Egypt 2011: Iran 1979 or 2009...or Neither? by MUHAMMAD SAHIMI in Los Angeles Ideological domination of Islamic Revolution and Republic marks the crucial difference. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/front...2/egypt-2011-iran-1979-or-2009or-neither.html
I hope it's not Iraq in 2003. Mubarak has his supporters and I hope there wouldn't be a bloody civil war.
Unlikely: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/front...egypt-twin-outsiders-of-the-muslim-world.html Tahseen Bashir, the late Egyptian intellectual and erudite diplomat, once said that Egypt and Iran are the only two real countries in the region, and the rest are simply "tribes with flags."
I'd argue Palestine was the same way, although now there is little in common between the W. Bank and Gaza, besides the name.
As I posted in another thread I really don't think Egypt will end up like Iran. There are two many differences in the countries. One factor that I don't think has been brought up enough in these discussions is the differences in the economies. Oil plays a big role in Iran's economy while it doesn't in Egypt. Tourism though plays a huge role in Egypt's. These recent protests have much a lot to do with economic conditions in Egypt and any post Mubarak government is going to have to address that. It is unlikely that the people, and more importantly the army, will tolerate a theocracy that will drive away tourists.
