Viewpoints

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Palestine/IsraelUS Foreign Policy
UNSC Resolution 2803: A Shaky Step Toward the Unknown
Nov 19, 2025Khalil E. Jahshan
On November 17, 2025, following weeks of diplomatic maneuvering, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) voted to approve Resolution 2803 (2025) in support …
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EgyptDemocracy and Governance
Egyptian Democracy Is What Sisi Makes of It
Nov 18, 2025Imad K. Harb
Egyptians are currently casting their ballots in parliamentary elections, the final results of which will not be announced before late December 2025. In two ph…
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SyriaUS Foreign Policy
The Populist and the Pragmatist: Why Trump Sees a Kindred Spirit in Syria’s al-Sharaa
Nov 11, 2025Daniel Neep
At first glance, US President Donald J. Trump and Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa inhabit very different political universes. Trump, the populist pre…
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MoroccoProtests and Activism
Morocco’s Gen Z Protests: A New Form of Opposition?
Oct 29, 2025Isabel Ruck
Certain signs are undeniable. When a generation born in the digital age stops swapping memes and instead mobilizes en masse to declare “enough is enough,” it w…
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SyriaDemocracy and Governance
The “New Syria” and Reconstruction under Regional Influences
Oct 2, 2025Isabel Ruck
On September 24, 2025, interim Syrian president Ahmed al-Sharaa addressed the 80th United Nations General Assembly—the first time a Syrian president has done s…
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SyriaPublic Opinion
Reading the Syrian Public Opinion Survey 2025: Indicators of Optimism
Sep 19, 2025Daniel Neep
The Arab Opinion Index: Syrian Public Opinion Survey 2025 provides an unusually granular view of political attitudes in a country long considered impervious to…
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LebanonSecurity and Defense
Palestinian Disarmament in Lebanon: Small Steps with Regional Implications
Sep 4, 2025Rami G. Khouri
On August 21, 2025, Palestinian factions in the Burj al-Barajneh refugee camp near Beirut transferred light weapons in pickup trucks to the Lebanese Armed Forc…
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US Foreign Policy
Trump Administration Guts State’s Human Rights Reports
Aug 29, 2025Ingie Gohar
On August 12, 2025, the US Department of State released the 2024 human rights reports, covering 198 countries and territories. State’s annual reports were prev…