Crisis in the Shiite Crescent: Ascendency of Secularism?

Although the member states of the Shiite Crescent—Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon—have recently gained partial success in regional competition, they face a governance crisis due to the growing public dissatisfaction in each country. This has undermined their achievements and made them the field of conflict between the proponents of secular and political Islam. However, consequential to the revived Shiite identity and the reinvigorated incentive to shape the politics of the Middle East after the Shiite rise to power in Iraq, the Iran-led alliance has concerned Arab states wary of changes taking place in the traditional regional order. The result has been an upsurge of distrust and a clash between Shiite fundamentalists and the conservative Arab states.