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Revolution or authoritarian involution? Intellectuals, politicians and journaliss from all over the world reflect on the future of the Mid-East, where success like in Tunisia where the Revolutionary committee approved gender equality for the first post-Ben Ali ballots, alternates to integralist violence like the one witnessed in Egypt.

The next unknown factot is Syria, where al-Assad vowed to revoke the special legislation in force for the last 48 years, but it could be impossible to calm unrest. The media from all over the world, starting from Israel which is keen on orienteering itself in the new map of the Arab power, feature analyses and comments.

Ex Foreign Affairs minister and current opposition leader of Israel Tzipi Livni in an interview to Italian paper Il Foglio explains that for the rising Mid-East democracies it is necessary to rule the participation in the upcoming democratic elections based on universal values: "In most of the free world, in Israel, Eurooe, the United States and other Countries those who want to take part in the elections must adapt to some behavioural parameters and specific values [...]. Essentially the issue is to demand every party candidating to accept a series of fundamental democratic principles: repeal of violence and acceptance of the State monopoly in the use of force; peaceful means of attaining their own goals, respect for the rule of law, equality of all people before the law and compliance with the international agreements involving one's Country".

According to BBC correspondent Jonathan Marcus "Where the Middle East is heading is uncertain. Much of the optimism in the wake of the events in Tunisia and Egypt is dissipating. New kinds of authoritarianism may be just as likely as the flowering of democracy".

"History set itself in motion again" Algerian intellectual and head of the UN department for female rights Wassyla Tamzali told Le Monde. "40 years after the liberation from colonialism the Mid-East is struggling to achieve a true freedom. As Primo Levi put it, if not now, when?". In the same paper Tunisia's doctor and politician Moncef Marzouki invites the Western observers to"look at the Mid-East differently" leaving behind the idea that the Arab peoples are doomed to submit to despotism.

Votare non basta (Voting is not enough), by Amy Rosenthal, Il Foglio, 20 Aoril 2011
Syria crisis could change face of the Middle East, by Jonathan Marcus, The BBC, 19 April 2011
Regarder autrement les révolutions arabes (A different look at the Arab revolutions), 19 April 2011
L'histoire remise en marche (History set in motion again), by Wassyla Tamzali, Le Monde, 19 April 2011