Here's your reading list, Mr. President

Posted By David Kenner Thursday, May 12, 2011 - 6:23 PM Share

With one sentence, the New York Times raised dozens of Middle East pundits' hopes that their words were reaching the most powerful man in the world.  "At night in the family residence...Mr. Obama often surfs the blogs of experts on Arab affairs or regional news sites to get a local flavor for events," read Mark Landler's account of how the Obama administration will attempt to use the killing of Osama bin Laden to recast the U.S. relationship with the Arab world.

Well, Mr. President, we have some late-night reading suggestions for you. First, of course, there's Marc Lynch and the Middle East Channel - Foreign Policy's own contribution to the fast-changing world of politics in the Arab world. But there's also an entire community of Middle East bloggers who obsessively follow and comment on developments in their countries, and throughout the region.

Caveat emptor: Many of these authors will take you outside the comfort zone of the Washington policy debate. What's more, if you tried to gather them all in one room, you'd be virtually guaranteed a fight. But these blogs will also give you a more realistic sense of the political conversation in the Arab world. Don't stay up too late - you have a full-time job, after all.

Broader Middle East

Brian Whitaker

The Arabist

The Angry Arab News Service

 

Egypt

Rantings of a Sandmonkey

Sarah Carr's Inanities

Zeinobia's Egyptian Chronicles

 

Syria

Joshua Landis's Syria Comment

Syria News Wire

The Damascus Bureau

 

Libya

CJ Chivers's The Gun

Enough Gaddafi

Alive in Libya

 

Persian Gulf

Crossroads Arabia

Tom Finn

Jeb Boone

American Bedu

 

Lebanon

Qifa Nabki

Across the Bay

Friday Lunch Club

Beirut Spring

 

Iraq

Iraq and Gulf Analysis

Musings on Iraq

 

North Africa

Laila Lalami

Maghreb Blog

The Moor Next Door

Bouguerra

 

Turkey

Istanbul Calling

Kamil Pasha

EXPLORE:MEDIA, OBAMA ADMINISTRATION, U.S. FOREIGN POLICY
 

PROFESSIONAL NOMAD

10:58 PM ET

May 12, 2011

Don't forget Israel

Want some insight into why we can't get our BFF to inch toward peace? Read +972 magazine (www.972mag.com), or Promised Land (www.promisedlandblog.com), or Yossi Gurvitz's Wish You Orwell (http://ygurvitz.net), or Hybrid States (www.hybridstates.com)

 

SCUBASTEVESW

11:53 PM ET

May 12, 2011

Good Iran Blogs?

Any suggestions for good blogs to follow on Iran?

The only ones I know of are Tehran Bureau and "The Iran Primer" blog by USIP, but any suggestions for others would be greatly appreciated.

Also, for general Mid East stuff Steve Cook's blog at CFR is good as is Juan Cole's Informed Comment.

 

SALEM BANAJEH

4:42 PM ET

May 13, 2011

Why President Obama should pressuring Israel ?

Palestinians suffer enormous pressure every now and then when the issue of creating a viable Palestinian State comes on political agenda. They are the victims & have lost much of their lands. They suffer the daily humiliations, aggression, and killing from both Israeli soldiers & settlers. For how long these can go on, Mr. President. One of your military Generals said few months ago, the Palestinian tragedy needs to be fairly solved and peace will prevail in the region.
Please do not miss this opportunity. You have a higher rate of admiration among Americans, and you will have that world-wide. Terrorism will then not be a major threat to the American security. But, will pro Israelis in USA, let you do so?.

 

GUYVER

8:32 PM ET

May 14, 2011

My favorite is the Angry Arab

Wit and sharp analysis. He was the first to point to the Saudi/Qatari/American "counter-revolution" to control the Arab Spring and point to Al-Jazirah's cheerleading of the NATO intervention in Libya.

 

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