Impact of Putin's War on the Middle East and North Africa

 The Middle East Institute published on 7 March 2022 an analysis titled "Compounded Stress: The Impact of the War in Ukraine on the Middle East and North Africa" by Ferid Belhaj, World Bank vice president for the Middle East and North Africa.

The war in the Ukraine can have a compounding effect on food security and welfare across the Middle East and North Africa region.  The major impacts will be on food price shocks, especially wheat, oil and gas price hikes, capital flight, remittances, and tourism.  There can be no winners, although hydrocarbon exporters will experience some benefits.  

South Sudan: A Civil War by Any Other Name

The International Crisis Group (ICG) published on 10 April 2014 a comprehensive analysis titled "South Sudan: A Civil War by Any Other Name." 

Although the dispute within the SPLM that led to the conflict was primarily political, ethnic targeting, communal mobilization and spiraling violence quickly led to appalling levels of brutality against civilians, including deliberate killings inside churches and hospitals.

ICG argues that propping up the government in Juba and polishing its legitimacy with a dose of political dialogue and a dash of power sharing will not end the conflict.  New constituencies have to be admitted to a national dialogue and their perspectives respected, including armed groups and disaffected communities that go beyond the contending forces within the SPLM/A, as well as women and civil society more generally.