The Salafist Winter: Aiding Post-Conflict Statebuilding in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya

The Arab Spring, sparked by a single match in winter, now enters its winter of discontent.1 Actually, its second winter. It will take skill and patience on the part of champions of democracy and human rights, within the Maghreb and Egypt as well as among friends abroad, if the excesses of a Thermidorian reaction are to be avoided. Signs from Egypt are worrying.2 This is an uphill battle against determined foes of the open society intent on consolidating power, whether under the banner of Islam or the heel of jackboots. But it can be won through persistence, a long view and a clear-sighted understanding of key leverage points