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The Arab WorldUS Foreign PolicyThe Biden Administration and the Middle East in 2023
Jan 4, 2023Khalil Al-Anani Yara M. Asi Amal Ghazal Imad K. Harb Khalil E. Jahshan Kristian Coates UlrichsenThe first two years of the Biden administration, although short, have offered insight into the ways in which the reality of governing can clash with declared h…
- Policy Analysis
North AfricaDemocracy and GovernanceOnly Tunisians Can Save Tunisia
Jan 3, 2023Daniel BrumbergWhat if an aspiring autocrat held an election and barely anyone showed up? This question looms large following Tunisia’s December 17 parliamentary election. Wi…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionIsrael’s New Government and the Rapid Acceleration of Apartheid
Dec 29, 2022Yousef MunayyerIn 2012, while standing in the Beit El settlement in the occupied West Bank, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared, “There is no government that s…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionHow Realistic Is an Erdoğan-Assad Rapprochement?
Dec 28, 2022Mustafa GurbuzDespite Turkey’s frequent threats that it will soon undertake a new military ground offensive in northern Syria, no such operation has yet materialized. This h…
- Policy Analysis
LibyaConflicts and Conflict ResolutionLibya’s Impasse Continues Amid Mounting Migrant Problems
Dec 21, 2022Gregory AftandilianNearly a year after national elections were supposed to be held in Libya, the country is still not any closer to resolving the deep political and geographical …
- Policy Analysis
LevantJustice, Equality, and Human RightsThe Gordian Knot: A Bird’s Eye View of US-Israel Relations
Dec 20, 2022Nabeel A. KhouryNabeel Khoury takes a broad view of American-Israeli relations, highlighting the issue of robust US military aid to Israel and intelligence sharing between the…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfConflicts and Conflict ResolutionYemen in Limbo: No War, Yet Still No Peace
Dec 15, 2022Afrah NasserAfrah Nasser discusses the current stalemate in Yemen following the expiration of a UN-sponsored ceasefire agreement, looking at actions by all parties to the …
- Policy Analysis
IranProtests and ActivismHave Iran’s Leaders Come to Another Crossroads?
Dec 14, 2022Daniel BrumbergDaniel Brumberg examines the ongoing protests in Iran and the country’s hardline response, stressing that the disturbances are unlikely to lead to the collapse…
- Viewpoint
Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and GeopoliticsSaudi Arabia Will Not Find Strategic Protection in China
Dec 13, 2022Imad K. HarbSaudi Arabia has just spent three days hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping in a summit that some believe could be fateful for the kingdom’s future strategic a…
- Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaUS Foreign PolicyWhat Lies Ahead for Saudi Arabia in the 118th US Congress
Dec 7, 2022Charles W. DunneNew challenges abound for President Joe Biden in 2023. The loss of a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives for the 118th Congress promises to lea…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptClimate and EnvironmentCOP27 in Egypt: Progress or Stalemate on Climate Justice?
