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Beyond the Western Saharan Debate

Following the French military intervention in Mali earlier this year in January, and the hostage crisis in Algeria that soon followed, major world powers briefly oriented their regional focus towards the Maghreb and Sahel regions. In the midst of the escalating conflict in Mali, pundits pointed to Morocco’s ...  Read More »

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World Social Forum Highlights Shock Doctrine in Tunisia

An estimated fifty thousand people from five thousand organizations in 127 countries spanning five continents participated in the World Social Forum (WSF) in Tunisia over the past week. By choosing to come together in Tunis, this year’s Forum evoked the sprit of the 2011 revolt that inspired uprisings around the ...  Read More »

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HRW Report on Repression and Reform in Morocco and the Western Sahara

[The following report was released by Human Rights Watch on 31 January 2013.] Moroccans still await tangible improvements in human rights a year after the adoption of a progressive new constitution and the election of an Islamist-led parliament and government, Human Rights Watch said today in its World ...  Read More »

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Chomsky on the Western Sahara and the “Arab Spring”

One of the most significant consequences of the term “Arab Spring” has been the evocation of a constructed timeline that placed the protests in the North Africa and the Middle East within a limited spectrum of time and space. The desire to enforce problematic nominal labels produces a narrative that shapes the way ...  Read More »

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Inaugural Issue of Journal on Postcolonial Directions in Education

Postcolonial Directions in Education is a peer-reviewed open access journal produced twice a year. It is a scholarly journal intended to foster further understanding, advancement and reshaping of the field of postcolonial education. We welcome articles that contriute to advancing the field. As indicated in the ...  Read More »

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Moroccan State Propaganda and the Western Saharan Conflict

On the first day of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights’ visit to the Western Sahara “to assess the human-rights situation in both Western Sahara and the Algerian refugee camps where displaced Sahrawi live,” Kerry Kennedy, the president of the center, gave an account for the Huffington Post. Her ...  Read More »

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Divesting from All Occupations

In response to ongoing violations of international law and basic human rights by the rightist Israeli government of Benyamin Netanyahu in the occupied West Bank and elsewhere, there has been a growing call for divestment of stocks in corporations supporting the occupation. Modeled after the largely successful ...  Read More »

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Notes from Western Sahara: An Interview with Fatma El-Mehdi

As the Arab Spring spread across several countries in the Middle East and North Africa, American philosopher Noam Chomsky argued that it did not originate in Tunisia, as is commonly understood. “In fact, the current wave of protests actually began last November in Western Sahara, which is under Moroccan rule, after a ...  Read More »

Syrian Population Regression

Population: ~ 22.5 Million

2011:  5,800+ (killed)

2012:  60,000+ (killed) and 500,000+ (external refugees)

2013:  70,000+ (killed) and 1,000,000+ (external refugees)

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Syria Map and Stats

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Population: 22,517,750
GDP: $107.4 billion 
Unemployment: 8.3%; Youth Employment (ages 15-24): 19.1%
Internet Users: 4.469 million 
Exchange Rate: ~ 98.00 Syrian pounds per US dollar
GDP Growth Rate: 3.2% 
Military Expenditures: 5.9% of GDP (World Rank: 10)
Health Expenditures: 2.9% of GDP (World Rank: 180)
Population Growth Rate: 0.913% 
Age Structure: 0-14 years: 35.2%; 15-64 years: 61%; 65 years and over: 3.8%
Literacy: 79.6%
Religious Demographics: Sunni Muslim 74%; other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%; Christian (various denominations) 10%
Ethnic Demographics: Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%