Members of Congress Request NGOs’ Access to Bahrain
Eleven members of Congress co-signed a bipartisan letter to the King of Bahrain, Shaikh Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, requesting Bahrain "reconsider the recent travel bans on non-governmental organizations (NGOs)" and "immediately reverse its position and allow NGOs to enter Bahrain ...
Congressmen Say Egypt Aid in Jeopardy
Senators Carl Levin and John McCain, leaders of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, told Foreign Policy Tuesday that withholding military aid to Egypt was now a real possibility due to the Egyptian military's role in the late-December raids ...
February 2, 2012
Category: Congress, Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Legislation, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Political transition
WaPo Editorial Board: NGO Crisis a “Witch Hunt”
On Tuesday, the Washington Post editorial board argued that the U.S. government must be prepared to withhold promised military aid to Egypt should the Egyptian government refuse to back off its investigation into U.S.-funded nongovernmental organizations operating in ...
February 1, 2012
Category: Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Legislation, NGOs, Political transition, US foreign policy
U.S. Embassy Shelters American NGO Workers
Earlier today, the U.S. Embassy in Egypt confirmed that it was sheltering a “handful” of American citizens who were barred from leaving Egypt last week. The unidentified Americans are employees of U.S.-funded nongovernmental organizations raided by Egyptian police late last year ...
American NGO Workers Barred From Leaving Egypt
This weekend, the son of Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and at least five other American employees of nongovernmental organizations in Egypt were barred from leaving the country. The Americans were from the National Democratic Institute (NDI) and ...
Egypt Celebrates First Anniversary of January 25 Revolution
Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians gathered in Cairo’s Tahrir Square and in cities across Egypt today to commemorate the first anniversary of the uprising which overthrew former President Hosni Mubarak. Activists began to fill Tahrir as early as ...
January 25, 2012
Category: Civil Society, Egypt, Featured, Human Rights, Islamist movements, Media, Muslim Brotherhood, NGOs, Protests
Freedom House Denied Entry into Bahrain as U.S. Embassy Personnel Relocates
The U.S. State Department has warned U.S. citizens to avoid all travel to the Kingdom of Bahrain. As the one-year anniversary (February 14) of the birth of the pro-democracy movement approaches, the U.S government has warned of potential unrest. Additionally, the U.S. embassy in Bahrain has relocated all personnel to a "safer" location due to an increase in spontanous and sometimes violent demonstrations and "isolated examples" of anti-U.S. sentiment. Since last February, continuous pro-democracy demonstrations taken place in ...
January 19, 2012
Category: Congress, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Featured, Foreign Aid, Freedom, Legislation, NGOs
November 11, 2011
Category: Arab League, Freedom, Government, Human Rights, ICC, Justice, NGOs, Political transition, Protests, Rule of Law, Syria
Egypt: Amb. Patterson “Not Comfortable” Talking to MB
U.S. Ambassador to Egypt Anne Patterson said she is "not personally comfortable enough" yet talking to the Muslim Brotherhood. Patterson added that the staff of the U.S. Embassy in Cairo had been in "contact" with Muslim Brotherhood members. The ...
October 18, 2011
1 comments
Category: Diplomacy, Egypt, Elections, Journalism, NGOs, US foreign policy
“SCAF’s Assault on Egypt’s Civil Society”
Foreign Policy featured a piece yesterday written by Executive Director Stephen McInerney of POMED which discusses a disturbing campaign by Egypt's ruling military council (SCAF) against Egypt's civil society organizations. McInerney has characterized this campaign against civil society ...
September 29, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Featured, Freedom, Government, Military, NGOs, Political transition, POMED
New Middle East Transitions Office Opens at Department of State
The U.S. Department of State opened a new Middle East Transitions (MET) office, which started operation this week. William Taylor, former senior vice president for conflict management at United States Institute of Peace, will spearhead Middle East Transitions, with ...
September 12, 2011
Category: Democracy Promotion, Diplomacy, Egypt, Government, Libya, NGOs, Political transition, Tunisia, US foreign policy
Syria: Report Cites Surge of Detention Deaths, Senior Hama Official Resigns
The latest Amnesty International report on Syria cites a surge in deaths of Syrians held in detention camps since the start of the Syrian revolution five months ago. According to the report, Syria has averaged five detention deaths per year, but has seen the deaths of at least 88 people over the past five months. Of the 88 who died, ten were children, some as young as 13. There is ...
August 11, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Diplomacy, Egypt, NGOs, Political transition, Rule of Law, US foreign policy
POMED Notes: Wright’s “Rock the Casbah”
On Wednesday, Robin Wright, Distinguished Scholar for the United States Institute of Peace and the Wilson Center, discussed her new book Rock the Casbah, which focuses on a new phase of Islamic activism termed “counter-jihad” by Wright. The discussion was moderated by Hala Esfandiari, Director of the Middle East Program at the Wilson Center. Video footage of the event can be found online. For full notes, continue reading. Or click here ...
July 14, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Event Notes, Freedom, Government, Human Rights, Islamist movements, Media, NGOs, Political Parties, US foreign policy, Women, Youth
Egypt: NGOs Propose a Constitutional Council
Twenty-seven Egyptian human rights organizations proposed the establishment of a Constitutional Council on Saturday, in an effort to protect Egypt's transition to a democratic country. The NGOs organized a six-article document entitled the "Basic Constitutional Provisions" that said, "a Constitutional Council shall be established to oversee the protection of the constitution and the democratic system.” In addition, the council would include chairs of the high courts led by the president of ...
Clinton Promotes Democracy
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is planning to travel to Budapest, Hungary on June 29th to discuss democracy promotion in the region. She will be supporting the Lantos Institute and it's dedication to democratic principles and the protection of individual and human rights. In addition, she will travel to Vilnius, Lithuania on June 30th to participate in the Community of Democracies Sixth Ministerial, and will be joined by senior government ...
June 25, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Foreign Aid, Freedom, Government, Human Rights, NGOs, Political transition, Reform, Tunisia, US foreign policy, Women, Youth
Ambassador Verveer To Travel to Egypt, Israel, West Bank
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanie Verveer will travel to Egypt, Israel and the West Bank from April 15th through April 22nd. During her visit, the ambassador will meet with government officials, political party representatives, civil society leaders and the media to discuss the need for inclusion of women in the political process and their role as peace builders. She will also meet with business leaders, youth organizations and women's ...
April 14, 2011
Category: Civil Society, Democracy Promotion, Egypt, Freedom, Israel, Mideast Peace Plan, NGOs, Palestine, Protests, Women, Women's Rights