Dec 7, 2022Yara M. AsiSharm el-Sheikh, which just half a century ago was a remote Bedouin fishing village, is now one of Egypt’s premier tourist destinations for visitors from aroun…
- Policy Analysis
IranUS Domestic Politics and ElectionsThe US Midterm Elections Spell Further Trouble for the JCPOA
Dec 2, 2022Douglas ChristensenIn November, Americans went to the polls to cast their votes in the congressional midterm elections. In the end, voters dealt a major blow to Republican party …
- Policy Analysis
LebanonDemocracy and GovernanceLebanon Faces a Prolonged Presidential Vacuum
Nov 29, 2022Imad K. HarbLebanon has experienced a long presidential vacuum three times in its history: from September 1988 to November 1989, from November 2007 to May 2008, and from M…
- Policy Analysis
IraqRegional Relations and GeopoliticsIraq’s Foreign Policy Balancing Act Is Likely to Continue
Nov 29, 2022Gregory AftandilianDespite the support that Iraq’s new prime minister, Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, has received from pro-Iran factions in the Iraqi Parliament, he is likely to purs…
- Policy Analysis
TurkeyThe War in UkraineTurkey-Brokered Grain Deal Bolsters Erdoğan-Putin Partnership
Nov 22, 2022Mustafa GurbuzTurkey’s role in negotiations around Russia’s war in Ukraine has provided Ankara with extraordinary visibility on the global stage. Turkish President Recep Tay…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptEnergy and EconomicsEgypt and the IMF: Greater Foreign Debt and Deeper Economic Decline
Nov 17, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniEgypt reached a new agreement with the IMF to borrow $3 billion over a 46-month period. The Egyptian economy has been struggling over the past couple of years …
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionFrom Hornet’s Nest to Lion’s Den: Shaking Palestinian Politics from the Ground Up
Nov 14, 2022Yousef MunayyerTwo decades ago, in 2002, the Israeli military was in the midst of violently repressing a Palestinian uprising, the Second Intifada, in a campaign that took pl…
- Policy Analysis
North AfricaDemocracy and GovernanceKais Saied Sets the Stage for Tunisia’s December 17 Elections
Nov 11, 2022Daniel BrumbergAutocrats love elections, so long as they know they will win them, of course. But because they have zero tolerance for uncertainty at the polls, autocratic reg…
- Policy Analysis
Democracy and GovernanceThe Colonial Legacy in the Arab World: Health, Education, and Politics
Nov 9, 2022Yara M. AsiIn recent years, movements toward “decolonization” have taken hold throughout multiple disciplines, including cultural studies, health, economics, and educatio…
- Viewpoint
LevantDemocracy and GovernanceA Scandal-Plagued Netanyahu Returns for His Fifth Term as Israeli Prime Minister
Nov 4, 2022Khalil E. JahshanWith final election results having been announced by Israel’s Central Elections Committee, Haaretz declared that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Lik…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfEnergy and EconomicsUS-Gulf Relations After OPEC+ Production Cuts
Nov 2, 2022Jim KraneAmerican presidents have long relied on Saudi Arabia and its leadership of OPEC to ease price pressure on oil markets, particularly in the lead-up to US electi…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptJustice, Equality, and Human RightsCongress Versus Biden on Foreign Assistance to Egypt
Nov 1, 2022Charles W. DunneThe Egypt Human Rights Caucus would like a word with President Joe Biden. The group, which was formed in January 2021 on the 10th anniversary of Egypt’s 2011 u…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonEnergy and EconomicsLebanon Will Not Benefit from Its Maritime Agreement with Israel
Oct 31, 2022Imad K. HarbAfter ten years of on-again, off-again negotiations, Lebanon and Israel have finally reached what leaders in both countries consider an acceptable deal to dema…
- Policy Analysis
SudanDemocracy and GovernanceSudan: A Flicker of Hope Amid Mounting Problems
Oct 27, 2022Gregory AftandilianSince the October 2021 military coup that derailed Sudan’s political transition to a much hoped-for democracy, Sudan has been plagued by civil strife, deterior…
- Policy Analysis
US Domestic Politics and ElectionsUS Midterm Elections and Middle East Policy: Divided Government, Divergent Priorities
Oct 25, 2022Marcus MontgomeryThere remain only two weeks until the 2022 US midterm elections. Candidate lists in most races are set and early voting is under way in several states. The Dem…
- Policy Analysis
IranProtests and ActivismTensions Among Iran’s Nervous Ruling Elites
