
The personal account of Issandr Amrani, author of The Arabist blog. Mostly MENA politics and culture. Usual caveats apply. Also at @arabist@mastodon.social
All over the place
Joined December 2007
- Tweets54.2K
- Following1.4K
- Followers90.6K
- Likes5.3K
He’s right and more Dems should be saying it and campaigning for it - end it like it started, unilaterally.
arabist retweeted
Il faut comprendre pourquoi le lien officiel entre le CRIF et l’armée 🇮🇱 prouvé par ces documents est important politiquement : le CRIF ne peut pas être à la fois un acteur de la vie civile française et le canal de transmission d'un État tiers et son armée génocidaire.
🧵👇
🔴ALERTE INFO
🚨⚖️🇫🇷🇮🇱 Cinq ans d’inéligibilité avec exécution immédiate ont été requis ce mercredi soir contre le député #LFI Sébastien Delogu, poursuivi pour avoir révélé sur les réseaux sociaux des documents personnels d’Isidore Aragones, ancien président du #CRIF de Marseille, afin de dénoncer ses liens et son soutien à l’armée israélienne (Tsahal).
🇵🇸🇮🇱 👉 Ces documents évoquaient notamment son soutien moral et financier à cette armée, ainsi qu’un projet de visite d’une base militaire israélienne et de rencontre avec des soldats israéliens, alors que les massacres de civils de l’armée israélienne à #Gaza ont été qualifiés d’actes constitutifs de génocide par une commission d’enquête indépendante de l’ONU, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, les ONG israéliennes B’Tselem et Physicians for Human Rights Israel, ainsi que l’Association internationale des chercheurs sur les génocides.
arabist retweeted
This is huge.
A just-released SEC filing makes an extraordinary revelation: Mark Zuckerberg is getting ready to pay California’s 5% billionaire wealth tax and has signed an agreement to remain in California for 8 years.
We are witnessing a global turning point unfold before our eyes. 🧵
Absolutely correct. Whatever one may think about Lana Nusseibeh, the UAE connection should be a disqualifier, just like you should not elect a SG from Iran, or Russia, or the US.
arabist retweeted
I’ve wondered what the name is for that slime that builds up in uncleaned toilets.
Vivek. It’s called Vivek.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy doubled down on the controversial campaign ad featuring the estranged mother of his opponent in the Ohio governor's race, Amy Acton, calling her a "liar."
"If she feels that there's anything that's unfair or inaccurate about the criticisms leveled against her, she should be willing to defend herself on a debate stage," he said on Wednesday.
Acton's campaign and her brother denounced the ad as a "despicable low."
arabist retweeted
For those who like their metaphors blindingly obvious: washingtonpost.com/national-…
arabist retweeted
CROSSING THE RED LINE has been out for less than a week. The reaction’s already so gratifying (& slightly overwhelming)
I’m humbled + eager to keep discussing my findings on the Biden team’s appalling Gaza choices, continuity with Trump & lessons from their record. Tour details!
arabist retweeted
“I don’t think I've ever seen an organization that so consistently punched so far above its financial weight.”
Truth, re: @tcambanis & the whole team at Century Int’l, now merging with @CIPolicy
Replying to @aronlund
Among the projects I’m proudest of having worked on are Hybrid Actors & Arab Politics:
• tcf.org/content/book/arab-po…
• tcf.org/content/report/hybri…
There was lots more. I don’t think I've ever seen an organization that so consistently punched so far above its financial weight.
2/3
arabist retweeted
‘A collapse in the West’s ability to narrate the world’: I talked to @arusbridger and @lionelbarber about why I left the Guardian, why we started @Equatormag, and how the legacy media still can’t understand this moment.
arabist retweeted
Interesting analysis that shows social media algorithms were amplifying posts that encouraged irregular migration as they attracted more engagement than posts that warned of the risks. So far close to 100 people reportedly died during attempts to cross to Ceuta. 50 remain missing
The mass migration crossing at Morocco’s border with Spain shows what can happen when social media platforms supercharge economic frustrations. bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
arabist retweeted
Bravo, Reuters: Journalism Done Right ⭐
The @Reuters investigation stands out not because it claims to have all the answers, but because it follows the method that serious journalism should always follow.
