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- Viewpoint
US Foreign PolicyThe Machinery of Impunity: How Washington’s Elite Stays above the Law—and How to End It
Dec 3, 2025Jasmine El-GamalFrom the torture carried out during the George W. Bush administration to the surge in drone warfare under President Barack Obama, from President Joe Biden’s un…
- Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelSecurity and DefenseThe CMCC and the US-Israel Alliance: Collusion or Enforcement Mechanism?
Nov 24, 2025Hanna AlshaikhThe fastest route to Washington no longer runs through Tel Aviv, as the saying once went, but through Kiryat Gat, a small industrial city in southern Israel. O…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfSecurity and DefenseIsrael’s Attack on Qatar and the Failure of GCC Defense Cooperation
Oct 14, 2025Kristian Coates UlrichsenOn September 9, 2025, Israel attacked Qatar in an act of international aggression that caused shockwaves in Doha, across the Gulf states, and around the world.…
- Viewpoint
LebanonSecurity and DefensePalestinian Disarmament in Lebanon: Small Steps with Regional Implications
Sep 4, 2025Rami G. KhouriOn 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…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonSecurity and DefenseDisarming Hezbollah: Lebanon at a Crossroads
Aug 20, 2025Patricia KaramThe only viable route to lasting stability, economic recovery, and sovereignty is to restore the Lebanese state's constitutional monopoly over arms through a t…
- Viewpoint
IranUS Foreign PolicyPolitical Divisions Over Israel’s Iran Attack Highlight Tough Choices for Trump
Jun 19, 2025Charles W. DunneIsrael’s attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities and an ever-expanding list of targets has exposed fundamental disagreements among Americans over support for Isr…
- Viewpoint
LebanonSecurity and DefenseThe Prickly Issue of Disarming Palestinian Factions in Lebanon
Jun 4, 2025Imad K. HarbLebanese President Joseph Aoun and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas recently reached an agreement to regulate the presence of armed Palestinian factions in …
- Research Paper
Security and DefenseThe Beautification of War: Digital Communications, Public Indifference, Rebel Journalism, and Civilian Resistance in the Age of Meta Wars
Mar 3, 2025John KeaneDigital communications technologies are nowadays enabling not only frightening transformations of the modes and weapons of warfare but also, paradoxically, med…
- Policy Analysis
SyriaJustice, Equality, and Human RightsLiberation from the “Human Slaughterhouse”: A Dark History of Imprisonment in Syria
Jan 28, 2025Yara M. AsiAssad's regime imprisoned more than 150,000 people, including some 5,000 children. Multiple reports have emerged of horrific torture, neglect, and murder insid…
- Policy Analysis
LevantIsraeli War Tactics and GenocideExplosive Remnants of War in Gaza: A Long-Term Threat to Palestinian Life
Jul 17, 2024Yara M. AsiBefore Israel’s current war on Gaza, the deadliest of the previous four Israeli assaults on the Strip occurred in 2014. Over 50 days, Israel killed at least 2,…
- Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaUS Foreign PolicyThe Gaza Crisis Pushes Washington and Riyadh Closer
May 15, 2024Daniel BrumbergHamas’s May 6 acceptance of a hostage deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar was surely designed to induce the White House to pressure Israel to produce a counteroff…
- Policy Analysis
LevantUS Foreign PolicyUS Troops to Stay in Syria and Iraq but Perhaps Not for Long
Feb 22, 2024Gregory AftandilianIn recent weeks, there have been meetings in Washington and in Baghdad about the presence in Iraq and Syria of US troops, whose official mandate is to aid loca…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionEnding Military Aid to Israel: The Death of a Taboo?
Aug 21, 2023Yousef MunayyerIf there is one thing that characterizes American-Israeli relations more than any other it is US military aid to Israel, which currently amounts to nearly $4 b…
- Policy Analysis
IraqDemocracy and GovernanceIran’s Hardliners on the March: The Quiet Before the Storm?
Aug 3, 2023Daniel BrumbergThe recent redeployment of Iran’s dreaded “morality police” signals much more than a victory for the country’s hardliners. Instead, it seems to be part and par…
- Policy Analysis
North AfricaSecurity and DefenseThe Fate of the Wagner Group in Syria, Libya, and Sudan
Jul 18, 2023Gregory AftandilianThe failed mutiny by Yevgeny Prigozhin has put the fate of his Wagner Group doubt, not only in Ukraine but in several Arab states as well.
