Author: Heiko Wimmen
Publisher/Publication: Deutsches Institut für Internationale Politik und Sicherheit
DOI/ISBN: ISSN 1863-1053
The study aims to examines the reasons for the outcomes of the Arab Spring in Bahrain, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria to show that they were neither pre-ordained, nor coming from sectarian hatred, bottled-up by authoritarian control and self-ignited. While referring to the repercussions to the minorities including Christians, the author reaches to the conclusion that political decisions set these ingredients alight and create conflagration, while ruling regimes and established political leaders had a vested interest in turning peaceful movements into a violent conflict.