Rather than beginning with a conclusion and selecting facts to support it, Reuters reconstructs the chronology, interviews those directly involved, distinguishes verified facts from plausible hypotheses, and openly acknowledges what remains unknown. That is the essence of rigorous reporting.
The result is a far richer explanation than the simplistic narratives that immediately attributed the events to a single actor or a single decision. The report shows how legal developments, misinformation, viral social media, digital influencers, media coverage, smuggling networks and collective behavior interacted to produce an extraordinary chain reaction. Complex events rarely have simple causes.
Equally important is what Reuters refuses to do. It does not confuse capability with intent. It does not present speculation as evidence. It does not transform hypotheses into established facts. Where information cannot be independently verified, it says so. That intellectual discipline is not a weakness; it is the foundation of credibility.
In an era dominated by outrage, instant judgments and geopolitical storytelling, this is the kind of journalism that deserves recognition. It reminds us that the role of the press is not to confirm our assumptions, but to test them against evidence. The more politically charged an event becomes, the greater the responsibility to resist easy explanations and follow the facts wherever they lead.
Whether one agrees with every conclusion or not, this investigation offers an excellent example of evidence-based reporting. It demonstrates that careful chronology, multiple sources, methodological transparency and a clear distinction between facts, hypotheses and uncertainty are not merely good journalistic practices—they are essential if we are to understand complex crises rather than simply reinforce our existing beliefs. @Reuters @ReutersWorld @ReutersAgency @ahmedeljechtimi @v_waldersee @FT @nytimes @larazon_es @lemondefr @Telegraph @el_pais
CORRECTION: The rush of migrants into Ceuta began with a trickle. Encouraged by viral videos, the movement quickly turned into tens of thousands swimming en masse into the Spanish enclave. We are removing a post with an incorrect date reut.rs/3SeXtGn
How misinformation drove thousands to rush Ceuta's border - News
arabist retweeted
C'est moi ou plus un pays est géographiquement ou culturellement proche de la France, moins sa population soutient les Bleus? – at Méchouar de Casablanca, Royaume du Maroc
arabist retweeted
In Sudan, the brutal RSF militia is besieging the city of El Obeid. It may be repeating its siege last year of El Fasher where it slaughtered 60,000 people. World leaders warn of mass atrocities but won't name the country behind this mass murder and mass rape. So I will: It's the UAE.
Neither the Biden nor Trump administration was willing to offend the UAE by holding it accountable for what Washington described as the genocide unfolding in Sudan. Trump, whose family is enriched by business dealings with the UAE, is silent. So the slaughter continues.
The UAE even has a candidate for UN Secretary General, and people are too polite to point out that a country empowering mass atrocities might not be ideal for that role.
I write: "We should have the fortitude to speak up about human rights outrages whether the responsible party is Russia, China, Israel, America or the Emirates; if you care about human rights in only some places, you don’t actually care about human rights."
A gift link to the column: nytimes.com/2026/07/11/opini… Thoughts?
arabist retweeted
L'immense journaliste marocain @Alilmrabet a été arrêté aujourd'hui à l'aéroport de Tanger. Depuis des années, il vivait en Espagne d'où il faisait ses émissions sur les réalités autoritaires de la monarchie marocaine. Soutien à mon confrère.
arabist retweeted
The Egyptian national team, unlike many teams around the world, will not head to the capital upon their return. Instead, they are expected to land first in Al Alamein, most likely because President El-Sisi is currently there.
President El-Sisi has revived the monarchy-era practice of relocating the seat of government and the ruler's residence to the North Coast during the summer. King Farouk used to spend the summer in Alexandria, while President El-Sisi has shifted the government's summer base to Al Alamein, where a massive presidential complex has also been built.
There is, however, one striking difference between the two eras. During King Farouk's reign, the Egyptian pound was worth roughly five U.S. dollars. Today, one U.S. dollar is worth around 50 Egyptian pounds.


































