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Several articles have appeared about the popular Hirak in Algeria, mainly in French. On the occasion of the third anniversary of Hirak, Siyasat Arabiya dedicates a special issue to it, in which some of the most important themes of Hirak are discussed. This issue is based on the fundamental idea that Hirak was the scene of a conflict of narratives and counter-narratives. The contributions in the special issue aim to analyse and deconstruct these narratives in order to explain and understand their underlying meanings and political stakes through different but integrated approaches. This special issue contains five contributions. The first examines the changes and dilemmas of Algerian security politics in a turbulent regional context and internal mobility; the second analyses the meaning of history and identity in the midst of movement; the third addresses the question of the political economy of democratic transition; the fourth discusses the role of external factors; and the fifth and final contribution, which is a translation, examines the Algerian Hirak abroad, particularly in France. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Trends in Arab public opinion regarding the role of the external factor in democratic transition show a great deal of importance, in spite of the fact that citizens of the Arab region do not believe that the external factor is the fundamental impediment to democratic transition there. This paper presents trends in public opinion on the Arab Spring revolutions, focusing on Arab citizens’ evaluations of the revolutions themselves and their subsequent standstill. It also presents trends in assessment of the policies of world and regional powers by analyzing the results of polling regarding the USA, Russia, Turkey and Iran, with the aim of investigating Arab citizens’ opinions on issues of democratic transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]