Oct 24, 2022Daniel BrumbergOne of the keys to understanding the Islamic Republic of Iran is that despite the regime’s still formidable grip on power, its ruling elite believe that the re…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Violent Nature of Israeli Occupation
Oct 21, 2022Khalil E. JahshanForeign military occupation is, by definition, a form of international armed conflict resulting from the belligerent acquisition of territory outside of the re…
- Policy Analysis
LevantJustice, Equality, and Human RightsIsrael’s Administrative Detention Serves Its Practice of Apartheid
Oct 21, 2022Ben WhiteIsrael’s policy of administrative detention, which is to say of military detention without charge or trial, rarely attracts mainstream media coverage in the We…
- Policy Analysis
YemenConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Flaws and Failures of International Humanitarian Aid to Yemen
Oct 20, 2022Afrah NasserIn a July 2022 report on the UN’s humanitarian response to the crisis in Yemen, the UN Inter-Agency Humanitarian Evaluation Steering Group concluded that “the …
- Policy Analysis
EgyptRegional Relations and GeopoliticsEgypt-Turkey Relations: Challenges and Future Prospects
Oct 18, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniOver the past two years, several positive signs have emerged in the Egyptian-Turkish relationship that might result in the normalization of diplomatic relation…
- Policy Analysis
KuwaitDemocracy and GovernanceParliamentary Elections Are Unlikely to Alter Kuwait’s Political Landscape
Oct 18, 2022Kristian Coates UlrichsenVoters in Kuwait went to the polls on September 29 to elect a new National Assembly in what was the country’s ninth general election in 16 years and the sixth …
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseIran-Israel Drone Competition and the Changing Nature of Warfare in the Middle East
Oct 13, 2022Bishara A. BahbahUnmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones, have been widely used in recent armed conflicts, particularly in the Middle East. Their low cost and…
- Viewpoint
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfEnergy and EconomicsWith Friends Like These: OPEC’s Oil Production and US-Gulf Relations
Oct 7, 2022Imad K. HarbIn a move that will certainly have serious political and economic repercussions in the United States and around the world, OPEC+, a group of oil-producing nati…
- Policy Analysis
LevantDemocracy and GovernanceIsraeli Elections: A Fifth Attempt at Forming a Stable Government
Oct 6, 2022Yousef MunayyerOnce again, and for the fifth time in four years, Israel is on the brink of an election, and is facing the all-too-familiar prospect of political deadlock—even…
- Policy Analysis
IranProtests and ActivismIran’s Ongoing Protests: Potential Scenarios During a Dangerous Time
Sep 30, 2022Daniel BrumbergTo adapt the famous opening line of Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina, it may be said that while all states are paradoxical, every state is paradoxical in its own wa…
- Policy Analysis
Climate and EnvironmentClimate Change and Migration in the Middle East and North Africa
Sep 29, 2022Heba GowayedA common refrain among activists advocating for a better, more globally-focused climate policy is that climate change is a global crisis. As former Secretary-G…
- Policy Analysis
IraqSecurity and DefenseTurkey’s Self-Fulfilling Prophecy in Iraq
Sep 28, 2022Mustafa GurbuzHead of Turkey's National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan’s recent visit to Baghdad was an attempt to heal wounds that were opened during a diplomatic ro…
- Policy Analysis
IraqIdentity Politics and SectarianizationIran’s Cautious Stance on Iraq’s Current Political Crisis
Sep 27, 2022Zeidon AlkinaniIraqi politicians have repeatedly failed to form a government in the eleven months that have passed since the country’s October 2021 elections, in large part d…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonGlobal Health and Health PolicyThe Captagon Problem in Saudi Arabia and Other Gulf States
Sep 22, 2022Gregory AftandilianOver the past decade, the amphetamine fenethylline, widely known by the brand name Captagon, has increasingly become the drug of choice among the youth in Gulf…
- Policy Analysis
LevantJustice, Equality, and Human RightsThe Biden Administration Must Press for Accountability and Justice for Shireen Abu Akleh
Sep 22, 2022Jonathan KuttabOn September 5, the Israeli Army released the long-awaited results of its investigation into the murder of Palestinian American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by…
- Policy Analysis
LevantUS Foreign PolicyBiden’s Syria Policy: Steady Non-commitment and Persistent Failure
