arab world

There is no question that Osama bin Laden’s death is a significant milestone in the U.S. fight against Al Qaeda. But the youth-led uprisings in the Middle East ultimately pose a greater threat to Al Qaeda than bin Laden’s death. It is therefore critical that the United States maintain support for the revolutions’ call for political and economic reforms as they continue to unfold.

Liquid Comics and Open Hands Initiative, a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to public diplomacy efforts, announced Saturday the launch of a new comic book that will introduce children around the world to The Silver Scorpion...[whose] powers include the ability to “help build bridges between the youth of America and the Arab world, starting with Syria.”

The death of Osama bin Laden like the Arab Spring signals a possible turning point in the Arab and Muslim world and an opportunity to strengthen U.S.-Muslim world relations. The killing of bin Laden in Abbottabad is a major psychological blow to al Qaeda, who lost a charismatic leader, and global terrorists for whom he symbolized their militant jihad.

In Egypt and Tunisia, Facebook helped foment democratic uprising. But on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, US soldiers are now, with increasing frequency, turning to social media for an equally pressing purpose: To save their lives.

At Erdogan's initiative, Syria and Turkey in 2009 abolished visas for their citizens traveling between the countries, held joint cabinet meetings and conducted small-scale military exercises. Turkish exports to Syria are booming. This type of integration has been the cornerstone of Turkey's much-heralded "zero problems with neighbors" policy.

From the monolithic American view, Egypt and Syria would not appear to be especially different countries, although the outcomes of efforts to embrace democracy have been very much so. Meanwhile, pro-democracy movements have encountered varying degrees of success in Tunisia and Yemen and abject failure in Bahrain, where Saudi security forces were part of the crackdown, as well as in Algeria.

Three months after the January 25 Revolution in Egypt, President Obama's approach to the Middle East is hopelessly adrift. He is hesitant to truly embrace the Arab freedom movements, failing to lead Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations and lacking effective diplomacy to counter Iran's nuclear ambitions.

In a speech at the U.S.-Islamic World Forum in Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States believes there is no reason why the Middle East "cannot be among the most progressive, prosperous, peaceful, successful regions in the world.

Pages