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionIsrael’s Attack on Jenin Refugee Camp: The Next Stage of Apartheid
Jul 5, 2023Yousef MunayyerThe Jenin refugee camp sits adjacent to the Palestinian city of Jenin in the north of the occupied West Bank. The camp’s registered population numbers around 2…
- Policy Analysis
SudanConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe US and the Sudan Conflict: Motives and Ability to Influence Events
Jun 27, 2023Arab Center for Research and Policy StudiesThe United States and Saudi Arabia announced on June 17, 2023 that both sides to the conflict in Sudan—the Sudanese Army Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support For…
- Policy Analysis
TurkeyDemocracy and GovernanceThe Erdoğan Doctrine in the Wake of Turkey’s Elections
Jun 22, 2023Mustafa GurbuzWhen Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced his new cabinet following his victory in the May 2023 presidential election, a positive mood ensued. Turk…
- Policy Analysis
IranRegional Relations and GeopoliticsDespite US Efforts, Iran is Ascendant
Jun 21, 2023Charles W. DunneIran today is not nearly as isolated as Washington had hoped and it has scored some impressive successes in advancing its regional agenda.
- Policy Analysis
EgyptRegional Relations and GeopoliticsEgypt and Iran: A Quest for Normalized Ties Amid Significant Obstacles
Jun 9, 2023Khalil Al-AnaniEgypt and Iran appear to be moving toward a closer relationship and a mending of ties. In recent months, officials from both countries have engaged in multiple…
- Policy Analysis
MoroccoDemocracy and GovernanceMorocco’s Concerning Domestic and Foreign Policies
Jun 7, 2023Imad K. HarbAs Morocco works to become a pivotal power in northwest Africa’s security sphere, it continues to suffer from what can be seen as self-inflicted wounds caused …
- Policy Analysis
US Foreign PolicyCongress Is Not Ready to Leave the Middle East
May 31, 2023Douglas ChristensenOn March 29, 2023 the Senate voted to repeal the 1991 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) for Iraq, attempting to end the two-decade-l…
- Policy Analysis
SudanConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Sudan Crisis: How Regional Actors’ Competing Interests Fuel the Conflict
May 11, 2023Khalil Al-AnaniThe outbreak of military clashes between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which have resulted in the deaths of hundreds and t…
- Policy Analysis
IraqSecurity and DefenseTwenty Years after “Mission Accomplished” in Iraq: A Critical Assessment
May 2, 2023Charles W. DunneThe crisis had been building for months when, on March 20, 2003, this author stood with a group of military officers deep inside the Pentagon, watching a telev…
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseIran’s Nuclear Program Poses Challenges for China and the United States
Mar 29, 2023Daniel BrumbergNow that China has brokered a renewal of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, it must translate that achievement into real tangible benefits. After all, fo…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptRegional Relations and GeopoliticsGeopolitics of Small Islands: The Stalemate of Tiran and Sanafir’s Transfer Impacts Egypt-Saudi Relations
Mar 29, 2023Khalil Al-AnaniIn June 2017, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi consented to ceding sovereignty over the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia. However, nearly si…
- Policy Analysis
LibyaRegional Relations and GeopoliticsImpacting Elusive Transitions: Egypt’s Policy Toward Sudan and Libya
Mar 1, 2023Khalil Al-AnaniThe recent political developments in Sudan and Libya have generated some optimism for a potential resolution to the protracted political crises that have plagu…
- Policy Analysis
LevantRegional Relations and GeopoliticsSyrian Kurds Are Hoping for, but Not Banking On, Continued US Partnership
Feb 24, 2023Gregory AftandilianThe massive earthquake that struck southern Turkey and northwestern Syria has given the Syrian Kurds a reprieve from a possible Turkish military invasion of ar…
- Policy Analysis
The Arab WorldSecurity and DefenseWashington Doubles Down on Middle East Ties
Feb 15, 2023Charles W. DunneReducing US commitments in the Middle East and pivoting to Asia has been a hot topic among foreign policy analysts and Middle East experts since the idea was p…
- 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…
- 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
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
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
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
EgyptSecurity and DefenseInsurgency in Sinai: Challenges and Prospects
Jun 10, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniIn May 2022, at least 16 Egyptian troops were killed in two separate attacks in the Sinai Peninsula. The attacks were claimed by Wilayat Sinai or Sinai Provinc…
- Policy Analysis
The Horn of AfricaEnergy and EconomicsHorn of Africa’s Security Concerns and Economic Crises
Apr 27, 2022Gregory AftandilianThe current Russia-Ukraine crisis has overshadowed another troubled region of the world, namely the Horn of Africa, which encompasses Sudan, Eritrea, Djibouti,…
- Policy Analysis
IranConflicts and Conflict ResolutionIsrael-Iran Shadow War in Syria intensifies Amid International Developments
Mar 23, 2022Gregory AftandilianThe ongoing military conflict between Israel and Iran (along with Iran-backed Shia forces like Hezbollah) in Syria show no signs of easing despite the Russia-U…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptDemocracy and GovernanceSisi Intensifies Arms Imports to Secure External Support for His Policies
Feb 28, 2022Khalil Al-AnaniEgypt has become the third largest arms importer in the world, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The institute’s “Trends i…
- Policy Analysis
IranRegional Relations and GeopoliticsHigh Stakes at the Vienna Nuclear Talks with Iran
Dec 8, 2021Daniel BrumbergThe ongoing indirect US-Iran negotiations in Vienna on the future of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) have thus far made little progress. Already…
- Policy Analysis
Regional Relations and GeopoliticsIs There a Macron Doctrine in the Middle East?
