2020: The Year We Stayed Away

December 2020

Social distancing, wearing masks, scavenging for toilet paper while spraying disinfectant everywhere: what kind of year was this? A tragic one for many, but we end with a hope for vaccine somewhat realized.

Empowering Women with Disabilities for Better Employment Opportunities

By Amina Abdel-Halim / December 16, 2020

The United Nations is working hand in hand with local organizations to provide greater economic prosperity to Egyptian women living with disabilities.

Egyptian Women Speak Against the Unspoken

By Omar Auf /

Grassroots initiatives to combat sexual harassment in Egypt challenge state and society to face an issue silently yet significantly affecting the lives of countless women.

Learning from a Diplomatic Trailblazer to Tackle Global Inequalities

By Sean David Hobbs /

Guest speaker at the 16th Nadia Younes Memorial Lecture, Dutch Minister Sigrid Kaag, presented ideas for geopolitical challenges in the Middle East and North Africa during and after the coronavirus pandemic.

Will the U.S. Evolve its Foreign Policy from Past Mistakes?

/ Fall 2020

Former U.S. Ambassador and American University in Cairo President Francis Ricciardone evaluates how the United States has dealt with global crises in the 21st century.

Embracing Change: U.S. Foreign Policy Shifts

Fall 2020

Former U.S. diplomat and American University in Cairo President Francis Ricciardone discusses whether a Biden win will see a return to a rules based international order.

Explaining How Washington and the Election Works

By Sean David Hobbs / Fall 2020

In 2016, all predictions about the U.S. elections were wrong. Will Washington insiders get it right this time?

Abortion and the Political Futures of Women’s Rights

By Andrew Delatolla / Fall 2020

Gender and women’s rights have been divisive issues in U.S. domestic politics, particularly when it comes to abortion. How has the Trump administration handled these issues and will the 2020 U.S. election serve as a continuation of these policies?

Anatomy of a Revolution

By Sydney Wise / Fall 2020

The fight against racialized violence in the U.S. prison and policing system has characterized the last fifty years of the struggle for racial justice. In 2020, new momentum marks a historic moment.

The United Nations: Tension, Progress, and Failings

By Ibrahim Awad / Fall 2020

The United Nations has taken great strides toward increased global justice and equality, but more needs to be done.

Resisting the Tide of Bigotry

By Jonathan Weisman / Fall 2020

American Jews are left divided and looking for new directions as Donald Trump embraces the white supremacism of the alt-right and the Zionism of Benjamin Netanyahu

Five Years after Agreeing on the Sustainable Development Goals: Where are We?

By Laila El Baradei /

Much more needs to be done on the SDGs, how they are reported, and how they are ultimately evaluated.

What does a Trump or Biden presidency mean for Israel and Palestine?

By Khaled Elgindy / October 20, 2020

Next month’s election may be instrumental in salvaging what hope remains for a two-state solution.

What the Beirut Blast means for Lebanon’s Refugees

By Ola G. El-Taliawi and Tamirace Fakhoury / September 11, 2020

Inclusive refugee policies and a renewed approach to humanitarian relief will be needed to protect Lebanon’s most vulnerable.

Why Palestinians consider the UAE-Israel Deal a strategic betrayal

By Nour Odeh /

Palestinian anger rises towards the UAE-Israel deal, which is not only a breach of international law, but also perceived as a betrayal of long-standing Arab solidarity with Palestine.

The Charter of the United Nations After 75 Years: Personal Reflections

By Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf / August 8, 2020

On the 75th anniversary of the Charter of the United Nations, Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, President of the International Court of Justice, reflects on the Charter’s world-changing history.

COVID-19 Heightens Stakes for Migrants in the Mediterranean

By Omar Auf /

COVID-19 has exacerbated anti-migration trends in the Mediterranean region, leaving migrants and refugees in increasingly vulnerable positions.

The Viral Quotient: How Arab Media Responded to COVID-19

By Lobna Khairy and Sarah El-Shaarawi /

From social media to government narratives, the audience was bombarded with a plethora of information, some of which was confusing and contradictory.

Urban-Rural Disconnect: COVID-19 and Sustainability

By David Dumke and Thomas L. Crisman and Zachary S. Winters /

The Urban-Rural Disconnect and how COVID-19 is influencing the Nexus of water, energy and food.

Annexation Makes No Policy Sense

By Daniel C. Kurtzer / June 15, 2020

The fors and againsts of the West Bank’s annexation.

Challenges to Migration Governance in the Arab Region

By Amina Abdel-Halim / June 3, 2020

Since its endorsement in 2018, a wealth of challenges have delayed the full implementation of the Global Compact for Migration in the Arab region.

Deconstructing Fukuyama

By Ibrahim Awad / Spring 2020

Taking apart the arguments of division that underscore the populist movements emerging in today’s liberal democracies

How Will the Coronavirus Crisis Affect Africa’s Developmental Focus?

By Magda Shahin /

Mitigating the effects of the coronavirus in Africa and implementing the African Continental Free Trade Area go hand-in-hand.

Egypt’s Most Vulnerable and COVID-19

By Elena Habersky / Summer 2020

Are refugees and asylum seekers protected by its strong domestic laws and international commitments?

Women and Education in the Arab World

By Sean David Hobbs /

Malak Zaalouk, education expert, discusses the position of women and access to education in the Arab World with the Cairo Review’s Senior Editor Sean David Hobbs in a special podcast recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic lock-down.

