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1. Çocuk Yoksulluğunun Genel Görünümü ve Türkiye’de Çocuk Yoksulluğunun Son Hali

Author:
Ruhal Samanlı
Publication Date:
05-2023
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Bilgi
Institution:
Sakarya University (SAU)
Abstract:
Amaç Bu çalışmada bir ağ gibi insanlığı sarmış olan yoksulluk ve yoksulluğun boyutları, çocuk yoksulluğunun görünümü, çocuk yoksulluğunun etkileyenleri, çocuk yoksulların yaşam alanlarındaki halleri, çocuk yoksulluğunu azaltmaya yönelik yatırım teorileri ve Türkiye’de çocuk yoksulların durumu anlatılacaktır. Yöntem/Metodoloji/Dizayn-. Çocuklar neden yoksuldur? Sorusuna cevap bulmak için çalışmada öncelikle konu ile ilişkili dokümanlar analiz edilecektir. Amaçları ve sonuçları bağlamında incelenen dokümanlardan bir değerlendirmeye varılacaktır. Sonuçlar-- Bu çalışmada çocuk yoksulluğunun ailenin yoksulluğu ile ilişkili olduğu sonucuna varılmıştır. İyi eğitim almış çocukların yetişkinlikte yoksulluk içinde olmayacakları ve onların çocuklarının da yoksul olmayacağını söylemek gerekmektedir. Katkı/Farklılıklar- Bu çalışmada çocuk yoksulluğuna çok boyutlu yoksulluk yaklaşımı ile bakılarak bütünsel bir bakış sağlanacaktır.
Topic:
Children, Inequality, and Child Poverty
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

2. Food Insecurity and its Discontents in the Middle East and North Africa

Author:
Salma Al-Shami
Publication Date:
09-2022
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Food insecurity plagues majorities of citizens in six out of 10 countries surveyed as part of Arab Barometer’s seventh wave (2021-2022). Majorities from 53 percent in Libya to 68 percent in Egypt report that they ran out of food before they had money to buy more. And in nine out of 10 countries, more than half of all citizens express concern about running out of food before being able to get more. These findings reiterate a long-standing and often observed quagmire in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA): the high proportion of food insecure citizens in middle income countries with otherwise medium or high levels of human development is staggering. Beyond affirming this quagmire, Arab Barometer’s newest data show that looking at region through the lens of food insecurity and its web of discontents emphasizes seven key challenges facing MENA: “Democracy fatigue” is highest among the food insecure, though they still prefer democracy to its alternatives. Gender gaps in reports of food insecurity reiterate the consequences of extreme gender imbalances in labor force participation. Urban-rural cleavages in food insecurity are a reminder that food scarcity can be higher in rural areas on account of decreased access to credit, reliance on import substitution strategies, shrinking agricultural lands, and climate change. Despite the documented effects of the latter on food availability, food insecure citizens are less likely to want government intervention to address climate challenges. Differences between food secure and insecure citizens on evaluations of the economy are more muted than expected, perhaps because broadly defined economic challenges loom heavily on all. Still, those suffering from food insecurity express a higher desire to emigrate. And finally, food insecurity has devastating effects on present and future outlooks, with food insecure citizens—particularly youth—less likely to say both that their lives are better than their parents’ and their children’s lives will be better than their own.
Topic:
Security, Children, Food Security, and Food Safety
Political Geography:
Africa, Middle East, North Africa, and MENA

3. Anne Baba Eğitim Düzeylerine Göre Okul Öncesi Dönem Çocuklarının Sosyal-Duygusal Yeterliliği (Social-Emotional Competence of Pre-School Children by Their Parents' Educational Level)

