May 31, 2017
A US-Iran Race to Control the Damascus-Baghdad Highway
The Syrian war has recently taken a new and decisive turn. The military focus has shifted from the country’s western areas to the long-neglected east, and this might now decide the Levant’s predominant hegemon. Across...
Learn more »May 30, 2017
Turkish-Egyptian Relations: Nowhere to Go but Up
Egypt and Turkey, both staunch US allies, have found themselves locked in a war of words—and worse—for nearly four years since the overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi by then-Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi. The cool relationship...
Learn more »May 30, 2017
Netanyahu’s Nightmare: Trump Visits Palestine
President Barack Obama, Barack Hussein Obama, that is, never had a chance. From the day he arrived on the national political scene, Israelis were predisposed to distrust him. His middle name, his African ancestry, and...
Learn more »May 26, 2017
Gaping Holes in Trump’s Well-Received Speech
During his May 20-21 visit to Saudi Arabia, President Donald Trump sought to dispel Muslim misgivings about his views of their religion after a presidential campaign that was in part fed by pronouncements excoriating Islam....
Learn more »May 24, 2017
Trump’s Riyadh Speech: Same Intolerance, Different Packaging, No Strategy
US President Donald Trump has embarked on his first foreign trip as president, visiting Saudi Arabia, Israel, Palestine, the Vatican, and some EU countries. During Trump’s visit to Saudi Arabia, he addressed 55 leaders of...
Learn more »May 24, 2017
Human Rights in the Constitution: A Survey of the Arab Uprisings
When Arab citizens took to the streets in peaceful uprisings throughout 2011, their demands included “freedom,” “justice,” and “dignity.” Their governments reacted in varied ways, with some heads of state ultimately resigning their positions and...
Learn more »May 23, 2017
Beyond the Trump-Erdoğan Meeting: The Rise of Eurasianists and Turkey’s Syria Policy
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Washington did not usher the “new beginning” in US-Turkey relations that he had expected to attain. Right after Erdoğan’s return to Ankara, Turkey accused the US envoy to...
Learn more »May 17, 2017
Once Again, Lebanon Faces the Ghost of a Political Vacuum
The parliament’s term in Lebanon expires on June 20 and the ruling oligarchy has yet to reach a compromise over a new electoral law. The country’s successive political crises raise questions about the functionality of...
Learn more »