Erdoğan Fails the Coronavirus Test

By Gönül Tol /

The president’s concentration of executive power has left Turkey vulnerable to decisions based more on saving the economy—and thus his own skin—than on stopping the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thunderbolt Hitting the Land

By Nasser Alkidwa /

An uncertain future looms as Palestine and Israel attempt to mitigate the onslaught of COVID-19.

Long-term Implications of COVID-19

By Amina Abdel-Halim /

Most policy-makers are taking on COVID-19 as a one-time challenge, but a multi-round scenario could have disastrous implications for the global economy.

COVID-19 Impact on Africa Elections

By Arnaud Oulepo /

The pandemic is forcing African states to choose between holding elections on time and postponing them for safety. The risks run both ways.

Seeing COVID-19 as an Opportunity

By Ted Reynolds /

Extremist groups will attempt to take advantage of the turmoil created by COVID-19—and it’s not the first time.

In Close Proximity to Their Abusers

By Karina Powell /

Domestic violence worsens worldwide due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strategic Actors in Libya

By Sydney Wise /

Political Scientist Lisa Anderson explores how the local players in the Libyan conflict affect the decision-making of states, both in North Africa and beyond.

America’s Shift to Online

By Sydney Wise / April 11, 2020

COVID-19 has introduced the concept of working from home to many who have never experienced it. But, different industry needs, varying family and gender roles, and a need for interaction may explain why it wasn’t already the norm.

A Future Filled With Pathogens

By Dahr Jamail /

The combination of a worsening climate crisis and ongoing human encroachment on the wilds will bring more pandemics.

Learning from Mistakes in Pandemic Response

By Sydney Wise / March 20, 2020

As long as humans have interacted with one another, we have assumed the risk of communicating disease; the question is, have we learned from past experiences enough to minimize future risk?

No Land in Paraguay

By William Costa / March 10, 2020

The preservation of indigenous peoples’ territories in Paraguay has a vital role in maintaining spiritual, cultural, and communal wellbeing. Despite this important reality, many indigenous communities’ bonds with their land have been shattered.

Mobilizing Against Trump’s “Vision”

By Sean David Hobbs /

Former Palestinian Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Alkidwa explains the ways Palestinians are contesting the Trump plan for peace and how the Trump deal caters only to extremists on the Israeli and American right

Hosni Mubarak: Passing of an Era, or Lingering Legacy?

By Tarek Osman / February 25, 2020

What Mubarak’s legacy reveals about changes in different generations’ relationship to state and society.

Brexit Reveals a Damaged Democracy

By Russell Merryman / February 10, 2020

The drunken celebrations in Parliament Square as the UK broke from the European Union provide an apt metaphor for the whole affair.

The Middle East Reacts to Trump’s ‘Deal of the Century’

By Sydney Wise / January 30, 2020

Hours after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his plan for Israeli-Palestinian peace, the reactions of key regional figures ranged from hopeful to enraged.

The Country to City Continuum

By Audrey Lodes /

Government leaders and public policy experts attended the Regional Workshop on Strengthening Migration Governance Across the Rural Urban Continuum.

Heat is on for Brazil’s Bolsonaro

By Patricia Barbeyron / October 15, 2019

Bolsonaro has shifted focus from an economic reforms agenda, which the country sorely needs amid recession fears, to a cultural one, which pleases his supporters.

The End for Netanyahu?

By Dan Perry / September 19, 2019

After a murky election Netanyahu might be out and Gantz might be in, but it is Lieberman who is set to be kingmaker.

Reconstruction as a political-economy issue: The case of Syria

By Samir Aita / September 18, 2019

There can be no meaningful separation between state-building, peace-building, and revival at the end of a conflict, especially as post-conflict state institutions are the only apparatus which can be somewhat directly or indirectly accountable toward their populations for the management of the country.

Kushner’s New Plan for Palestine

By Robert Mason / September 18, 2019

The “Deal of the Century” is quickly shaping up to be the “Deception of the Century” and here’s why.

Opportunity of the Century?

By Nabil Fahmy / Summer 2019

Jared Kushner’s economic stimulus initiative to solve the Palestinian issue was introduced in the 80s and ended in failure.

An Iran Strategy Worth Fighting For

By Robert Mason / July 24, 2019

U.S. and Saudi confrontations with Iran are causing proxy-warfare in weak or failing Arab states and escalating tensions in the Gulf, but there might still be a chance for diplomatic progress with the right combination of measures targeting Gulf-specific, regional, and international issues.

Civil Marriage in Limbo

By Sarah El-Richani / June 23, 2019

In Lebanon, the recurring debate around civil marriage highlights the sectarian-patriarchal grip on personal status affairs and the state itself.

The Juggernaut’s Achilles Heel

By Dahlia Scheindlin / June 20, 2019

The US may have recognized Israel’s 1981 annexation of the Golan Heights, but the Golan Druze, like East Jerusalem Palestinians, continue to reject Israeli citizenship and civic participation. If Israel is now empowered to annex parts of the West Bank, will Palestinians there break the pattern and embrace citizenship if offered?

Can Israel Survive Netanyahu?

By Dan Perry / Spring 2019

Following Benjamin Netanyahu’s reelection Israel is a land of contradictions, democratic and wealthy yet with dangerous demographic divisions

Human Rights