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{
  "authors": [
    "Michele Dunne"
  ],
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  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
    "Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center"
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Source: Getty

In The Media

Mass Rally Set For Tuesday In Cairo

In the wake of the protests in Tunisia and Egypt, the United States has an opportunity to assist countries transition into stable democracies and to pressure allies in the Arab world to implement reforms before it is too late.

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By Michele Dunne
Published on Feb 1, 2011
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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.

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Source: MSNBC

Any substantial change in Egypt could portend a tectonic shift throughout the region, Michele Dunne said on MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan Show. The grievances fueling the tumult in Egypt—unemployment, corruption, authoritarianism, and meaningless elections—are shared by citizens of many Arab states. There is an increasing gap between Arab governments and their citizens, Dunne warned.

Meanwhile, as the United States engages with Arab governments on geostrategic issues, its efforts to press for democratization and human rights have often been tepid, Dunne said. She noted that "the events in Tunisia and Egypt offer the United States the chance to assist countries in transition to becoming stable democracies." Moreover, she added, these events offer the United States the opportunity to pressure other allies to implement reforms before it is too late.

About the Author

Michele Dunne

Former Nonresident Scholar, Middle East Program

Michele Dunne was a nonresident scholar in Carnegie’s Middle East Program, where her research focuses on political and economic change in Arab countries, particularly Egypt, as well as U.S. policy in the Middle East.

    Recent Work

  • Research
    Islamic Institutions in Arab States: Mapping the Dynamics of Control, Co-option, and Contention
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      Yasmine Farouk, Nathan J. Brown, Maysaa Shuja Al-Deen, …

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    From Hardware to Holism: Rebalancing America’s Security Engagement With Arab States
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      Robert Springborg, Emile Hokayem, Becca Wasser, …

Michele Dunne
Former Nonresident Scholar, Middle East Program
Michele Dunne
Political ReformForeign PolicyNorth AfricaEgyptTunisia

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.

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