Author:
Hülya Gülay Ogelman, Yüce Gülşah, and Ahmet Yüce
Publication Date:
12-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
AURUM Journal of Social Sciences
Institution:
Altinbas University
Abstract:
Bu araştırmanın amacı, anne baba eğitim düzeyine göre okul öncesi dönem çocuklarının sosyal-duygusal yeterliliğinin incelenmesidir. Araştırmada genel tarama modeli kullanılmıştır. Araştırmanın örneklemini Manisa ili Soma İlçesi’nde okul öncesi eğitime devam eden 188 çocuk, 188 anne ve 188 baba oluşturmuştur. Araştırmada veri toplama araçları olarak Kişisel Bilgi Formu ve Okul Öncesi Çocuklar İçin Sosyal-Duygusal Beceriler ve Psikolojik Dayanıklılık Ölçeği (SDBPDÖ-Okul Öncesi) kullanılmıştır. Veri toplama araçları, her bir çocuk için okul öncesi öğretmenleri tarafından yaklaşık 7 aylık gözleme dayalı olarak doldurulmuştur. Normal dağılımla ilgili bulgulardan yola çıkarak parametrik olan Tek Yönlü Varyans Analizi (ANOVA) tekniği ile analizler gerçekleştirilmiştir. Gruplar arasındaki farklılıkların belirlenmesine ilişkin eğitim seviyeleri için post-hoc tekniklerinden Bonferroni uygulanmıştır. Araştırmanın bulgularına göre okul öncesi dönem çocuklarının duygu bilgisi/duygu ifadesi, empati, öz düzenleme, sosyal yetkinlik alt boyutlarının ve SDBPDÖOkul Öncesi düzeyinin, anne-babaların eğitim seviyesine göre istatistiksel olarak anlamlı farklılık gösterdiği görülmüştür. Bu sonuca göre okul öncesi dönem çocuğu olan anne-babaların eğitim seviyeleri, çocuklarının sosyal-duygusal yeterliliği ile ilişkilidir.
Topic:
Education, Children, Parenting, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

4. Beyond Statelessness: 'Unchilding' and the Health of Palestinian Children in Jerusalem

Author:
Osama Tanous, Bram Wispelwey, and Rania Muhareb
Publication Date:
07-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Statelessness & Citizenship Review
Institution:
Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness, Melbourne Law School
Abstract:
Understanding the key determinants of health of Palestinian children in occupied East Jerusalem is enhanced by analyzing Jerusalem as a settler colonial frontier. Structural racism, prolonged occupation, and settler colonialism shape the social and political determinants of health in Jerusalem, generating ill health and insecurity for Palestinian children who are rendered stateless in their own city. They are “unchilded” and, in fact, treated like enemies of the settler state. Colonial violence penetrates their family stability, homes, classrooms, and targets their bodies and health. In providing a thorough analysis of the lived experience of indigenous Palestinian children in Jerusalem, a broadened understanding of the effects of statelessness on their health can begin to take shape.
Topic:
Health, Territorial Disputes, Children, Citizenship, Displacement, and Stateless Population
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Palestine

5. Undocumented Children in Iran

Author:
Zahra Abtahi, Keyvan Zamani, and Miriam Potocky
Publication Date:
07-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Statelessness & Citizenship Review
Institution:
Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness, Melbourne Law School
Abstract:
Children are among the most vulnerable groups to suffer the consequences of a lack of documentation. A lack of legal documentation identifying citizenship precludes children from rights and privileges accorded to their documented peers. While a lack of documentation is usuallythe result ofimmigrants or asylum seekers enteringanother country without legal documentation or not renewingtheir visas after entry, it may also occur when a female national of a country cannot pass her nationality to her child because she is married to a non-national without valid documentation. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, as of March 2021, equality between men and women relating totheconferral of nationality upon children has not yet been attained in 25 countries worldwide, including Iran.1Thiscommentaryaims to provide brief explanationsof the legal procedures regarding nationality in Iran, the different undocumented groupsandthelegal advocacy to address the issue of lack of documentation, in light of new progress addressingthe inequality in conferring nationality between men and women.
Topic:
Law, Children, Stateless Population, and Undocumented Population
Political Geography:
Iran and Middle East

6. Access to Data on Children in Turkey: An Evaluation Based on the Urban95 Project Experience

Author:
Bürge Elvan Erginli and Gizem Fidan
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Nowadays, the need for the use of data in developing an accurate, effective and measurable urban policy is being voiced by many local administrations and civil society organizations, and as a matter of fact, some local administrations have already increased their efforts for data production and use. However, organizations face with certain problems in regard to accessing, obtaining and generating systematic data. The purpose of this report is to put forward these problems along with their reasons and to offer solutions by focusing specifically on data regarding early childhood period.
Topic:
Civil Society, Governance, Children, Urban, and Data
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

