by Madawi AlRasheed. Cambridge, UK and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002. xvii + 223 pages. Chron. Maps. Tables. Illustrations. Appends. to p. 226. Notes to p. 234. Bibl. to p. 246. Index to p. 255. $55 cloth; $20 paper. The ...
Acre: The Rise and Fall of a Palestinian City, 1730-1831
Jan 01, 2003; ... SYRIA Acre: The Rise and Fall of a Palestinian City, 1730-1831, by Thomas Philipp. New York: Columbia University Press, 2002. 191 pages. Appends. to p. 231. Notes to p. 265. Trans. to p. 275. Bibl. to p. 282. Index to p. 299. $52 cloth; $17.50 paper. Several studies have been ...
The Rock: A Tale of Seventh-Century Jerusalem
Jan 01, 2003; ... LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE The Rock: A Tale of Seventh-Century Jerusalem, by Kanan Makiya. New York: Pantheon Books, 2002. 347 pages. $26. Kanan Makiya, a trained architect, is a native of Iraq. He has emerged since the 1991 Gulf War as one of the most articulate and non-dogmatic ...
Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness, 1948-1991
Jan 01, 2003; ... MILITARY AFFAIRS Arabs at War: Military Effectiveness, 1948-1991, by Kenneth M. Pollack. Lincoln, NE and London, UK: University of Nebraska Press, 2002. xv + 583 pages. Maps. Tables. Notes to p. 653. Sel bibl. to p. 675. Index to p. 698. $69.95. Ken Pollack, the author of the ...
Islam, the Middle East, and the New Global Hegemony
Jan 01, 2003; ... MODERN HISTORY AND POLITICS Islam, the Middle East, and the New Global Hegemony, by Simon W. Murden. Boulder, CO and London, UK: Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2002. ix + 210 pages. Bibl. to p. 227. Index to p. 233. $52 cloth; $19.95 paper. Sometimes Simon Murden does not mince his ...
Decision on Palestine Deferred: America, Britain and Wartime Diplomacy 1939-1945
Jan 01, 2003; ... Decision on Palestine Deferred: America, Britain and Wartime Diplomacy 1939-- 1945, by Monty Noam Penkower. London, UK and Portland, OR: Frank Cass, 2002. xvi + 370 pages. Index to p. 384. $62.50. "Anglo-American drift and delay since September 1939, which left no government policy in ...
Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam
Jan 01, 2003; ... Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam, by Gilles Kepel. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2002. viii + 376 pages. Notes to p. 429. Gloss. to 433. Index to p. 454. $29.95. Few books will so fully and comprehensively intimidate the reader with their depth, ...
The Royal Navy and the Palestine Patrol
Jan 01, 2003; ... The Royal Navy and the Palestine Patrol, by Ninian Stewart. Naval Staff Histories. Captain Christopher Page, series editor. London, UK: Frank Cass, 2002. xvi + 175 pages. Notes to p. 180. Annexes and Appends. to p. 204. Sources to p. 209. Index to p. 217. $54.50 cloth; $25 paper. "In ...
Wedded to the Land? Gender, Boundaries, and Nationalism in Crisis
Jan 01, 2003; ... Wedded to the Land? Gender, Boundaries, and Nationalism in Crisis, by Mary N. Layoun. Durham, NC and London, UK: Duke University Press, 2001. xii + 190 pages. Notes to p. 210. Bibl. to p. 220. Index to p. 225. $54.95 cloth; $18.95 paper. Wedded to the Land? Gender, Boundaries, and ...
Birthing the Nation: Strategies of Palestinian Women in Israel
Jan 01, 2003; ... WOMEN Birthing the Nation: Strategies of Palestinian Women in Israel, by Rhoda Ann Kanaaneh. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA and London, UK: University of California Press, 2002. xvii + 256 pages. Bibl. to p. 275. Index to p. 283. $60 cloth; $24.95 paper. In this path-breaking ...