Those who said that 'winds of change' were blowing through the Middle East were right. The past few weeks have seen a stunning series of political shifts in response to widespread discontent and popular opposition that once went unacknowledged.

As the number of young people in South Africa increases and access to the Internet improves, so too will access to the kind of resistance we’re witnessing in Egypt and Tunisia, writes guest blogger Khadija Patel.

Leaders around the globe joined a chorus of condemnation Wednesday over the eruption of violence in Cairo as embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak struggled to maintain his grip on power.

There is an old joke in the Middle East that goes like this: One of Hosni Mubarak's advisers finally gets the courage to say, "Mr. President, maybe it's time to think about your farewell address to the Egyptian people." Mubarak looks at the adviser and asks, "Why? Where are they going?" In reality, Mubarak got the message loud and clear.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who famously compares ruling Yemen to "dancing on the heads of snakes", tapped into the restive mood of the Arab world today by announcing that he would not stand for re-election in 2013. Skepticism may well be in order.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh, moving to head off the kind of unrest roiling Egypt and Tunisia, announced Wednesday that he would not run for office when his term ends in 2013 or anoint his son as his successor.

In Egypt - as well as Tunisia, Sudan, Yemen and elsewhere - change is unfolding very rapidly. The reactions of the USA, EU, UN, and have positioned the international community well behind the curve. Developments on the ground have outpaced responses by a wide margin.