Report

Butterfly Effect of the Arab Spring

The root of the “Chaos Theory”, which is used in such fields as mathematics, physics, meteorology, and engineering, is the hypothesis presented in 1972 by Edward Lorenz, an American meteorologist, in New York, entitled, “Does the flap of a butterfly’s wings in Brazil set off a tornado in Texas?” He stated in his presentation that, “A butterfly could flap its wings and set molecules of air in motion, which would move other molecules of air, in turn moving more molecules of air – eventually capable of starting a hurricane on the other side of the planet.” The main idea was to show how a very small action can generate dramatic and complex consequences. In this article Mulualem associates this concept with the Arab Spring and its consequences. As it is well-known, the Arab Spring started in Tunisia and spread to many other Middle Eastern and North African countries, the revolutionary wave touching many in the world. In one way or another it has affected Yemen, Bahrain, Syria, Algeria, Jordan and Kuwait among others, the deposing of Tunisian and Egyptian leaders. In its extreme case it led to the death of President M. Gaddafi.