Tunisians Vote in Parliamentary Elections

Tunisians voted Sunday in parliamentary elections, for the first time under a new constitution drafted after the ouster of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali. Over five million Tunisians were registered to vote, and voter turnout was estimated at around 60 percent. A preliminary ballot count estimated leading secular party Nidaa Tounes had won 80 seats in the 217-member parliament, while the moderate Islamist Ennahda party had won 67. No party is expected to win a majority, so a coalition will likely be necessary for the formation of the new government. Tunisians will return to the polls on November 23 for a presidential election. While Tunisia has been praised for its transition process following the 2011 revolution, the economy has been a major concern for Tunisians.

Syria

Nusra Front fighters attacked a government building in Idlib in northern Syria Monday opening up a front in the city, which has been controlled by regime forces for over a year. Over the past three months, al-Nusra Front has additionally made gains in north and east Syria, as well as the southern Daraa and Quneitra provinces. Syrian State TV reported government forces had repelled Monday’s attack. Meanwhile, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported 815 people have been killed in over a month of fighting in Kobani (Ayn al-Arab), more than half Islamic State fighters.  

Headlines  

• Monday saw relative calm around Lebanon’s northern city of Tripoli after clashes broke out Friday between the Lebanese army and Sunni Islamist militants.
• Renewed fighting broke out Sunday between the Libyan army, allied with former Gen. Heftar, and Islamist militia groups in Benghazi, where at least 130 people have been killed in the past 10 days.
• A group of Egyptian newspaper editors has vowed to limit criticism of the government after President Sisi said a "conspiracy" was behind an attack on Friday in the Sinai, meanwhile 23 activists were jailed for violating a protest law.
• Houthi fighters along with the Yemeni army advanced on Ansar al-Sharia strongholds in al-Bayda province sparking heavy fighting and reportedly killing 10 civilians.

Arguments and Analysis

‘Is Libya a proxy war?‘ (Frederic Wehrey, The Washington Post)

"But the intra-regional tussling of the 2011 revolution pales in comparison to the intensity of today’s proxy war. Back then, the factions and their foreign backers were at least united in the common goal of toppling a universally despised tyrant. Today, the outside powers are engaged in a struggle far more divisive and consequential: a war of narratives.

A dangerous scenario looms ahead. Backed by Egypt and the UAE, the Libyan government is extending the narrative of its counter-terrorism struggle against jihadists in Benghazi to include what is effectively a multi-sided civil war in Tripoli and the western mountains – of which Islamists are only one player. It is a multifaceted struggle that is only partially understood, and for which the literature on proxy interventions does not fully account."

‘Despite Elections, Transitional Justices Still Elusive in Tunisia‘ (Anne Wolf, Middle East Institute)

"This lack of attention to rights and justice is particularly relevant given that many senior members of Ben Ali’s Constitutional Democratic Rally (RCD) party are being released from prison and are even making their way back into politics. Indeed, some are contesting this month’s parliamentary elections or next month’s presidential ballot. Leaders of Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes, which has integrated some key figures of the former regime, defend this development primarily by highlighting the need to balance Tunisia’s political landscape. Islamist dominance and political polarization led to a major political crisis last year that forced the troika (the government coalition formed by Ennahda, Ettakatol, and the Congress of the Republic) to resign. However, increased political plurality should not occur at the expense of a discussion about rights and justice. Indeed, limited transitional justice and persistent corruption and human rights violations are amongst the root causes of continuing economic malaise, political disillusionment, and the radicalization of some Tunisians – key threats to the transition."

— Mary Casey