One of the most important developments in the modern history of the Middle East, the so-called Arab Spring began in Tunisia in December 2010, bringing down dictators, sparking a civil war in Libya, and igniting a bloody uprising in Syria. Its long-term repercussions in Egypt and elsewhere remain unclear. Now one of the world's leading Islamic thinkers examines and explains it, in this searching, provocative, and necessary book. Time Magazine named Tariq Ramadan one of the most important innovators of the twenty-first century. A Muslim intellectual and prolific author, he has won global renown for his reflections on Islam and the contemporary challenges in both the Muslim majority societies and the West. In Islam and the Arab Awakening, he explores the uprisings, offering rare insight into their origin, significance, and possible futures. As early as 2003, he writes, there had been talk of democratization in the Middle East and North Africa. The U.S. government and private organizations set up networks and provided training for young leaders, especially in the use of the Internet and social media, and the West abandoned its unconditional support of authoritarian governments. But the West did not create the uprisings. Indeed, one lesson Ramadan presents is that these mass movements and their consequences cannot be totally controlled. Something irreversible has taken place: dictators have been overthrown without weapons. But, he writes, democratic processes are only beginning to emerge, and unanswered questions remain. What role will religion play? How should Islamic principles and goals be rethought? Can a sterile, polarizing debate between Islamism and secularism be avoided? Avoiding both naive confidence and conspiratorial paranoia, Ramadan voices a tentative optimism. If a true civil society can be established, he argues, this moment's fragile hope will live.

Over the past decade, the political ground beneath the Middle East has shifted. Arab nationalism the political orthodoxy for most of this century has lost its grip on the imagination and allegiance of a new generation. At the same time, Islam as an ideology has spread across the region, and "Islamists" bid to capture the center of politics. Most Western scholars and experts once hailed the redemptive power of Arabism. Arab Awakening and Islamic Revival is a critical assessment of the contradictions of Arab nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism, and the misrepresentation of both in the West.The first part of the book argues that Arab nationalism--the so-called Arab awakening--bore within it the seeds of its own failure. Arabism as an idea drew upon foreign sources and resources. Even as it claimed to liberate the Arabs from imperialism it deepened intellectual dependence upon the West's own romanticism and radicalism. Ultimately, Arab nationalism became a force of oppression rather than liberation, and a mirror image of the imperialism it defied. Kramer's essays together form the only chronological telling and the at fully documented postmortem of Arabism. The second part of the book examines the similar failings of Islamism, whose ideas are Islamic reworkings of Western ideological radicalism. Its effect has been to give new life to old rationales for oppression, authoritarianism, and sectarian division.Arab Awakening and Islamic Revival provides an alternative view of a century of Middle Eastern history. As the region moves fitfully past ideology, Kramer's perspective is more compelling than at any time in the past-in Western academe no less than among many in the Middle. This book will be of interest to sociologists, political scientists, economists, and Middle East specialists.

Over the past decade, the political ground beneath the Middle East has shifted. Arab nationalism the political orthodoxy for most of this century has lost its grip on the imagination and allegiance of a new generation. At the same time, Islam as an ideology has spread across the region, and "Islamists" bid to capture the center of politics. Most Western scholars and experts once hailed the redemptive power of Arabism. Arab Awakening and Islamic Revival is a critical assessment of the contradictions of Arab nationalism and Islamic fundamentalism, and the misrepresentation of both in the West.The first part of the book argues that Arab nationalism--the so-called Arab awakening--bore within it the seeds of its own failure. Arabism as an idea drew upon foreign sources and resources. Even as it claimed to liberate the Arabs from imperialism it deepened intellectual dependence upon the West's own romanticism and radicalism. Ultimately, Arab nationalism became a force of oppression rather than liberation, and a mirror image of the imperialism it defied. Kramer's essays together form the only chronological telling and the at fully documented postmortem of Arabism. The second part of the book examines the similar failings of Islamism, whose ideas are Islamic reworkings of Western ideological radicalism. Its effect has been to give new life to old rationales for oppression, authoritarianism, and sectarian division.Arab Awakening and Islamic Revival provides an alternative view of a century of Middle Eastern history. As the region moves fitfully past ideology, Kramer's perspective is more compelling than at any time in the past-in Western academe no less than among many in the Middle. This book will be of interest to sociologists, political scientists, economists, and Middle East specialists.

