This page is dedicated to position papers and reports in English published by Al Jazeera Centre for Studies
Arif Kamal
former Pakistani Ambassador
Novembre 2009
The Pakistani arena is witnessing a sharp conflagration on two interwoven tracks that run in tandem: the action by the so-called Pakistani Taliban on one side, and that mounted by the Pakistani army on the other. The latter is unfolding in the volatile and relatively inaccessible South Waziristan Tribal region, which is increasingly viewed as the ‘epicenter’ of a growing insurgency. The upsurge in ‘terror’ and the ‘campaign against terror’ brings an end to the short-lived post-Swat ‘pause’ that had signified a closing of the ranks’ by various players in the arena‘... Read more
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Dr. Afyare Abdi Elmi, Assistant Professor, International Affairs Program, Qatar University
October 2009
Recently, there have been two major developments in Somalia. First, President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed visited the United States for the first time, where he addressed the UN General Assembly and met with several leaders from around the world. In Particular, President Sharif met with senior officials in the US government, including Deputy Secretary of State John Burns, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson, and Senior Director for Africa at the National Security Council Michelle Gavin.. Read more
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Arif Kamal
former Pakistani Ambassador
June 2009
The ‘War on Terror’ in the Pakistani arena has registered an upturn in scale and intensity since April this year, coinciding with President Obama’s new ‘Af-Pak policy’. This is manifested in the Swat operation, ending the peace agreement with the local cleric Sufi Muhammad, and an active military engagement in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), particularly South Waziristan. The most pronounced and visible objective of the operation is to establish the writ of the state in the areas overwhelmed by Talibanization of sorts… Read more
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Fawaz A. Gerges
Professor chairholder of American Foreign Policies and Middle Eastern Studies at Sarah Lawrence University in New York
June 2009
Although a statement of intentions, Obama’s speech in Cairo covered critical challenges facing the US in the Muslim world and offered a new paradigm, a new beginning, for managing relations between the two civilizations. The address sent a clear message: “I’ve come here to Cairo to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect, and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap... Read more