• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Marwan Muasher"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [
    "Arab Awakening"
  ],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "menaTransitions",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "MEP",
  "programs": [
    "Middle East"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Middle East",
    "North Africa",
    "Egypt",
    "Jordan"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Political Reform"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

Changing Dynamics in Egypt and Jordan

Important first steps toward political transformation are occurring throughout the Arab world, as evidenced by the trial of deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and the amendments proposed for the Jordanian constitution.

Link Copied
By Marwan Muasher
Published on Aug 15, 2011
Program mobile hero image

Program

Middle East

The Middle East Program in Washington combines in-depth regional knowledge with incisive comparative analysis to provide deeply informed recommendations. With expertise in the Gulf, North Africa, Iran, and Israel/Palestine, we examine crosscutting themes of political, economic, and social change in both English and Arabic.

Learn More

Source: BBC's Impact

Speaking on BBC’s Impact, Marwan Muasher explained that the trial of deposed Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is a rare and important event in the Arab world. With many political and legal processes still in flux in the region, Marwan Muasher argued that “it is important to come up with a process where the rule of law is supreme.”

Egyptians are eager to move away from the Mubarak regime to a new system, but establishing due process during this transformation is critical. According to Muasher, “it is important not just for Egypt but as a precedent for the rest of the Arab world.”

Turning to Jordan, Muasher added that the recently proposed constitutional amendments represent a vital first step, but “are not the end of the road.” Elected governments are going to take some time to materialize in Jordan. In the meantime, Muasher concluded, the monarchy must engage in serious efforts to restore the credibility gap between itself and the people.
 

About the Author

Marwan Muasher

Vice President for Studies

Marwan Muasher is vice president for studies at Carnegie, where he oversees research in Washington and Beirut on the Middle East. Muasher served as foreign minister (2002–2004) and deputy prime minister (2004–2005) of Jordan, and his career has spanned the areas of diplomacy, development, civil society, and communications.

    Recent Work

  • Commentary
    Bombing Campaigns Do Not Bring About Democracy. Nor Does Regime Change Without a Plan.

      Marwan Muasher

  • Other
    Unpacking Trump’s National Security Strategy
      • Cecily Brewer
      • +18

      James M. Acton, Saskia Brechenmacher, Cecily Brewer, …

Marwan Muasher
Vice President for Studies
Marwan Muasher
Political ReformMiddle EastNorth AfricaEgyptJordan

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • US President Donald Trump presides over the inaugural meeting of the âBoard of Peace,❠a newly established body focused on efforts for Gaza, at the US Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, United States, on February 19, 2026.
    Article
    The Board of Peace and Funding for Gaza Reconstruction: On Whose Account?

    Stakeholders must demand major restructuring of the Board of Peace and robust oversight and transparency before engaging with it. Until then, rights-respecting existing platforms and mechanisms for multilateral peacemaking should be supported.

      Zaha Hassan, Charles H. Johnson

  • Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    The EU Needs a Third Way in Iran

    European reactions to the war in Iran have lost sight of wider political dynamics. The EU must position itself for the next phase of the crisis without giving up on its principles.

      Richard Youngs

  • Crowds holding Iranian flags and photos of the late Khamenei
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Who Will Be Iran’s Next Supreme Leader?

    If the succession process can be carried out as Khamenei intended, it will likely bring a hardliner into power.

      • Eric Lob

      Eric Lob

  • people watching smoke rising at sunrise from rooftops
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Bombing Campaigns Do Not Bring About Democracy. Nor Does Regime Change Without a Plan.

    Just look at Iraq in 1991.

      Marwan Muasher

  • Satellite of a damaged oil refinery
    Commentary
    Emissary
    Iran Is Pushing Its Neighbors Toward the United States

    Tehran’s attacks are reshaping the security situation in the Middle East—and forcing the region’s clock to tick backward once again.

      Amr Hamzawy

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600Fax: 202 483 1840
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.