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Arab Spring? An Intensifying Storm
(Daily Star-Lebanon) Editorial - In Tunisia, authorities are now presiding over a steady deterioration of a country where stability and an openness to the outside world are key to economic viability. In Libya, the executive and legislative authorities are under siege by non-state militias. Egypt's new leaders have also been forced to deal with non-state, extremist elements in Sinai. Yemen faces various challenges from al-Qaeda fighters and its own separatist movement in the south. Bahrain is in lockdown due to a popular protest movement. Sudan is headed toward a Somalia-like situation, with a political system that remains characterized by poverty, corruption, violence and dictatorship. In Iraq, regional and sectarian divisions and corruption still hold sway. Syria's horrific tragedies are well known to all, and Lebanon has seen instability elsewhere having repercussions on an already-dysfunctional political system.