The Arab Uprising

January 30, 2012
George Washington University political scientist Lynch (Voices of the New Arab Public) offers a nuanced, insightful analysis of the Arab insurrections, with ample historical
context. Though the book opens with an almost catastrophic dearth of storytelling, Lynch hits his stride as he details Middle Eastern activists’ roles in the uprisings that spread across the region, as well as the fall of three Arab leaders within one year: President Ben Ali of Tunisia, President Hosni Mubarak or Egypt, and Libyan ruler Moammar Qaddafi. Tracing the 2011 protests to the Arab cold war of the 1950s and ’60s, Lynch vigorously warns against the assumption that recent uprisings will yield instant peace. In addition, he persuasively disputes that social media (Twitter, Facebook) catalyzed the protests, claiming instead that they were spurred by a history of political turmoil and aided by Al Jazeera, which has formed a unified Arab voice. Acknowledging that the Obama administration faced a precarious dilemma in choosing whether and when to intervene, Lynch furnishes a shrewd critique of Obama’s quick response in Libya and low profile in the other Arab uprisings, admonishing the administration to deliver on its promises. In this thought-provoking book, Lynch earns his right to implore U.S. citizens to trust Middle Eastern countries to reshape their political space.