• Viewpoint
    Palestine/IsraelDemocracy and Governance

    The Significance of Hussein al-Sheikh’s Appointment as PLO Vice President

    Jun 17, 2025Rami G. Khouri

    When Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas appointed Hussein al-Sheikh as vice president of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), he sent many signals to …

  • Viewpoint
    SyriaDemocracy and Governance

    Timeline of the Recent Sectarian Strife on Syria’s Coast

    Mar 19, 2025Radwan Ziadeh

    On March 6, loyalists to Syria’s former President Bashar al-Assad attacked the new government’s troops in the coastal areas of Syria where Assad’s Alawite sect…

  • Viewpoint
    SyriaDemocracy and Governance

    A Blind Spot in Post-Assad Syria: The Fate of State Archival Records

    Jan 21, 2025Marwa Daoudy Noureddine Jebnoun

    The fall of the Assad regime has highlighted a crucial but often overlooked issue: the fate of Syria’s state archives. Former officials have left behind millio…

  • Viewpoint
    LebanonDemocracy and Governance

    The Emergence of Lebanon’s Third Republic

    Jan 16, 2025Imad K. Harb

    The election on January 9, 2025, of the Lebanese Army Commander Joseph Aoun as the fourteenth president of Lebanon can very well be the inauguration of the Leb…

  • Viewpoint
    SyriaDemocracy and Governance

    Will Assad’s Fall Give Iran’s Reformists a New Lease on Life?

    Dec 11, 2024Daniel Brumberg

    For Iran, the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad and what was left of his regime—together with Moscow’s decision to throw its leading Middle East ally to the wind…

  • Viewpoint
    SyriaDemocracy and Governance

    A New Syria is Born: Hopes and Challenges

    Dec 11, 2024Marwa Daoudy

    December 8, 2024, marked a historic turning point in Syria and the Middle East region—a day when the Syrian people achieved what had seemed unattainable: the t…

  • Viewpoint
    Palestine/IsraelDemocracy and Governance

    Netanyahu’s Government after Gantz’s Resignation: Shaky Ground or Sticking Around?

    Jun 13, 2024Yousef Munayyer

    Benny Gantz resigned from Israel’s war cabinet because of differences with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the conduct of the war on Gaza.

  • Viewpoint
    IranDemocracy and Governance

    Raisi Departs, But Iran Remains Khamenei’s Realm

    May 20, 2024Imad K. Harb

    Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s death comes at a particularly precarious time for the Islamic Republic. While important, considering the monumental news, Sup…