Dec 2, 2021Joe MacaronUnder President Emmanuel Macron, French foreign policy in the Middle East went through a transformative shift, revealing a clear break with his two predecessor…
- Policy Analysis
TurkeySecurity and DefenseDrumbeats of Turkey’s Next Military Invasion of Syria
Oct 20, 2021Mustafa GurbuzTurkish officials continue to repeat their warning that a military operation in northern Syria may be imminent, blaming both Washington and Moscow for not fulf…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptSecurity and DefenseGrowing Relations between Egypt and Russia: Strategic Alliance or Marriage of Convenience?
Sep 27, 2021Khalil Al-AnaniOn August 22nd, Egypt’s Minister of Defense and Military Production Mohammad Zaki made a trip to Russia with a high-level military delegation. Zaki attended th…
- Viewpoint
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfSecurity and DefenseAfter Afghanistan, a New Biden Middle East Doctrine Takes Shape
Aug 19, 2021Imad K. HarbIf there are lessons to be learned from the disastrous end of the American war in Afghanistan, they would be most applicable to the countries of the Arab Middl…
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfSecurity and DefenseUS Middle East Influence in Afghanistan’s Shadow
Jul 15, 2021Daniel BrumbergWill the departure of some 3,000 American troops from Afghanistan be a harbinger of a more fundamental realignment of US Middle East security policy? Presently…
- Policy Analysis
DjiboutiEnergy and EconomicsIncreasing Contestation over the Red Sea and Horn of Africa
Dec 23, 2020Gregory AftandilianGrowing international and regional involvement in the Red Sea-Horn of Africa theater has made this area a potential hot spot that is somewhat reminiscent of Be…
- Policy Analysis
Security and DefenseMilitary Institutions and Poor Governance in the Arab World
Nov 16, 2020Imad K. HarbThe latest Arab Opinion Index (AOI) from the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS) in Doha, Qatar, reveals an interesting combination of views ab…
- Policy Analysis
Security and DefenseAs US Counterterrorism Policy Focus Wavers, a Thorough Review Is Needed
Oct 28, 2020Charles W. DunneThe struggle to defeat global terrorism has been a dominant issue in the last four presidential elections, but not so in 2020. As the race between Donald Trump…
- Viewpoint
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfSecurity and DefenseComments on the UAE’s Acquisition of the F-35
Sep 8, 2020Abdulwahab Al-QassabIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is said to have condoned the sale of the advanced American F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to the United Arab Emirates afte…
- Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaSecurity and DefenseCan Saudi Arabia and the UAE Develop National Arms Industries?
Jul 22, 2020David B. Des RochesWith a speed rarely seen in history, the Gulf Arab states have evolved from mere afterthoughts of colonialism to advanced countries. Located in a strategic reg…
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseThe Arms Trade in the MENA Region: Drivers and Dangers
Jun 17, 2020Charles W. DunneCharles W. Dunne argues that international arms sales remain a huge business in the Middle East, making it the most militarized region globally. However, he wr…
- Policy Analysis
Security and DefenseChina in the Middle East: Capitalizing on Washington’s Distractions
May 29, 2020Charles W. DunneCharles W. Dunne analyzes how China's efforts to expand and defend its interests in the Middle East may come at the expense of the United States, which has tra…
- Policy Analysis
IraqViolent ExtremismThe US and Iraq Must Shore Up the Fight against the Islamic State
May 8, 2020Charles W. DunneCharles W. Dunne argues that the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq faces numerous setbacks, including the coronavirus, and that the upcoming US-Iraq Stra…
- Policy Analysis
IranRegional Relations and GeopoliticsWorrisome American Response to Iran in the Gulf
May 5, 2020Abdulwahab Al-QassabAbdulwahab Al-Qassab examines the muted US response to Iranian provocations in the Arabian Gulf, surmising that it reflects poorly on the reputation of the Uni…
- Policy Analysis
IraqDemocracy and GovernanceConfusion in Iraq: A Fractious Political Process and Free-Wheeling Militias
Mar 30, 2020Abdulwahab Al-QassabAbdulwahab al-Qassab highlights Iraq's current political problems and calls upon Iraqi politicians to put aside their differences and concentrate on how to avo…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptRegional Relations and GeopoliticsEgypt-Turkey Strained Relations: Implications for Regional Security
Mar 18, 2020Khalil Al-AnaniEgyptian-Turkish tensions over influence, Libya, the eastern Mediterranean, and the Gulf region have increased regional insecurity and require de-escalation an…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Struggle over Syria’s Idlib
Feb 28, 2020Radwan ZiadehThe Syrian regime’s killing of scores of Turkish soldiers in Idlib province will aggravate Turkish-Russian relations and take the crisis in Syria in a complete…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict Resolution“Your Proposal Attempts to Make a Genuine Two-State Solution Impossible”
Feb 12, 2020Marcus MontgomeryCongressional Democrats, Palestinians, and the broader international community still see too many problems with Trump’s proposed plan for Palestinian-Israeli p…
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseWhat is Congress Willing to Do to Avoid War with Iran?
