Publication

This brief discusses three events in the Middle East and North Africa in October 2011 in the wider context of the Arab Awakening. They include: 1) the fall of Sirte in northern Libya to the anti-regime rebels, resulting in the death of Gaddafi and one of his sons; 2) the announcement by the US that all US combat troops would leave Iraq by the end of the year; and 3) the elections in Tunisia as a prelude to a new constitution. The author argues that while all three developments are highly significant, it may be one of the less obvious aspects of the Libyan revolution relating to the arms industry that will have particular resonance.