Smart Reads June 28, 2013

♦ In Syria, loyalists proclaim their success, but there are plenty of reminders that their progress is limited and potentially reversible.
♦ In Egypt, critics accuse Mohamed Morsi and the ruling Muslim Brotherhood of ineptitude and authoritarianism that has damaged the economy and fuelled public discontent.
♦ Greece is struggling to avoid the collapse of a second big privatisation – bidders for the state gaming monopoly want to change the terms of a deal agreed last month.
♦ The New York Times looks at how Barack Obama engaged with Nelson Mandela’s history.
♦ The former second ranking officer in the US military is now the target of a Justice Department investigation into the leak of information about a covert US cyber attack on Iran’s nuclear programme.
♦ DNA testing has gained in popularity as people go searching for their African roots.
♦ Eric Lewis, a partner at an international litigation firm, argues based on the Supreme Court’s decisions this week that, “Even with the jubilation surrounding the defeat of DOMA, this has been a strange and sad week for the Court and the nation.”