
Despite the new political ferment in Egypt, engendered by the return of retired IAEA chief Mohammed ElBaradei, major obstacles remain to the emergence of an opposition strong enough to compete seriously for parliamentary seats and for the presidency.

By scaling back its political engagement to focus on a traditional religious, educational, and social agenda, the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood is leaving behind an even greater lack of political competition in the country.

Over the next year, Egypt will hold three important elections, none of which stand any chance of redistributing power in the country. Egypt needs long-term democratic reforms, and the United States can play an effective role in promoting those reforms.

Since 2004, Egypt has experienced more than 1600 labor protests, which have dwarfed political protests in scale and consequence. What are the political ramifications of increased labor unrest? Are the labor movements a harbinger for a more active and mobilized Egyptian society?

The steady rise of sectarian tensions over the past few years in Egypt is the result of an indecisive state, an incendiary media, and a failure of civil institutions to stand up for the equal rights of all Egyptians.

The Muslim Brotherhood was once the most dynamic opposition force in Egypt, but the government’s efforts to exclude it from political participation and internal conflict within the Brotherhood itself have made it practically indistinguishable from the country’s other opposition parties.

Egypt's role in preventing a nuclear arms race in the Middle East is especially urgent and the 2010 NPT Review Conference is the next best chance to advance its disarmament agenda.

Any effective U.S. diplomatic approach to Iran must involve other countries in the Gulf, but Washington will not succeed if it continues to strive for an anti-Iranian alliance. A normalization of relations between Iran and its neighbors is an important and attainable step for reintegrating Iran into the international community.
The Muslim Brotherhood is facing one of the most challenging periods in its history, as it must settle conservative-reformist disputes and elect a new Guide while undergoing a crackdown by Egyptian authorities.
Real estate tax collectors recently took the unprecedented step of establishing an employees' union independent of government control; Egyptian authorities' response will set the tone for what are likely to be ongoing struggles between labor and the government.