7. Data-Driven Strategy Development for Children’s Play in the City

Author:
Bora İyiat
Publication Date:
03-2021
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
When we consider which areas in the city children use to explore, socialize and play, the first ones coming to mind are school gardens, parks, green areas and playgrounds that are reserved for them with the intent to support their development. These areas which have an important place in the daily urban life of children are designed and planned by local governments. All urban and green spaces, including playgrounds which are areas created especially for children in the city, should be based on spatial planning and quality factors that include children’s needs and preferences. And planning requires the use of data.
Topic:
Governance, Children, Urban, Sustainability, Data, and Urban Planning
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

8. Educating Refugees in Lebanon

Author:
Wissam Fakih
Publication Date:
06-2021
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
MAAS student Wissam Fakih explores how Lebanon’s triple crises—economic collapse, the port explosion, and the pandemic—have impacted the education of thousands of Syrian refugee children living in the country.
Topic:
Education, Children, Refugees, Crisis Management, and Economic Crisis
Political Geography:
Middle East, Lebanon, and Syria

9. The United Nations Children and Armed Conflict Agenda: Integrating Child Protection Issues and Children’s Voices in Peace Processes

Author:
Asha Asokan
Publication Date:
05-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Public and International Affairs (JPIA)
Institution:
School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA), Princeton University
Abstract:
One in five children lives in a country affected by conflict (Save the Children 2019). Despite concerted international and national efforts to protect children, these 415 million children face grave human rights violations that continue to rise. More political will and resources are needed from governments and parties to the conflict to prevent such violence against children and protect children in armed conflict. However, research confirms that out of 431 ceasefire and peace agreements, less than 18 percent of peace agreements included child protection provisions (Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict). Often, peace-related documents that mention child protection issues do not mention integrating children's participation into peace processes, which is essential to understanding and addressing children's needs during and after the conflict. To end the cycle of violence against children, a paradigm shift must be made in the way peace agreements address children’s issues and rights. Guided by the “Global Policy Paper on Youth Participation in the Peace Process,” commissioned by the United Nations Envoy on Youth, this paper recommends that mediators and child protection actors employ three integrated but non-hierarchical layers for including child protection issues and children’s participation in the peace process: “in the room,” “around the room,” and “outside the room” of formal peace negotiations. This multi-layered, inclusive approach may help achieve the desired results: preventing violence against children and reaching a sustainable peace.
Topic:
International Relations, United Nations, Children, Peace, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific

10. ISIS after the US repositioning in the Northeast of Syria: camps, women and children, and leadership revival

Author:
Jean-Pierre Keller
Publication Date:
04-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Abstract:
Since the fall of Baghuz city in North East of Syria in March 2019, thousands of women, children and former IS fighters have been imprisoned in either camps or prisons. Following the Turkish military operation in October 2019, the security conditions have deteriorated, resulting in fewer guards as well as more instability and vulnerability for all those imprisoned. The worsening living conditions, the absence of adequate medical care and lack of access to education endanger the future of the children imprisoned in the camp. Moreover, the influence of the Muhajirats remains constant as a means for the spreading of propaganda inside and outside the camps.
Topic:
Security, Human Rights, Children, Women, Islamic State, and Transition
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Syria, and United States of America

11. Addressing Data Gaps on Child, Early, and Forced Marriage in Humanitarian Settings

Author:
Dyan Mazurana and Anastasia Marshak
Publication Date:
01-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Feinstein International Center, Tufts University
Abstract:
The United Nations and its partner agencies have pledged to focus on the problem and eradication of early, child, and forced marriage. On November 12, 2018, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution on child, early, and forced marriage. As part of this resolution, the General Assembly highlighted the need for better data collection and disaggregation of that data for improved analysis and learning. This report is a comprehensive and user-friendly concept note for a database on child marriage in humanitarian settings, a first step in eradicating the problem. The report identifies the existing knowledge and data on child marriage in humanitarian settings, gaps in that evidence base, and provides recommendations for moving forward with the creation of a comprehensive database. The authors interviewed key stakeholders on child marriage across program, policy, and academia in combination with a comprehensive literature review. The report was commissioned and funded by Save the Children U.S.
Topic:
Health, Human Rights, Humanitarian Aid, United Nations, Children, Basic Data, and Humanitarian Intervention
Political Geography:
Middle East, North Africa, and Global Focus

