January 11, 2006
Headless in Gaza
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With Palestinian parliamentary elections scheduled for January 25, the Gaza Strip slipping into chaos, and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon fighting for his life, the Palestinians' future is once again up for grabs. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has tried to keep all internal and external factions happy simultaneously, but his balancing act has satisfied none of them and his mainstream Fatah movement might well lose electoral ground to Hamas as a result. Fatah itself is riven between an old guard of corrupt cronies and a new guard of reformist militants, a gap that has been papered over in name only for the sake of a unified campaign. There is no better guide to the players than the leading Palestinian pollster Khalil Shikaki, whose article "The Future of Palestine" appeared in Foreign Affairs just over a year ago.
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In the Current Issue of Foreign Affairs
The complete text of selected essays and of all the book reviews from the January/February issue can be found on the Foreign Affairs Web site. Currently the following essays are available in their full text:
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Women, Islam, and the New Iraq
Isobel Coleman
Although questions of implementation remain, the new Iraqi constitution makes Islam the law of the land. This need not mean trouble for Iraq's women, however. Sharia is open to a wide range of interpretations, some quite egalitarian. If Washington still hopes for a liberal order in Iraq, it should start working with progressive Muslim scholars to advance women's rights through religious channels.
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A Natural History of Peace
Robert M. Sapolsky
Humans like to think that they are unique, but the study of other primates has called into question the exceptionalism of our species. So what does primatology have to say about war and peace? Contrary to what was believed just a few decades ago, humans are not "killer apes" destined for violent conflict, but can make their own history.
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Furthering Democracy in Mexico
Enrique Krauze
As it approaches its first presidential election in the post-PRI era, Mexico is at a crossroads: it could either consolidate democracy and proceed with needed reforms or fall back into a familiar state of crisis. Which way it goes will depend above all on the candidates of the three major political parties, who must rise above their short-term interests to further the nation's progress toward democratic stability.
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The Next Pandemic?
 The transmission of the avian influenza H5N1 strain to humans is increasing. This special section in Foreign Affairs includes a set of articles about preventive measures and potential consequences of a global pandemic.
Go to special section
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Previously in Background on the News
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No Joke
December 28, 2005
Earlier this month, the government of Kazakhstan removed a British comedian's Web site hosted on the country's .kz domain claiming that the comic's material was derogatory to the Kazakh people. The move gave credence to the U.S. government's reluctance to give up control of the Internet's domain name system to the United Nations . . . Read more
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Survivor
November 23, 2005
With the historic withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza under his belt, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon made another bold move this week: he announced that he will quit the conservative Likud party he helped found to start a new, centrist party and called for the dissolution of Knesset to precipitate general elections ahead of schedule. . . . Read more
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Burning Down the House
November 9, 2005
The riots of disaffected Muslim youth in France stem from domestic socioeconomic divisions rather than a global clash of civilizations, and thus have more in common with the periodic eruptions in South Central Los Angeles than the recent subway bombings in London. That said, the difficulties Muslim immigrants and their descendants have encountered in making their way into the mainstream of European society have contributed to a generalized discontent that finds expression in many forms, the terrorism of a radical fringe among them. . . . Read more
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