Arab Springs

by Alessandra, Katie, Hannah, and

Kimmy

Introduction
The Arab Spring is a revolution
that has been spreading over
the Middle East and parts of
Africa since late 2010/early
2011.
It started in 2010 in Tunisia, and
countries now involved
include Egypt, Libya, Syria,
Yemen, and Tunisia.

Introduction- CNN Report

Tunisia
The beginning of the Arab Spring was December
17, 2010, when a young man named Bouazizi set
himself on fire. He was confronted by police when
his vegetable cart, his only way of making a living,
was proven to be unlicensed, and taken away
Humiliated and defeated, with no way to support his
family, Bouazizi set himself on fire, and the
revolution started.
Many people with similar struggles found
themselves sympathizing with Bouazizi, and were
outraged by what had happened.

 Problems with the government system, and police

brutality and bribing were a few reasons why the
rebellion quickly grew.
People rallied behind him and went out into the streets
in peaceful protest. Soon after, shooting and violence
began, and a full scale rebellion started.
On January 14, 2011, Tunisian President Ben Ali,
and his wife, fled the country.

Tunisia

Tunisia
Things are looking better for Tunisia than other countries involved in the
Arab Spring.
On January 6th, 2014, a new constitution for the country was put into
place, granting more freedoms to the people. Secularist and Islamist
politicians reached an agreement when making the constitution. A prime
minister and president have recently been elected to run the country.
The fighting is not over yet, as terrorism attacks are very frequent and
tourism in Tunisia dropped, and social issues are still a huge problem.

Egypt
Many of the protesters were looking to
strengthen Egyptian role in regional
politics.
They wanted more freedom, and they
wanted their president, Mubarak to leave.
Mubarak was headed for higher power
Eighteen days of giant protests, finally forced
Hosni Mubarak to resign, in February
2011, after three decades in power.

Egypt
After Mubarak's resignation, the Supreme Council of the Armed
Forces gained presidential powers.
In June 2012, Mohammed Morsi was elected president.
Public resistance to Morsi began to build in November 2012, when
he issued a decree granting himself significant powers.
Morsi was removed by the military in June 2013 after millions of
protesters gathered on the streets
Most rioting took place at Tahrir Square
He was then replaced by General el-Sisi as a
provisional government.

Libya
The U.S. relationship with Libya under the dictator Muammar Qadhafi
has historically been poor. It included harsh rhetoric on the part of both
sides; a 1981 U.S. bombing raid on Tripoli, and tough U.S. and UN
economic sanctions directed at Libya in response to involvement with
terrorism.

Libya
Colonel Qadhafi's (Gaddafi) had decided to end his quest
for nuclear weapons in a verifiable way and to pay
reparations for Libya's involvement in the destruction of a
civilian aircraft in 1988.

Colonel Qadhafi

Syria

The Arab Spring reached Syria in March 2011

when 15 high-school aged boys in Daraa were
arrested and tortured for spray painting antigovernment graffiti on their school.
The graffiti said, The people want the fall of
the regime. Its your turn, doctor, as a
reference to Syrian president Assad.
After the young people were detained, people
started coming out into the streets in protest.

Syria

Assad is trying to crush the rebellion

using force, and the country is a
bloodbath because of it. He has jailed
and killed many oppositionists.
Fighting and terrorist attacks happen very
frequently.
Many people use opportunities to flee to
safer places outside of the country, many
Syrians are in refugee camps.

Syria
About 3 million people have
fled the country and 6.5 million are
displaced in the country.
Assad was elected for a third term as
president, while the United Nations,
United States, and other Arab
countries want him to step down for
his crimes against humanity.
Fighting seems to be far from over in
Syria.

Yemen
People in Yemen are challenging the President Saleh with
protests, but he is trying to crush them.
The president has not been very successful, and many
important political and military leaders are withdrawing
their support for the president.
One person that withdraw their support was General
Mohsen, who was said to be the second most powerful
man in Yemen.
Security forces and people that support Saleh created some
violent measures to stop people against Saleh. 200 to
2,000 people were left dead.
Many of General Ali Mohsens army and lower rank officials
abandoned Saleh, and created a powerful army against
him.

Yemen Flag

President Saleh

Yemen
President Saleh was wounded in a rocket attack
against the palace, and he had to be flown to
Saudi Arabia for surgery on June 4.
Salehs wounds were serious and it was unclear if
he could go back and rebuild his government,
that was run by his sons and nephews under a
real vice president.
Yemen might turn into an anarchy, controlled or
influenced by AQAP, which is a terrorist group.

President Saleh after attack

Yemen Vice President

Yemen
The Saleh government has had many chances to prevent
terrorism, but they are too busy worrying about keeping
themselves in power.
President Saleh was finishing his 33 year of ruling, when
he said he would not think about re-election.
In April 2011, President Salehs General Peoples
Congress agreed to a deal with the Gulf Cooperation
Council, that would hand Salehs power over, but he
would not sign it.
In November 2011, he signed a deal that let Hadi takeover
Salehs power.
He was sworn in for two years in 2012, and was not
challenged at election

AQAP Terrorist

Hadi

Conclusion
The Arab Springs were protests that
took place in several countries,
including Tunisia, Egypt, Syria,
Libya, and Yemen.
These protests happened, so people
could fight for what they believed in.
It if was successful or not, there is
much debate.

Works Cited
"The Arab Spring and the Future of U.S. Interests and Cooperative Security in the Arab World." The Arab Spring and the Future of U.S. Interests and
Cooperative Security in the Arab World. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
"Arab Spring: A Research & Study Guide * : Egypt." Egypt. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
"Arab Uprising: Country by Country." BBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.

Abouzeid, Rania. "Bouazizi: The Man Who Set Himself and Tunisia on Fire." Time. Time Inc., 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 23 Sept.
2015.
"Arab Spring: A Research & Study Guide * : Syria." Syria. Cornell University Library, n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
"The Arab Spring and the Future of U.S. Interests and Cooperative Security in the Arab World." The Arab Spring and the Future
of U.S. Interests and Cooperative Security in the Arab World. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
BBC, n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.

Works Cited (cont.)

"How One Country Emerged From the Arab Spring With a Democratic State." The Nation. N.p., 12 Feb. 2014. Web. 23
Sept. 2015.
McEvers, Kelly. "Revisiting The Spark That Kindled The Syrian Uprising." NPR. NPR, 16 Mar. 2012. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.
Sterling, Joe. "Daraa: The Spark That Lit the Syrian Flame - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, 1 Mar. 2012. Web. 23
Sept. 2015.
"Tunisia." News. New York Times, n.d. Web. 23 Sept. 2015.