12. The Impacts of Covid-19 on Children and Social Policy Responses

Author:
Başak Akkan
Publication Date:
08-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Children had received less attention in the early stages of the pandemic. The mortality rates among children have been almost non-existent, and consequently they have not constituted a risk group. However, in a country with high incidences of child poverty, Covid-19 could have a significant impact in aggravating the existing inequalities among children and in creating new forms of deprivation. Within this context, the impact of Covid-19 on children is analyzed under four headings: The poverty aggravating effect of the pandemic; the manifestation of inequalities regarding the physical (home) environment and living conditions of children; the deepening of digital inequalities and access to education; and increased and unrecorded cases of domestic violence and child abuse amid the lockdowns.
Topic:
Children, Inequality, Social Policy, COVID-19, Health Crisis, and Abuse
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

13. İzmir95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project Report

Author:
Baran Karsak
Publication Date:
09-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The report contains certain Izmir-specific (Izmir95) details and preliminary findings on the project process of the Data-driven Policy Tool interactive platforms that have been designed for Istanbul, Izmir and Gaziantep so far and that serve the Data-driven Decision-Making Processes study which is a main area of focus of the Urban95 project.
Topic:
Governance, Urbanization, Children, Urban, Sustainability, and Digital Policy
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

14. Preschool Education Statistics of Istanbul Districts

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Preschool Education Statistics of Istanbul Districts created for the Urban95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project with National Education Statistics of the Ministry of National Education covering the 2018/’19 period.
Topic:
Education, Children, Statistics, Digital Policy, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Istanbul, and Mediterranean

15. Preschool Education Statistics of Gaziantep

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Preschool Education Statistics of Gaziantep Province created for the Urban95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project with National Education Statistics of the Ministry of National Education covering the 2018/’19 period.
Topic:
Education, Children, Statistics, Digital Policy, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Mediterranean, and Gaziantep

16. Preschool Education Statistics of Izmir Province

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Preschool Education Statistics of Izmir Province created for the Urban95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project with National Education Statistics of the Ministry of National Education covering the 2018/’19 period.
Topic:
Education, Children, Statistics, Digital Policy, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Mediterranean, and Izmir

17. Preschool Education Statistics of Istanbul Province

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Preschool Education Statistics of Istanbul Province created for the Urban95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project with National Education Statistics of the Ministry of National Education covering the 2018/’19 period.
Topic:
Education, Children, Statistics, Digital Policy, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, Istanbul, and Mediterranean

18. Preschool Education Statistics of Turkey

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Preschool Education Statistics of Turkey created for the Urban95: Data-Driven Policy Tool Project with National Education Statistics of the Ministry of National Education covering the 2018/’19 period.
Topic:
Education, Children, Statistics, Digital Policy, and Preschool
Political Geography:
Turkey, Middle East, and Mediterranean

19. Minor Misery: What an Islamic State Registry Says About the Challenges of Minors in the Conflict Zone

Author:
Daniel Milton and Don Rassler
Publication Date:
10-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
One of the much-discussed aspects of the Islamic State’s caliphate project was the opportunity it provided for families to travel and live under the control of the organization. While various studies have provided a somewhat clear picture of the more accountable population of those travelers—the men and women who decided to join the group—less clear-cut information has appeared regarding the minor population that lived under the organization’s governance. Using a portion of a spreadsheet captured by U.S. military forces, this report offers an examination of the minor population that lived inside the Iraqi portion of the Islamic State’s control in late 2016. It reveals a diverse population of over 100,000 minors, mostly from Iraq but also from 56 other countries around the world. This report provides important context and data for current discussion regarding what to do with those left in the conflict zone and those being repatriated to countries throughout the world.
Topic:
Children, Islamic State, Youth, Conflict, and Syrian War
Political Geography:
Iraq, Middle East, and Syria

