Nearing the end of political Islam
All the immense humanitarian tragedy, suffering and despicable terror on the part of the Israeli state aside, the political implications of the Gaza assault have an utterly important point for the Zeitgeist, as the so-called Arab Spring fades into an uncertain autumn.
With all the developments observed in recent years -- the Muslim Brotherhood's deeply flawed policies in Egypt, the disintegration of its Syrian equivalent and the birth of ISIS in Iraq -- the cycle in the MENA region, save in Tunisia, seems to be punctuated with one severe blow after another against Sunni political Islam.
Add to this the increasingly worrisome regional policies of Turkey's Justice and Development Party (AKP), once seen as a source of inspiration for the political and democratic normalization of countries in the region. That the instability, marked by spilled blood and the mass displacement of people, pounds at the borders of Turkey is not good news.
Juan Cole, an expert on the Middle East, shares some of his characteristically sharp observations in his blog, focusing on Hamas and analyzing beyond.
http://www.todayszaman.com/columnist/yavuz-baydar/nearing-the-end-of-political-islam_353533.html