Nbr. 429, January 2012

Index

• The view of Damascus.
• In pictures ...
• The winner.
• Comment.
• Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam.
• Lebanese designs star in Hollywood.
• Making polluted water drinkable.
• New solar plant for Dubai.
• Saving the world?
• Gulf security: Obama's Plan B: after failing to keep troops in Iraq, the Americans switch to beefing up their forces in the Gulf states in a transparent attempt to reassure Saudi Arabia and its partners, and to deter Iran. But it's a plan that could go wrong.
• An Egyptian election primer: now the latest round of votes are counted, Maria Golia reports from Cairo on how Egyptians arrived at this point in their history.
• The Iranian enigma: Erika Atzori analyses the escalation of hostilities between the Islamic Republic and the West.
• Israel's day of reckoning: Israel braces for a 'complete break' with peace partner Egypt after three decades as the wave of turbulence sweeping the Arab nation thrusts the Muslim Brotherhood into prominence.
• Water wars.
• Refugee tides surge across Arab world.
• Libya: where have all the weapons gone? The disappearance of large stockpiles of weapons in the wake of the Libyan civil war is a serious problem both for the country's new leadership and any number of foreign powers. Eamonn Gearon considers the possible outcomes.
• What price oil? Pamela Ann Smith examines the conflicting evidence provided by OPEC and the IEA on oil supply and pricing differentials over the coming year and beyond.
• Facing challenge & compromise: in this economic overview, international financial analyst Moin Siddiqi looks at the challenges, as well as the prospects for promise, 2012 might bring, in the light of recent regional unrest and the global fiscal downturn.
• Arab banking: obstacles & opportunities.
• Invest in Cameroon: Cameroon offers excellent opportunities for investors seeking to reach the rich markets of Central Africa. Its political and economic stability, its strategic position, its educated bilingual workforce and its favourable business environment all make Cameroon the destination of choice of foreign investors in Africa.
• Sharjah, a glittering new destination.
• Celebrating an illustrious past and an enviable future.
• Act II at the Ashmolean.
• 1 My Early Life.
• 2 History in the Arab Skies.
• 3 Beyond Sand and Oil.
• 4 Why the West Rules for Now.
• 5 The Opposite of Indifference.
• 6 Dubai 1962.
• Last word.