Feb 6, 2020Marcus MontgomeryThis week, the House of Representatives took further decisive steps to try and prevent President Donald Trump from embroiling the United States in another war …
- Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfConflicts and Conflict ResolutionYemen: Order of Battle Trumps Peace
Feb 3, 2020Nabeel A. KhouryMilitary clashes in Yemen will not advance the interests of the warring parties, cautions Nabeel Khoury, who sees that victory there is only pyrrhic amid the d…
- Policy Analysis
Security and DefenseThere’s No Consensus on US Middle East Policy; Time to Apply the War Powers Act
Jan 23, 2020Charles W. DunneApplying the War Powers Act is one way of addressing the absence of a coherent American policy in the Middle East and avoiding a new US military engagement in …
- Policy Analysis
IranConflicts and Conflict ResolutionGulf Arab States Still Worried about a US-Iran War
Jan 23, 2020Gregory AftandilianGregory Aftandilian argues that Gulf Arab states increasingly view the United States as an unreliable and erratic ally and are urging restraint by Washington a…
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseWashington’s Strategy in the Post-Soleimani Middle East
Jan 15, 2020Joe MacaronJoe Macaron writes that the post-Soleimani Middle East offers both challenges and opportunities but the Trump Administration does not seem to have a strategy t…
- Policy Analysis
IranSecurity and DefenseSoleimani’s Assassination Backfires Big Time
Jan 7, 2020Daniel BrumbergWashington’s killing of Qassem Soleimani violates the red lines that the United States and Iran had previously respected in order to avoid escalation, and make…
- Viewpoint
IranUS Foreign PolicyA Middle East Calamity Is about to Unfold
Jan 3, 2020Imad K. HarbKilling Soleimani has put the Middle East at the edge of a dangerous abyss and hastened an inevitable confrontation between the United States and Iran.
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Libya-Turkey Memorandum of Understanding: Local and Regional Repercussions
Jan 2, 2020Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies (ACRPS)The signing of the Libyan-Turkish memorandum of understanding on maritime sovereignty in the Eastern Mediterranean has coincided with increased tensions both w…
- Policy Analysis
IranProtests and ActivismThe United States and Iran Readjust to New Realities in Iraq and Lebanon
Dec 18, 2019Joe MacaronAfter 15 years of rivalry in Iraq and Lebanon, the United States and Iran are adjusting their policies based on a new reality of popular uprisings that challen…
- Policy Analysis
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionWashington Grapples with How to Respond to Turbulent Middle East
Dec 11, 2019Marcus MontgomeryMarcus Montgomery examines the administration’s reassessment of its posture in the Middle East as officials grappled this week with how best to use military as…
- Policy Analysis
LibyaConflicts and Conflict ResolutionThe Conflict in Libya Resurfaces on Washington’s Agenda
Nov 27, 2019Marcus MontgomeryMarcus Montgomery discusses the renewed interest in both Congress and the Trump Administration to address the ongoing conflict in Libya and asks whether the Un…
- Policy Analysis
EgyptRegional Relations and GeopoliticsCloser Egyptian-Russian Relations Causing a Headache in Washington
Nov 26, 2019Gregory AftandilianGregory Aftandilian states that US officials are warning Egypt not to move ahead with the purchase of advanced Russian jet fighters; however, developing ties b…
- Policy Analysis
LebanonDemocracy and GovernanceThe Lebanese Uprising: No End in Sight for the Current Impasse
Nov 20, 2019Joe MacaronJoe Macaron explains the different factors of the current impasse between the Lebanese ruling political class and the protesters, seeing no end in sight for th…
- Viewpoint
LevantConflicts and Conflict ResolutionTrump’s Syria Decision and the Turkish Operation
Oct 10, 2019Radwan ZiadehWithout American forces on the ground, Washington will not be able to realize its objectives in Syria, especially in confronting the Iran-affiliated militias t…
- Policy Analysis
Security and DefenseTrump Puts His Stamp on a Generational Shift at the Pentagon
Oct 9, 2019Joe MacaronAs Trump backs away from US commitments in the Middle East, a new generation of Pentagon leadership is being tested in how to navigate war and peace decisions …














































































