A Revolution By Any Other Name

By Niv Elis For the Czech Republic it was Velvet.  For Serbia, it was a Bulldozer.  For Iran, it was distinctly Islamic.  But nobody has yet settled on what the freshly minted Egyptian Revolution will be called.  Will it be floral, like Tunisia's Jasmine, Kyrgyzstan's Tulips, Georgia's Roses and Portugal's Carnations?  Will it be woody, like Croatia's Log and Lebanon's Cedar Revolutions?  Perhaps it will be colorful like Ukraine's Orange and Iran's failed Green one, or maybe, like the bloodless overthrows in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the revolution will be a Singing one. Some have bandied about Papyrus as a descriptor for the Egyptian popular uprising.  Other suggestions might include the Pyramid revolution, the Mummy revolution, the Tahrir (liberation) Revolution, the Facebook Revolution or, in a tribute to the Bangles hit, simply "Revolt Like an Egyptian."  Ultimately,...

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For Israel, Tough Choices on Egypt

By Steven Philp On Saturday Israeli President Shimon Peres offered a defense of beleaguered Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, on the grounds that his rule has been characterized by three decades of stability between their respective nations. According to Haaretz, Israeli officials are concerned that if Mubarak is forced to step down the 1979 peace deal between their respective nations could be compromised. Peres seemed particularly concerned about the Muslim Brotherhood, saying that their participation in the opposition movement casts doubt over continuing peace with Israel. Addressing members of the European Parliament, Peres lauded Mubarak for maintaining accord with Israel, stating, “His contribution to peace, as far as I'm concerned, will never be forgotten.” Egyptian opposition leader Mohamed El Baradei attempted to assuage these fears in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, stating that the peace established...

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