20. Character Reform: Egypt’s Year of Education

Author:
James Aird
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
As Egypt’s ‘Year of Education’ begins, the government pushes much needed reform in pre-university education across the country. Supported by a $500 million World Bank loan, the government is accelerating efforts to train teachers, build schools, and implement tablet technology in primary and secondary education. The reforms include one ambitious project that is especially deserving of more attention: the expansion of a pilot program adapting Japanese educational techniques to the Egyptian context. At a meeting in Tokyo on February 29th, 2016, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi announced a joint partnership that sought to link Egypt to Japan through educational development, in part thanks to al Sisi’s personal admiration for Japan’s education system. As part of the joint partnership, Japanese and Egyptian administrators and policymakers set out to reshape Egyptian pedagogy. Modeled on Japan’s Tokkatsu education system, which refers to a program of “whole child development,” Egypt aims to build schools that place great emphasis on teaching students to be responsible, disciplined, and clean, as opposed to the more traditional model prioritizing higher standardized testing scores. A Tokkatsu-inspired curriculum is already being used at over forty schools that accepted more than 13,000 students in September 2018. While President al Sisi plans to personally monitor the new education system, other MENA states should also watch closely. If it successfully contributes to building Egypt’s human capital and improving students’ competitiveness, other states in the region might consider implementing similar educational policies.
Topic:
Development, Education, Reform, Children, Partnerships, and Youth
Political Geography:
Japan, Middle East, North Africa, and Egypt

21. Worsening gaps in education for Syrian refugees: Lessons from the early education response in Jordan

Author:
Reva Dhingra
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
The 2018-2019 school year opened with some worrying figures for Syrian children in Jordan. Over forty percent of an estimated 240,000 registered Syrian school-aged refugees remain out of formal school. Despite ongoing efforts, enrollment levels of about 131,000 in September remained well below the target of 170,000 children. With most refugees unlikely to return to Syria in the immediate future—the number of registered refugees increased in 2018—education while in Jordan remains a pressing concern. Funding cuts, school and teacher quality, documentation barriers, and complex mental health and psychosocial problems among refugee children contribute to education shortfalls, but only partially explain the unexpectedly low enrollment of refugee children. The initial education response was fractured between the immediate imperative of keeping children off the streets and the long-term imperative of integrating children into formal school. As the crisis stretches into its eighth year, however, the impulses of the early education response continue to impede efforts to educate Syrian children in Jordan. Despite the best efforts of donors, NGOs, and the Jordanian government, this early approach may have inadvertently increased time out of school for children who, under government regulations, are not allowed to re-enroll after three years. As a result, many of these children will likely never be able to enroll in school again. Examining the refugee education response in Jordan offers lessons for providing education during the early stages of refugee crises.
Topic:
Education, Children, Refugees, and Syrian War
Political Geography:
Middle East, Syria, and Jordan

22. Interventions to Reduce Gender Based Violence in Humanitarian Settings

Author:
SVRI
Publication Date:
11-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
The Sexual Violence Research Initiative
Abstract:
Globally, recent years have seen the highest levels of displacement on record. This adds extra urgency to the need to close evidence gaps and identify how to reduce and respond to the risks of gender-based violence (GBV) in humanitarian settings.
Topic:
Humanitarian Aid, Poverty, Children, Refugees, Gender Based Violence, Displacement, Child Marriage, and Intimate Partner Violence
Political Geography:
Kenya, Middle East, Greece, Lebanon, Syria, Ethiopia, and Democratic Republic of Congo

23. February 2018 Issue

Author:
Charles Lister, Raffaello Pantucci, Michael Horton, Kendall Bianchi, and Miles Hidalgo
Publication Date:
02-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
CTC Sentinel
Institution:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point
Abstract:
The Combating Terrorism Center at West Point is proud to mark its 15th year anniversary this month. In this issue’s feature article, Charles Lister tells the inside story of how al-Qa`ida lost control of its Syrian affiliate, drawing on the public statements of several key protagonists as well as interviews with Islamist sources in Syria. In the summer of 2016, al-Qa`ida’s Syrian affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, announced it was uncoupling from al-Qa`ida and rebranding itself. Al-Qa`ida’s deputy leader at the time, Abu al-Khayr al-Masri, released a message endorsing the move, which even included a previously unheard audio clip of Ayman al-Zawahiri stressing that organizational links should be sacrificed if necessary for unity, creating the impression that al-Qa`ida’s paramount leader had also sanctioned the decision. What appeared to be a carefully choreographed set of announcements made many analysts conclude the split was nothing more than a PR exercise, designed to advance the local aims of al-Qa`ida in Syria by improving al-Nusra’s standing among Syrian rebel groups and insulating it from international pressure. But this interpretation was challenged by a bombshell message released by al-Zawahiri on November 28, 2017. Al-Qa`ida’s leader publicly revealed that not only had he not endorsed the split, but he regarded it as a “a violation of the covenant.” “Al-Zawahiri’s interjection was a watershed moment,” Lister writes, “making clear to the wider global jihadi movement that a real split had taken place between al-Qa`ida and its Syrian affiliate.” One function of the split has been the beginnings of a tense modus vivendi between hardcore al-Qa`ida loyalists in Syria and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (the latest rebrand of al-Nusra). The result, Lister argues, is “a complex counterterrorism threat, in which a locally focused jihadi outfit with a sizable 12,000 fighters continues to control territory, govern people, and maintain sources of local finance, while accepting—even grudgingly—a deeply dangerous, small, tight-knit clique of al-Qa`ida terrorists committed to attacking the West. That image looks eerily similar to the Taliban-al-Qa`ida relationship in Afghanistan in 2000-2001, the consequences of which are well known to all.” Our interview this month is with Deputy Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu, the Senior National Coordinator for Counterterrorism Policing in the United Kingdom. Michael Horton examines the challenges faced by the UAE in its counterinsurgency campaign against al-Qa`ida in Yemen. Kendall Bianchi looks at how Hezbollah has used the mothers of fighters killed in Syria to promote martyrdom. Miles Hidalgo, one of the CTC’s Downing Scholars, provides a first-hand account of the cooperation between Europol and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) at Europol’s headquarters in The Hague.
Topic:
Terrorism, Children, Counter-terrorism, Women, Al Qaeda, Conflict, and Hezbollah
Political Geography:
United Kingdom, Europe, Middle East, Lebanon, Syria, and United States of America