Proposed Formation of an Arab Union (AU) Modeled on European Union (EU) Awakens and Advances the Arab World Region and population as it did EU "By the end of the World War II (1945), drastic changes occurred in world political and economic order. The world nations' concept of old style colonialism and super nationalism, which were practiced prior to the war were completely discarded;replaced by a new geopolitical and economic world order. Great emphasis and concern were also directed on how nations can fix the already war damaged pre- and post-war world economy by shifting their effort toward the revival and development of their prewar and postwar techno- economic status. This same R&D-based techno-economic approach was joined by many other already or newly independent nations such as the Pacific Ridge Countries and by the huge lands and massive populations of: Brazil, Russia, India and China. The plan yielded them the recently acquired advanced or merging naion's status. Contrary to these groups, many other nations/regions fail to pursue the same advanced plan; remaining as they were, suffering non-developed status. This chapter deals with the proposal: "how to change the status of those from developing to that of advance developed nations/regions status by following and rigidly implementing advanced nations' techno-economic plan. The proposal utilizes the establishment of the proposed Arab Union modeled on European Union as an example, illustrating the process; also how the proposed plan - the proposal - was generalized to cover other would-be cases that are determined and have the willing power to make the conversion move from poor, developing to that of rich, advanced status".

The Arab Spring, widely perceived as a momentous event in West Asia, has evoked a persistent flow of interpretation and analysis by academic experts and policy-makers since the upheaval first broke out in December 2010 and the pace of events suggests the flow of analysis on this issue will continue. Like all great social upheavals, the Arab Spring was long-drawn-out in its realisation and born of many factors that are intertwined. It could have occurred any time during the course of the last two or three decades but each passing year brought to the forefront new developments that made it that much more imminent. Economic problems, social problems, political problems, juridical problems and diplomatic problems combined to contribute to an uncompromising sense of grievance across the Arab world that ultimately manifested itself in the Arab spring and winter of 2011. This volume comes out of a conference organised by the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies, in collaboration with Institute of Foreign Policy Studies and Centre of Pakistan and West Asian Studies, in which an attempt was made to discuss these issues threadbare.

First published in 1938, this fine book is the first study of the Arab national movement ever written. 'The whole of this brilliantly written book moves at the same plane of objective and critical scholarship.' Daily Telegraph, London. 'A good book written by a scholar, an expert on the subject and a resident in the country ... a very excellent and extremely able book.' The Observer, London.

This remarkable book on a complex and controversial subject is widely regarded as the best full account of the rise of the Arab national movement. After several years of travel and research in all parts of the Arab world, the author managed to gain access to all the relevant material necessary to the writing of a book such as this–much of the material having been unavailable to other writers on the subject. The fruits of Mr. Antonius’ research have been embodied in this unique story of the origins and development of the national movement from its earliest beginnings in the nineteenth century down to the post-World War I era. In addition to the narrative account and assessments of military and political leaders, including Lawrence of Arabia, the book contains a set of documents of fundamental importance to the history of the Arab revival. “Never has the story of the origin and growth of the Arab national movement been told with such brilliance or with such a wealth of detail.”—The Nation “A good book written by a scholar, an expert on the subject and a resident in the country.... A very excellent and extremely able book.” -- The Observer, London “The whole of this brilliantly written book moves at the same plane of objective and critical scholarship.” --Daily Telegraph, London

Explores the "Arab Spring" uprisings of 2010 through today--their origin, significance and possible futures.

Advance praise for Islam, Politics, and Pluralism:"A valuable, accessible, and timely introduction to events and movements that lie behind the headlines of atrocity and terror, and which will enhance understanding of our dangerously polarized world." —Karen Armstrong, author of Islam: A Short History"Well-conceived, convincingly argued, and lucidly written. She provides a sorely needed dose of objectivity and balance precisely when those virtues are becoming essential for our government, our media, and our citizenry" —Robert Bianchi, author of Guests of God: Pilgrimage and Politics in the Islamic World"This is an important contribution to the debate about Islam and should be read by scholars, policy planners, and the informed public." —Akbar S. Ahmed, Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies, American University "A fine book... clear, crisp, well-written. It makes an important case for the political possibilities of the Islamic movements." —Ira M Lapidus, professor emeritus of history, University of California, Berkeley