Thawra Thawra Epilogue: Decades of American Destruction
Sep 20, 2024
Abdel Razzaq Takriti, historian of Arab and Palestinian revolutionary movements and Rice University academic, offers a sweeping historical tour. He traces Oslo's fallout, Camp David and the Second Intifada. He connects 9/11, the War on Terror, and the US dismantling of Iraq to regional sectarian violence, the Arab Spring, Syria's descent into war, and the rise of ISIS.
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Occupation Made Sectarianism Into Law
- U.S. occupation institutionalized sectarianism with quotas and de-Ba'athification, destroying Iraqi citizenship.
- Takriti highlights the imposed sectarian constitution and removal of Sunni officers as deliberate policies that fuelled civil conflict.
Neoliberal Shock Fueled the Arab Spring
- The Arab Spring erupted from neoliberal cuts, legitimacy crises, and class grievances across the region.
- Takriti ties privatization, shrinking welfare, police humiliation, and youth mobilization to the mass uprisings starting in Tunisia and spreading to Egypt.
State Cohesion Determined Arab Spring Outcomes
- Outcomes varied by state cohesion: Egypt and Tunisia saw leadership ousted; Syria, Libya, Yemen kept unified security apparatuses and descended into war.
- Takriti stresses local state structures and international interventions determined whether regimes fell or fought.