24. After ISIL: Justice and Protection for Children in Iraq

Author:
John Millock
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Harvard Journal of Middle Eastern Politics and Policy
Institution:
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
Abstract:
ISIL recruited children through a variety of means, including abducting children from orphanages and hospitals, or offering to pay parents hundreds of dollars a month in exchange for each child’s attendance at military training. Additionally, child soldiers were often taken from particular ethnic groups or religious communities, such as Yazidis and Christians, as a means to terrorize these groups. Since the territorial collapse of ISIL began in 2017, many of these child soldiers have defected; some fled ISIL territory and are living anonymously in Europe while others returned to their home countries. Debates about how national legal systems should handle these former child soldiers have arisen in all of these jurisdictions. In Iraq, which has dealt with a particularly large number of former ISIL child soldiers, there have been concerns about the national justice system’s capacity to adequately address the prosecution and rehabilitation of ISIL’s former child soldiers.
Topic:
United Nations, Law, Children, Violent Extremism, Islamic State, Transitional Justice, Conflict, and Criminal Justice
Political Geography:
Iraq and Middle East

25. Developing Child-Sensitive Strategies in Local Government

Author:
Bürge Elvan Erginli
Publication Date:
07-2018
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
This policy brief is published in the framework of “Inclusive Local Governance for Sustainable City” project under the umbrella project “Supporting Sustainable Cities” of TESEV funded by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty. Actors of various sizes all participate in local programmes, plans and actions on the path towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals. International and regional cooperation are necessary for attaining these goals, for which central government may prove more crucial in its effects, while the inclusion of local actors is imperative for following both a more efficient path and achieving democratic participation. It is thus timely to highlight the importance of local participation in identifying and implementing the 11th Sustainable Development Goal, Sustainable City and Human Settlements. This goal, in which the issues of the right to the city under inclusion(1) the creation of accessible and safe urban spaces for all, and the active and direct participation of civil society come to the forefront, necessitates the active participation of metropolitan municipalities of local governments, as well as district municipalities which are in most contact on many issues with the city’s residents.
Topic:
Education, Governance, Children, Inequality, and Urban
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

26. Services For Children and Family In Istanbul District Municipalities

Author:
Bürge Elvan Erginli
Publication Date:
03-2018
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
The project titled “Analyzing and Mapping Services for Children and Family in Istanbul District Municipalities” aims to produce a comprehensive inventory of social services for children and family provided by district municipalities and to develop policy proposals for improving the geographic distribution and qualities of these services within a framework of the socio-economic differentiation of Istanbul districts. This Bernard van Leer Foundation supported project has been carried out by the Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV). There has been collaboration with the Kadir Has University Istanbul Studies Center and the Union of Marmara Municipalities at various stages of the project. This report summarizes the stages of the studies carried out within the scope of the project and discusses the importance and use areas of the interactive website, which is an output of the project, from the perspective of both the municipalities and of other users. After the presentation of the findings and recommendations, the “Stratification of Neighborhoods with respect to Age and Mean Real Estate Values” maps and the “Municipality Services for Children and Family” data acquired through the project will be presented separately for each district.
Topic:
Governance, Children, Public Policy, Urban, and Services
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

