Arab Spring: Affect on Egypt
Thousands of Islamist protestors turned out to Tahrir Square to challenge the authority of Egypt’s military council that seized power nine months ago with the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt is located in Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea between Libya and the Gaza Strip. Egypt is slightly three times the size of New Mexico. The climate in Egypt is a desert hot dry summers, with moderate winters. Egypt natural resources consist of petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, phosphates, manganese, limestone, gypsum, talc, asbestos, lead, and zinc. In Egypt their major power source is Fossil Fuel. The industries in Egypt that helps out their economy are textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, and metal.
When you take a look at Egypt, which is a country in the heart of the Arab Spring uprising, you can see some of the results of the Arab Spring. On February 11, 2011 their was a massive protest against the government that lasted for 18 days. This protest was so poignant that it caused the president of Egypt, who has been president for 30 years, to resign. The Arab Spring is a serious issue not only the Middle East, but the whole world should play close attention to. The government of countries like Egypt has tried to manipulate the media in order silence the rise of the movement. You can only hope that the people and government come to some type of terms before more people lose their lives.
The mass of Egypt's population has been vastly impacted by the revolutions of Arab Spring. As Arab Spring spread into Egypt on January 25th of this year, it delivered some unwelcome side effects. One effect that the Arab Spring thrust upon Egypt involves the tourism industry. With concerns for safety, the industry has been crippled. Tourism is extremely important to Egypt, as it is a major source of income, as well as providing jobs.
The Egyptian government is ultimately ending a centralized government. Egypt and other Arab nations have been under dictatorship for years. The overthrowing of Egyptian “dictator” President Hosani Mubarak is an iconic symbol in the affects the Arab Spring had on the Egyptian Government.
President Nasser who died in 1970 was one of the main obstacles toward a good Egyptian- U.S. relation. The new president, Anwar Al-Sadat, actively worked to move Egypt closer to the United States, and Egyptian-American relations gradually improved. This rapprochement was symbolized by Sadat asking the Soviet military advisers to leave Egypt and U.S. President Richard Nixon's request for Congress to authorize $250 million in aid for Egypt. The Egyptian government is under reform and only time will tells if the cries of the people will finally be heard. This revolution is history in the making.
LIU Journalism students who contributed to this special report include: Tiana Taitt, Melissa Hacken, Wyatt Thompson, Wandder Duran, Brian Gallucci, Ryutaro Takada.