4. The Arab Revolutions of 2011 and Iran 2009: Identities and Differences

The Arab revolutions ran deeper than the Iranian upheaval of 2009, mobilizing key elements of the poor and the working classes. The people also called directly not for reform, but for the outright overthrow of their despotic rulers. These two factors may help to explain why the Arab revolutions managed to overthrow three governments, while the Iranian upheaval was ultimately beaten back. That said, the Iranian upheaval contained several elements, especially its involvement of women that placed it at a higher level than the Arab revolutions. Yet, the Arab revolutions, not the Green Movement, marked a real historical turning point, not only for the region, but also for the world. At the same time, it could be noted, that the two largest mass mobilizations for democracy and progressive politics anywhere in the world since the Great Recession of 2007 have both taken place in the MENA region.