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ARAB WORLD-UNREST-POLITICS
Uprisings, protests in the Arab world since 2011
PARIS, April 11, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – From Tunisia to Algeria and now Sudan, where the army has toppled president Omar al-Bashir after months of protests over his 30-year rule, the Arab world has since 2011 seen increasing calls for democratic change.
Here is a recap:
– Tunisia: spark of Arab Spring –
In December 2010 the self-immolation of a young street vendor triggers nationwide protests against poverty and unemployment.
Less than a month later, dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali flees after 23 years in power. It sparks protests against entrenched regimes in countries across the region.
Tunisia wins international plaudits for its peaceful transition.
In 2014 it adopts a new constitution that limits presidential power.
In December 2014 Beji Caid Essebsi becomes its first democratically elected head of state. New legislative and presidential elections are planned in late 2019.
– Egypt: repression –
After a mass 18-day revolt which costs almost 850 lives, Hosni Mubarak steps down on February 11, 2011, ending almost three decades of iron-fisted rule and handing power to the army.
In June 2012 Islamist Mohamed Morsi becomes the first civilian, freely elected head of the Arab world’s most populous state.
The next year is marked by political dissent, resulting in the ouster of Morsi by the armed forces led by Abdel Fattah al-Sisi following mass protests.
Sisi is elected president in 2014 and again in 2018, and is accused by rights groups of running an ultra-repressive regime.
– Libya: chaos –
On February 15, 2011 protests break out against the regime of Moamer Kadhafi, in power for 42 years.
Demonstrations turn into armed revolt which wins backing from NATO. On October 20, Kadhafi is captured and killed.
The oil-rich country has since descended into turmoil with rival authorities and a multitude of militias vying for control.
Since April 4, 2019 the forces of military strongman Khalifa Haftar forces have been waging an offensive to take the capital Tripoli.
– Bahrain: dissent –
The tiny Shiite-majority state ruled by a Sunni dynasty has been rocked by sporadic unrest since February 2011 when protests demanding reform started as part of the Arab Spring uprisings.
Hundreds of demonstrators have been jailed or stripped of their nationality.
– Syria: ninth year of war –
Peaceful protests on March 15, 2011 escalated into a devastating conflict that has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced nearly 12 million.
Rebel groups battling the regime of President Bashar al-Assad are in 2013-2014 pushed aside by Islamist militias such as the Al-Nusra Front and the Islamic State group.
With military backing from Russia, Iran and Hezbollah, the regime claws back territory it had lost. Today it controls nearly two-thirds of the country.
In March 2019 IS is ousted from its last scrap of territory in eastern Syria.
– Yemen: famine –
In February 2012 Ali Abdullah Saleh is ousted after more than three decades in power and a year of popular revolt.
In 2014 Huthi Shiite rebels launch an offensive and seize vast swathes of the country, including Sanaa. The following year Saudi Arabia leads an Arab coalition to halt the Huthi advance.
Some 10,000 people have died in the ongoing conflict, according to the World Health Organization. Ten million are on the brink of famine.
– Algeria: Bouteflika resigns –
Algeria is rocked from February 22, 2019 by a wave of unprecedented demonstrations against a bid by ailing leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika, in power since 1999, to stand for a fifth term.
On April 2 Bouteflika submits his resignation after the army calls for his impeachment.
An interim president is named until new elections but protests continue to demand the departure of the entire ruling system.
– Sudan: army ousts Bashir –
In mid-December 2018 people protest a hike in bread prices, sparking rolling demonstrations for Bashir to quit.
As a mass sit-in around the army headquarters in Khartoum enters its sixth day on April 11, the military announces it has removed the long-time leader.
Protesters reject the “regime coup” and vow more demonstrations.
BSS/AFP/MMA/2055HRS