The Sanqar brothers declined to comment on their role at the conference, but Ammar Abdulhamid, the exiled Syrian dissident and head of the Washington-based Tharwa Foundation, said the inclusion of business personalities was “a significant development”.
“We have a number of other businessmen and entrepreneurs here. The business community is slowly coming around to realising the need to support the future of Syria,” he said.
Tag: Turkey
Syria is not ready for an uprising
The groundwork for Egypt and Tunisia’s days of rage took years. In isolated Syria, there is much grassroots work to be done.
Ammar Abdulhamid, guardian.co.uk, Monday 7 February 2011 11.00 GMT.
A “day of rage” called for by Syrian opposition members living abroad and scheduled for last Friday and Saturday came and went: the only mass presence detected on the streets of major cities in Syria was that of security forces. Continue reading “Syria is not ready for an uprising”
Unblessed Stand the Meek!
Comment 1: That’s how Middle Eastern dictators love their American presidents: weak, clueless and irrelevant. Furthermore, and the Cairo Speech which appeased the regional officialdom notwithstanding, Obama’s “street creds” in the region have always been low due to his abandonment of the Freedom Agenda. The rhetoric of the Bush Administration might have offended the sensibilities of our peoples at times, but they did love it when their rulers squirmed. Obama’s policies, on the other hand, have painted too many smiles of contentment and ridicule on the faces of our autocrats. The meek are not always blessed. Continue reading “Unblessed Stand the Meek!”
Top Five Myths Guiding American Foreign Policy in the Broader Middle East & North Africa Region
January 2010
Despite occasional calibrations reflecting changes in administration, America’s policy towards the Broader Middle East and North Africa region remains highly influenced by a set of misperceptions and ideological stances more related to America’s internal politics than regional realities. This situation has constantly undermined America’s efforts and, occasionally, desire at playing a positive role in the region, and served to transform her into a convenient scapegoat upon which ruling regimes heap blame for all regional woes.
The Ammar Abdulhamid Archive 