Sep 20, 2022Nabeel A. KhouryThe Biden administration’s Syria policy, as well as its policy for the Middle East in general, stems from priorities and practices set in place during the eigh…
- Policy Analysis
IranRegional Relations and GeopoliticsNo Plan B for the US as Geostrategic Shifts Threaten to Scuttle Iran Nuclear Deal
Sep 20, 2022Daniel BrumbergWhat a difference a few days can make in the Middle East. On August 28 National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby addressed the diplomatic maneuvering t…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptEnergy and EconomicsThe Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam: Limited Options for a Resolution
Sep 16, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniOn August 12, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced that his country has now completed the third filling of the reservoir behind its controversial Gran…
- Policy Analysis
LevantJustice, Equality, and Human RightsUS Silence Enables Israel’s Crackdown on Civil Society Organizations
Sep 16, 2022Yousef MunayyerNearly one month after the Israeli military raided the offices of seven Palestinian civil society organizations—its latest step in an escalating campaign of re…
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelJustice, Equality, and Human RightsNew Israeli Regulations Pave the Way for the Ethnic Cleansing of Area C of the West Bank
Sep 13, 2022Jonathan KuttabThe current situation in the occupied West Bank reflects an ever-growing Israeli effort to take over large parts of Area C and to remove as much of its Palesti…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonEnergy and EconomicsLebanon Struggles to Pick up the Pieces After the Beirut Port Explosion
Sep 9, 2022Yara M. AsiLebanon’s independence in 1943 formally ended a 23-year French mandate backed by the League of Nations, a period that saw the consolidation of the country’s cu…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfEducation and DevelopmentWomen’s Education at Western Universities in Qatar and the UAE
Sep 9, 2022Alainna LiloiaAs more and more western universities set up branch campuses in Gulf Arab states, many women are finding themselves with greater opportunities than ever before…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonEnergy and EconomicsAn Update on the Lebanon-Israel Border Dispute
Sep 7, 2022Imad K. HarbAs the summer comes to a close, indirect negotiations to demarcate the maritime border between Lebanon and Israel continue apace. Although US mediator Amos Hoc…
- Policy Analysis
IranReligion and PoliticsAssault on Salman Rushdie Generates Diplomatic and Political Tremors
Sep 2, 2022Daniel BrumbergIt will probably never be known whether the 24-year-old Lebanese American man who repeatedly stabbed world-renowned author Salman Rushdie on August 12 acted wi…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfUS Foreign PolicyGauging Gulf Responses to President Biden’s Middle East Diplomacy
Aug 31, 2022Jon HoffmanWhen examining how the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) perceived and reacted to US President Joe Biden’s July visit to the Middle East, the Gulf …
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelGlobal Health and Health PolicyFirst, Do No Harm? The World Health Organization in the MENA Region
Aug 26, 2022Yara M. AsiIn June 2022, Richard Horton, the editor in chief of The Lancet, one of the world’s most well-regarded health and medical journals, published a short piece cal…
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelReligion and PoliticsAmerican Evangelicals, the Gulf States, and Israel: A Cynical Covenant
Aug 24, 2022Mimi KirkEach July, Christians United for Israel (CUFI), the largest pro-Israel organization in the United States, holds a multi-day conference that culminates in a day…
- Policy Analysis
IraqDemocracy and GovernanceIn Iraq’s Political Stalemate, Sadr May Be in Charge
Aug 23, 2022Zeidon AlkinaniIraq’s political deadlock has grown more intense and complex in recent months. The stalemate that has reigned since the re-election of Speaker of Parliament Mo…
- Policy Analysis
LibyaConflicts and Conflict ResolutionLibya’s Woes Persist in a Fractured Political Landscape
Aug 18, 2022Gregory AftandilianGregory Aftandilian examines the latest developments in Libya following the derailment of parliamentary and presidential elections and the ongoing division and…
- Policy Analysis
Regional Relations and GeopoliticsBiden Fails to Counter Russia and China in the Middle East
Aug 17, 2022Charles W. DunneCharles W. Dunne writes that President Biden’s July 2022 trip to the Middle East to reassert American supremacy in the region and among US allies ran into the …
