Ten years ago, the Arab Spring took the world by surprise, profoundly shaking the status quo in North Africa and the Middle East and bringing hope for a new democratic beginning in that long-suffering region. After several regimes were non-violently toppled in rapid succession through peaceful pressure from the streets, reactionary forces in the region regrouped and launched fierce counter-revolutions in certain countries and outright civil war in others. We take a historical look at the past decade with Egyptian veteran journalist and activist Hossam El Hamalawyphoto by Hossam El-Hamalawy: arabawy.org