Political scientist discusses unrest in Middle East

What's driving the Jasmine revolution in Tunisia, the monumental Egyptian revolution and uprisings in other nations across the Middle East and North Africa? Sean Yom, assistant professor of political science at Temple, explained, "If you take a sweeping look at the region, the king of Bahrain, Gadhafi in Libya, these are long serving autocrats who rule not by elections but by a variety of oppressive and manipulative means. I think they are all quaking in their boots right now. They've seen that what tore down Ben Ali and Mubarak was not some foreign-engineered conspiracy but the sheer power of mass mobilization and sustained protest from below even in the face of overwhelming state repression."
Feb. 20, 2011 | NBC10