We are coming to the tenth anniversary of the Arab Spring, the momentous series of events that started in hope with the desperate act of a Tunisian vegetable seller. With the return of another pharaoh in Egypt, the impunity with which he has meted out retribution upon those that were opposed to the regime and the killing field of Syria, whose soil today stands soaked with the blood of martyrs, makes even the most optimistic person surmise that the Arab Spring has turned into what can be called a cold winter. 
Over the coming weeks and months, The Thinking Muslim takes a look at the tumultuous decade from multiple perspectives. What went wrong? How did an event that reverberated across Muslim capitals, with echoed chants go so horribly wrong? And what lessons can we learn from the mistakes made?
Our guest this week is Dr Osman Bakash from Lebanon. Osman was very active on Arab media channels at the height of the Arab Spring and remains a inciteful commentator. This week we take a deep look at Egypt and Syria, unpicking the complex circumstances that led to both countries deepening their respective authoritarian rules.
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