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In: The Hague Journal of Diplomacy

Abstract

The United States boasts the largest Nigerian diaspora, a group reputed to be among the most educated and highest achieving diasporans in that country. In explaining the Nigerian successes in the US, this article identifies Nigerian exceptionalism as a key factor, here framed around the concept of national narcissistic grandiosity. Although Nigeria is not a nation-state but a state of many nations, Nigerians in the US are constructing the nearest thing to an ideational national identity outside Nigeria. This identity formation is based on the idea that diaspora, which means dispersing or scattering, often undergoes a three-way evolutionary process of shedding, retaining and acquiring identity, which creates interstitial spaces for the emergence of new identities. The discussion draws mainly on secondary literature to support the thesis and the arguments presented.

In: Diaspora Studies
In: The Hague Journal of Diplomacy
In: Contemporary Arab Affairs
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In: Contemporary Arab Affairs

Abstract

This research article analyses the complex interplay between international law and Islamic law in shaping the possibilities for Palestinian (armed) resistance against Israeli occupation. It uses “interaction” (between two legal systems with much epistemological overlap) as a lens with which to ground this meta-analysis, understanding international law and Islamic law as necessarily co-constitutive. Following a historical and macro-scale examination of this relationship, the research article then applies the analysis to Mandate Palestine, identifying a Palestinian “state of exception” that excludes Palestinians from international law’s ‘protective jurisdiction’. As such, the article situates Palestinian (armed) resistance within the gap that emerges between international law’s colonial reverberations and Islamic law’s emancipatory potential.

In: Contemporary Arab Affairs
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Abstract

This paper discusses the phenomenon of state failure in general and uses the current Libyan state as a case study by tracing the historical path of the formation of the modern Libyan state, specifically the impact of the legacy left by the Gaddafi regime on three main variables: authority, legitimacy, and institutional capacity. It addresses the following question: How did the historical legacy of the Gaddafi regime contribute to the crisis of the Libyan state after 2011? The study is based on the hypothesis that personal authoritarian regimes, such as Gaddafi’s, have the most detrimental impact on institutions in relation to the monopoly of violence, legitimacy, and capacity. This is because the ruling elites in personalistic authoritarian regimes are often unable to restrain the decisions and actions of the head of the regime, who often seeks to dismantle institutions that could limit their power. This contrasts with other types of authoritarian regimes (monarchy, military, one-party) that may, to some extent, maintain institutional rules for governance and the transfer of power.

In: Contemporary Arab Affairs

Abstract

Participation in the Middle East Quad (I2U2) indicates that India, Israel, and the UAE are exercising “strategic autonomy” and have engineered a redirection of their foreign policy agendas. These countries no longer face any strategic dilemma in expanding their outreach, and formalising a transactional relationship for mutual strategic and geo-economic growth in the unstable and volatile Middle East. Is India’s involvement in the Middle East Quad Group beneficial to its foreign policy, keeping in view it’s cautious and ‘hands-off approach’ in the region? How far can these accords help in achieving regional stability? This paper attempts to answer these questions. It also deals with how India strikes a balance between the Abraham Accord countries and Iran, despite mutual rivalry in relation to several regional issues. This study observes that the Quad countries are driven by geo-strategic and geo-economic interests and exercise strategic autonomy in this transregional arrangement. This article employs analytical and interpretative methods through a forward-thinking conceptual framework centred on “strategic autonomy”. It concludes that India’s participation in this grouping does not hinder its ability to pursue relations with other countries, such as Iran, for its economic security. Rather, geopolitical shifts prompt national decisions on the part of different, even mutually confrontational actors, in a way that corresponds to the respective levels of their strategic autonomies or vulnerabilities. Strategic outcomes with peace dividends, such as regional multipolarity and economic diversification are identified as part of this process. such

In: Contemporary Arab Affairs

Abstract

With Lebanon on the edge of the outbreak of the Civil War (1975–1990), Najah Wakim, the youngest parliament deputy in the Lebanese parliament of 1972, began a long struggle to first try to prevent the war which was looming in Lebanon and then continued to work after 1975 to put an end to the unjustifiable violence and bloodshed of that period. Wakim stood against all the fighting parties, arousing their hatred and enmity, but he gained the love and respect of most of his fellow-citizens who saw in him honesty and human values for which he always fought. This is the story of Najah Wakim which still continues.

In: Contemporary Arab Affairs

Abstract

This paper probes into the issue of censorship in Egyptian cinema compared to Hollywood during the second half of the twentieth century. It discusses Egyptian censorship regulations and governmental interference in the film industry and their impact on film reception. Conducted over six months, this research specifically investigates three Egyptian film adaptations of Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), which are Inhiraf (Aberration) (1985), Alfarisa (Prey) (1986) and Al-Raghba (Desire) (2002). These adaptations are scrutinized through the lens of the Egyptian censorship code and the way these film adaptations may have promoted an Americanization of Arab culture is examined.

In: Contemporary Arab Affairs