Egypt Archives - Sahar Aziz

Sure, the US cares about human rights — when it benefits us [The Hill]

President Biden’s red-carpet treatment of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi is another nail in the coffin of U.S. human rights policy. Such willful blindness to India’s poor human rights record extends to the Middle East. Indeed, human rights advocates have long criticized the U.S. government for its selective, politicized enforcement of human rights laws and policies in furtherance of one goal: to remain the sole “Great Power” in the Middle East and North Africa. U.S. hegemony in the region has five main goals: first, to retain control over the distribution and… Continue reading

Current US Engagements and Evolving US Priorities in the Region [Arab Center]

Professor Sahar Aziz contributed her expertise on Egypt-U.S. relations on a panel addressing current and future US priorities in the region and America’s bilateral relations with key players and policies in Gulf Arab states, Israel, Egypt, Syria, and Iran. The panel, Current U.S. Engagements and Evolving US Priorities inn the Region, discussed China and Russia’s roles in the region’s conflicts, the United States’ direct military involvement and its haphazard disengagement in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya, as well as the US retreat on commitments to human rights and democracy. —… Continue reading

Egypt Isn’t Qualified to Host COP27 [TIME]

Climate change has no regard for state borders. Nor does a nation’s wealth or power immunize it from the annual rise in temperatures exacerbating extreme flooding, droughts, and storms. This reality is bringing together nearly 200 nations for COP27, to be held in Egypt—a nation highly vulnerable to climate change but antagonistic toward an essential stakeholder in the climate conversation: independent civil society. Indeed, the Egyptian government has given summit access only to local nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that support the regime. With only 3.4% of its land arable and… Continue reading

Impact of Global Competition on Democracy and Human Rights in the Middle East [Arab Center]

Professor Sahar Aziz contributed her expertise on human rights in the Middle East during the Arab Center’s sixth annual conference on the panel Competition on Democracy and Human Rights in the Middle East. The conference addressed developments in US policy with regard to human rights and democracy, the role of Russia and China in empowering totalitarian regimes and representing a new axis of authoritarianism, the impact of US disengagement and growing Russian and Chinese power projections on human rights, the role of international mechanisms like UN resolutions and Human… Continue reading

The Expanding Jurisdiction of Egypt’s Military Courts [Carnegie Sada Journal]

Egypt’s ongoing expansion of military jurisdiction under the pretext of economic development and public safety is yet another indicator that its revolution was stillborn. Although the military has long been a key political player, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s regime has promoted the military to the helm of Egypt’s political and economic affairs. In parallel, there has been an unprecedented expansion of military trials of civilians to serve the interests of the military generals governing the country. Concerns over trying civilians in military courts have long been a priority for Egypt’s… Continue reading

The Egyptian Revolution [UTexas]

The Egyptian Revolution of 2011 captivated the imagination of pro-democracy activists worldwide and turned the name of Cairo’s Tahrir Square into a buzzword for freedom and popular resistance. However, since the February 11, 2011 deposition of Hosni Mubarak, Egypt’s road to democracy has been marred by two military coups, a decrease in government transparency, and the erratic reign of a democratically elected president-turned-authoritarian who wasn’t even his own party’s first choice nominee for office. Our guest, Professor Sahar Aziz, helps us understand the political earthquakes in Egypt’s bumpy transition from… Continue reading

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