How the Military Piggybacked on Populist Uprisings in Algeria and Sudan by Nabih Bulos – Los Angeles Times
Within the last two weeks, protests that are being called “Arab Spring 2.0” have led to the fall of presidents in Algeria and Sudan. But these aren’t just people’s revolutions: In both cases, the army stepped in, purportedly in support of the anti-government demonstrators.
In Algeria, a general removed a figurehead president and now claims to side with protesters. In Sudan, the defense minister arrested his boss and put the army in charge for two years to “safeguard the revolution.” Then, on Friday, he stepped down and named a general as the country’s interim leader.
Meanwhile, in nearby Libya, a general has mounted an assault on the capital in an effort to wrest it from the struggling civilian government.
The protest-backed coups in Algeria and Sudan are reminiscent of the original Arab Spring revolutions of 2011, which toppled governments in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, and led to civil war in Syria. But, with the possible exception of Tunisia, there have been no happy endings — and even Tunisia suffers from a chronically embattled government.
In Egypt, the demonstrations led to the overthrow of an autocratic president, Hosni Mubarak, and the democratic election of an Islamist leader, Mohamed Morsi…