Confessional Revival and Political Pragmatism

The new decade began in the Middle East with the same old, but recently forgotten, confessional problems. Events reminiscent of the tough “ages of sectarianism” of the biennium 2005-2007, when Shiites and Sunnis forces staged political and military clashes around the region. But beside the recent sectarian episodes in Egypt, Yemen, Irak, and Lebanon, it is necessary to underline how several factors of political pragmatism play an important role in these events.

Such episodes, in which Middle East Christians have been involved too, led to an harsh reaction by many European states and American civil society organizations. In the case of Egypt, such stance was evidently perceived as a blatant interference in the internal affairs of a sovereign state.

Find an analysis on the recent confessional revival in the article “Medio Oriente: revival confessionale e pragmatismo politico” published (in Italian) on the on-line review Eurasia