- Policy Analysis
LevantDemocracy and GovernanceErdoğan Bets on “Turkish Exceptionalism”
Aug 17, 2022Mustafa GurbuzMustafa Gurbuz analyzes Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s calculations as he increases his cooperation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, despite Tu…
- Policy Analysis
MauritaniaJustice, Equality, and Human RightsSlavery in Mauritania: The Long Road to Real Emancipation
Aug 16, 2022Amal GhazalAmal Ghazal discusses the history of slavery in Mauritania, which was officially abolished in 1981, but which regardless remains a political, economic, and soc…
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelJustice, Equality, and Human RightsIsrael’s Ethnic Cleansing of Palestinians in the West Bank
Aug 12, 2022Ben WhiteBen White discusses how Israel’s practice of denying building permits, demolishing homes, and attacking civil society organizations in Area C of the occupied W…
- Policy Analysis
Democracy and GovernanceBiden’s Embrace of Arab Autocrats Ends Hopes for Democracy in the Middle East
Aug 10, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniKhalil al-Anani writes that President Biden’s recent meetings with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE sent a clear message to the world’s authorit…
- Policy Analysis
TunisiaDemocracy and GovernanceTunisia’s Three Post-Referendum Political Scenarios
Aug 8, 2022Daniel BrumbergDaniel Brumberg offers three potential political scenarios for Tunisia following the country's July 25 referendum on a new constitution that President Kais Sai…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionInternational Aid to the Palestinians: Between Politicization and Development
Aug 4, 2022Omar ShabanFollowing the signing of the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization in 1993, an international conference was held in Washington …
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelSecurity and DefenseA Developing Authoritarian-Israeli Nexus in the Middle East
Aug 3, 2022Imad K. HarbAuthoritarianism in the Arab world has assumed many shapes and shades in the decades since the end of formal European colonialism in the mid-twentieth century.…
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelJustice, Equality, and Human RightsAn Update on Israel’s Terrorist Designation for Palestinian Civil Society Organizations
Aug 3, 2022Jonathan KuttabIn October 2021, Israel’s Defense Ministry issued an order designating six prominent Palestinian civil society groups and NGOs as terrorist organizations. This…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfClimate and EnvironmentSand and Dust Storms in the MENA Region: A Problem Awaiting Mitigation
Jul 29, 2022Achref ChibaniThe cities of the Arabian Gulf are presented as the epitome of the hypermodern urban environment. Skyscrapers made of concrete, steel, and glass shimmer in the…
- Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaConflicts and Conflict ResolutionYemen’s Prospects for Unity Are Uncertain after Many Years of War
Jul 28, 2022Afrah NasserIn 2018, the United Nations Security Council’s Panel of Experts on Yemen suggested that the Yemeni State had begun to fragment as a result of a conflict that i…
- Policy Analysis
IranRegional Relations and GeopoliticsUS Diplomacy with Iran Is Needed to Achieve Security in the Middle East
Jul 28, 2022Daniel BrumbergNow that President Joe Biden has completed his trip to the Middle East, his administration will likely make one last bid to revive the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, …
- Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and GeopoliticsMohammed bin Salman’s Political Precarity Persists, Despite Perceived Successes
Jul 26, 2022Kristian Coates UlrichsenThe paths of US President Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) crossed briefly on July 15 and 16 when Biden stopped in Jeddah, Saudi Arab…
- Policy Analysis
Global Health and Health PolicyAdvancement and Inequity in the Arab World’s Medical and Pharmaceutical Sectors
Jul 25, 2022Yara M. AsiThe disparity between efforts to invest in a growing healthcare sector and the minimal public health services afforded to the Arab world’s populations provides…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfUS Foreign PolicyReflections on President Biden’s Predictably Disappointing Middle East Trip
US President Joe Biden visited Israel, Palestine, and Saudi Arabia from July 13 to 16 to meet with various regional leaders. This was Biden’s first visit as pr…















































