27. Marriage Decision-Making: A family affair – Insight into marriage decision-making processes and social norms around child marriage in Larkana and Shikarpur in Sindh and Lodhran and Muzaffargarh in Punjab, Pakistan

Author:
Wasim Durani, Ronald Van Moorten, and Saskia van Veen
Publication Date:
06-2018
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
This report presents the findings of research conducted to support the work of the Marriage, No Child's Play programme. The programme aims to change social norms that perpetuate the practices of early and forced marriage. It currently operates in four districts of Pakistan: Larkana and Shikarpur in Sindh, and Lodhran and Muzaffargarh in South Punjab. To increase understanding of the role that social norms currently play in these communities, Oxfam and partners conducted exploratory qualitative research in each of the four districts. Drawing on in-depth interviews with respondents, the report puts forward social norms the researchers believe are central to the marriage decision-making process in the four districts. It highlights potential opportunities to open up conversations and outlines ways for the programme to respond. A key aim of the Marriage, No Child’s Play programme is to change social norms that perpetuate early and forced marriage practices. To increase understanding of the role that social norms currently play in the communities where the Marriage, No Child’s Play programme operates, Oxfam and partners conducted exploratory qualitative research, which will provide a basis for programme implementation and follow-up research. The research consisted of in-depth interviews with 40 respondents: young and married men (n=10) and women (n=10), and mothers (n=10) and fathers (n=10). They were sampled from communities in the four districts of the Marriage No Child’s Play’s programme in Pakistan: Larkana and Shikarpur in Sindh, and Lodhran and Muzaffargarh in South Punjab. Partner staff supported the field research team in selecting respondents. The interview design combined the use of questions with a vignette – a hypothetical story related to early marriage. Oxfam and partners analysed and interpreted the results in a workshop.
Topic:
Children, Family, Norms, and Marriage
Political Geography:
Pakistan and Middle East

28. Children in the Levant: Insights from Belgium on the Dilemmas of Repatriation and the Challenges of Reintegration

Author:
Rik Coolsaet and Thomas Renard
Publication Date:
07-2018
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
Abstract:
According to intelligence estimates, there are around 1,400 European children in Syria and Iraq, many of them born there. The fate of these children confronts European governments with moral, legal, political, diplomatic and security dilemmas. Governments are divided over the issue, but almost all are reluctant to address it head-on. None have taken a proactive stance with regard to these children, creating several security voids. This policy brief looks into the fate of these European children before exploring in more detail the situation of the Belgians among them. It analyses the position of the Belgian government with regard to repatriation and reviews existing policies concerning returning children. The authors end up with a number of recommendations for Belgian and European authorities, including a plea for a more proactive response.
Topic:
Security, Children, Displacement, and Reparations
Political Geography:
Iraq, Europe, Middle East, Belgium, and Syria

29. Education in the Arab World: Measuring Up Or “Upping” Our Measures?

Author:
Fida Adely
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
Professor Adely discusses how flawed quality measures often shape our understanding of education in the Middle East and what a closer look at these measures can tell us.
Topic:
Education, Children, Economy, Research, and Youth
Political Geography:
Middle East, Arab Countries, and North Africa

30. Transforming Futures in Palestine

Author:
Steven Keller
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
As a MAAS student in the mid-90s reading Sara Roy’s important book, The Gaza Strip: The Political Economy of De-Development, little could I have imagined that I would one day have the opportunity to spend more than a decade (and counting) leading the Palestine portfolio of the respected education organization AMIDEAST. Nor could I have imagined that the grim picture of Gaza painted by Roy’s comprehensive research would seem so much better in so many ways than the Gaza that I encountered at the start of my tenure here in 2006—or how much worse it has become since then.
Topic:
Education, Children, Youth, and Higher Education
Political Geography:
Middle East, Palestine, and Gaza

