From the Naval Postgraduate School's Strategic Insight, a special issue on Extended Deterrence, Security Guarantees, and Nuclear Proliferation: Strategic Stability in the Gulf Region, including Shahram Chubin (CEIP): Extended Deterrence and Iran; and Lewis A. Dunn (SAIC): Strategic Reassurance if Iran “Goes Nuclear”: A Framework and Some Propositions. From Tehran Review, Shervin Nekuee on Najaf, the cradle of Iranian politics today. A review of Inside the Kingdom: Kings, Clerics, Modernists, Terrorists and the Struggle for Saudi Arabia by Robert Lacey. From the IJBS, Kusha Sefat on how Saudi Arabia does not exist. From NYRB, a review of books on Dubai. From The National, a review of books on Beirut. Marjo Buitelaar and Nirvana Saad (Groningen): Ramadan in Contemporary Cairo: Consumption in the Name of Piety and Authenticity. The Pharaoh Must Fall: In the lead up to the 2011 presidential elections Egypt is witnessing the emergence of never before seen resistance to its out of touch and decrepit despot. Latter-day sultans: A clique of fortunate sons in the Middle East is set to take over their fathers' sclerotic dictatorships, but this is not regime change — monarchy is back. From The Washington Quarterly, Alastair Crooke on the shifting sands of state power in the Middle East. Western academics continue to debate the best means of promoting democracy, but in reference to the Arab world they misread the reasons for the democratic deficit. David Hirst is the voice of reason in Middle East journalism. Ramin and Rokni Haerizadeh on the perils of making art about sex and politics in the Middle East.
