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Tunisian Revolution and Arab Spring Begin
Tarek al-Tayeb Mohamed Bouazizi, a 26-year-old student with a widowed mother and 6 siblings, set himself on fire in response to police seizure of his vegetable cart for lacking the proper permit. In response, riots broke out across Tunisia calling for reform and the President's resignation in light of high unemployment and low job prospects. This sparked Tunisia's Jasmine Revolution and the following events dubbed as "Arab Spring". Similar immolations followed in Cairo, Algeria, and Syria. -
Tunisian President Resigns
Following a month of protests, Tunisian President Zine El Abidine is Ben Ali is forced to resign after 24 years in power and flees to Saudi Arabia in exile. Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi becomes interim president and vows to respect the Tunisian constitution and restore stability. -
Protests Erupt in Egypt
The first coordinated mass protests of Arab Spring occur in Cairo, Egypt at Tahrir Square, where protestors call for the resignation of autocratic President Hosni Mubarak and an end to the violence and corruption of the Egyptian Security Forces. Mubarak's government responds by killing 84 protestors and injuring 6000 more over the 18-day period, as well as by shutting down mobile and internet networks. Throughout the Egyptian Revolution, Tahrir Square serves as an important center of protest. -
Days of Rage/Protest Breaks in Yemen
In Lebanon, supporters of the recently deposed Prime Minister Saad Hariri protest the likely appointment of Hezbollah-supported Najib Mikati in what they dub a "Day of Rage", a title that was extended to many other Arab protests.
In Egypt, President Mubarak promises to step down, but not until the next election, a decision supported by the US.
In Yemen, protests arise from President Ali Abdullah Saleh's proposed constitutional amendment which would allow him to stay in power for life. -
Egypt: President Mubarak Flees
After 18 days of protest (following the initial riot at Tahrir Square), Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak resigns after 30 year in office, and power rests with the Egyptian military, which pledges not to stand in the way of a new government but suspends the constitution until the next election occurs. Concerns regarding the Muslim Brotherhood's likelihood of gaining power among both Egyptians and foreign powers, including the US. -
Bahrain's Day of Rage
Cairo and Tunis protests spark similar clashes in Iran and Bahrain in particular, where protestors communicate anger towards the Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty for discrimination against the Shia majority. Unlike Lebanon's Day of Rage, Bahrain's Day of Rage is peaceful on the part of protestors. However, they are met with violence and the instigator with life imprisonment.
Protests continue in Yemen, where President Saleh vows not to run for re-election but protestors call for immediate resignation. -
Pro-Democracy Protests in Syria
On January 28, Hasan Ali Akleh set himself on fire in protest of the Assad regime and went relatively unnoticed. February 17 tradesmen in Damascus responded to police brutality with the cry "The Syrian people won't be humiliated". Yet it wasn't until mid-March Syria's pro-democracy protests strongly took hold, in response to the arrest and torture of approximately 15 Daraa schoolboys for the anti-regime graffiti "It's your turn now Doctor" in reference to Bashar al-Assad. -
Friday of Dignity
In Sana'a,Yemen, what began as a peaceful protest at the midday prayer to mourn the death of 7 protesters killed in a police riot a week prior, results in the death of 45 protestors and hundreds more injured. President Saleh responds by declaring a state of emergency. In Syria, protests by relatives of the Daraa schoolboys' torture and detainment results in four dead. -
Yemeni President Injured
On June 3, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's palace is bombed. He sustains light injuries and survives the apparent attack on his life from the shell that hit the mosque in his compound. His opponent Hamid al-Ahmar is blamed and immediately shells are launched against his palace. -
Million Man March in Yemen
After 3 months in Saudi Arabia recovering from his attempted assassination, President Saleh unexpectedly returns to Yemen, in the midst of its most profuse bloodshed. Supporters of Saleh gathered outside his mosque, while 100,000 protestors gathered along a stretch of motorway for a Friday prayer ceremony. Yemen protestors call for a million man march in opposition to Saleh. -
Libyan Dictator Overthrown
Through violent civil war, Libyan dictator Muhammar Gaddafi is overthrown, tortured, and executed, with his body displayed for the following days at a refrigerated meat store. Gadaffi's family pleads to the UN, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and Amnesty International to facilitate the return of Gadaffi's body for burial, which after four days was accomplished in secret to avoid desecration by opposition or enshrinement by supporters. -
First Democratic Parliamentary Elections in Tunisia
Tunisia holds its first free election in its history, where candidates from 110 political parties bid to participate in Tunisia's 217-seat government. 5 days later in Sidi Bouzid, where the Tunisian Revolution and Arab Spring began with Mohamed Bouazizi, protest erupts against the electoral commission's annulment of victories by three candidates of the Popular Petition party and a curfew is enacted. -
Yemeni President Signs Power-transfer agreement
Ali Abdullah Saleh signs an agreement in Saudi Arabia, transferring power to the vice president in exchange for immunity for Saleh and his family. Although power rests with 'Abd al-Rabb Mansour al-Hadi, Saleh retains the honorary title of president until elections in February. Protests continue the following day calling for accountability for the government's crimes, resulting in 5 deaths. However, anti-Saleh protesters begin to split between the Islamist Islah party and the independent youth. -
Egypt Holds First Democratic Parliamentary Elections
On November 20, Egypt's interim government resigns in the face of mounting violence leaving 33 dead and more than 2000 injured. On November 28, Egypt held its first free election in over 80 years, after 10 days of protest. The Muslim Brotherhood dominates the new parliament. For the following two weeks the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (Scaf) holds power, and in early December protests against Egyptian Security Forces result in deaths. -
Arab Spring Results
Due to Arab Spring, regimes change in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, with Yemen following suit in February of 2012. Civil War breaks out in Libya, Syria and Yemen.