31. What Post-WWII Schoolchildren Learned about the World

Author:
Susan Douglass
Publication Date:
09-2017
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Center for Contemporary Arab Studies (CCAS)
Abstract:
A look at the role of textbooks in shaping worldviews, global literacy, and national pride. The middle of the twentieth century was a watershed period in history for many reasons, with one of the most significant being the rise of mass education systems across the world. As Britain shed its colonies, newly independent countries with influential leaders launched efforts to educate their masses—efforts that had been held back under colonial rule. India and Egypt, under Nehru and Abdel Nasser respectively, began using government schools to strive for social integration and mold their citizens’ worldviews to enlist them in national economic development and modernization. Britain, too, launched a much-needed expansion of its secondary education system and revamped its elementary schools to meet the demands of the postwar baby boom.
Topic:
Education, Nationalism, History, and Children
Political Geography:
Britain, Europe, South Asia, Middle East, India, and Egypt

32. Consolidated Gender Analysis for Disaster Response in Pakistan

Author:
Oxfam Publishing
Publication Date:
03-2017
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
Pakistan is highly vulnerable to disasters, but disasters have very different impacts on women, girls, men and boys. Moreover, organizations involved in relief efforts are currently not paying sufficient attention to the needs of women and girls. This analysis by Oxfam identifies the main areas where a gender gap is apparent, and puts forward recommendations for addressing these issues.
Topic:
Disaster Relief, Gender Issues, Children, and Disaster Management
Political Geography:
Pakistan and Middle East

33. Missiles and Food: Yemen’s Man-Made Food Security Crisis

Author:
Larissa Alles
Publication Date:
12-2017
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Oxfam Publishing
Abstract:
The current high levels of food insecurity in Yemen and the threat of famine are the results of more than two-and-a-half years of war, and have added to the already high levels existing pre-war. The economic crisis and loss of livelihoods has left people without the means to purchase what is available in the market. The situation has been made dramatically worse by the closure of key entry points for commercial imports, which is also affecting the availability of fuel and clean water. This is a deadly combination, especially for the most vulnerable in society, including women and children. This briefing calls for action by all actors in the conflict and by the international community to protect the civilian population from the effects of the war and to alleviate the food crisis. It calls for renewed momentum towards a peace deal which is inclusive of women, civil society, youth and minorities, and which begins with an immediate, nationwide ceasefire.
Topic:
Gender Issues, War, Children, Food Security, and Humanitarian Crisis
Political Geography:
Middle East, Yemen, and Persian Gulf

34. Working Girls and Education: Policy Recommendations in the Framework of Children Rights

Author:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) and Aydın Doğan Foundation (ADV)
Publication Date:
05-2016
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV)
Abstract:
Aydın Doğan Foundation (ADV) and Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation (TESEV) launched, in December 2015, www.turkiyedecocuklar.org as an innovative policy tool. Open data from TÜİK, ILO, and Hacettepe TNSA on working girls in Turkey was assembled and reorganized as an interactive database to facilitate evidence-based effective policy making. Working girls and education is the most alarming issue on the database. As a follow-up, ADV and TESEV brought together experts, in Istanbul, on 28 April 2016, to discuss and recommend policies.
Topic:
Education, Labor Issues, Children, and Economy
Political Geography:
Turkey and Middle East

35. Making Education Count: Finding Possibilities of Peace in the Unlikeliest of Place

Author:
Sarah Dryden-Peterson
Publication Date:
03-2015
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Sarah Dryden-Peterson, assistant professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (GSE), has spent years investigating the dimensions of education in conflict settings. During her time at GSE, her mission has proved ever more important as conflicts intensifying in Syria, Iraq, Gaza, and Somalia both demand immediate action and provide new opportunities for exploration.
Topic:
Civil Society, Education, Poverty, and Children
Political Geography:
Africa, Iraq, Middle East, Gaza, Syria, and Somalia

36. Confronting Child Labour in Afghanistan

Author:
Amanda Sim
Publication Date:
05-2009
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU)
Abstract:
According to recent estimates, one in four Afghan children aged seven to 14 is engaged in some form of work. This briefing paper explores the issue, drawing on findings from an in-depth, qualitative study of poor households that use child labour, as well as those that do not. The report looks beyond poverty to explore the range of social and cultural factors that affect a household’s decisions regarding child labour, particularly the crucial way in which a household weighs the costs and benefits of work versus school, which leads them to increase or limit their investment in education based on their perceptions of the potential for future returns.
Topic:
Labor Issues, Children, Youth, and Child Labor
Political Geography:
Afghanistan and Middle East