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Morocco’s Election Highlights Lingering Protest Grievances

Although the outcome is unlikely to affect core U.S. policy issues such as the Western Sahara dispute and Morocco’s participation in Gaza peacekeeping efforts, Washington should remain vigilant about the potential political impact of widespread disaffection, especially among the kingdom’s younger generations.

Sep 3, 2026

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Sabina Henneberg
Salma Annasse

Xi’s Carefully Calibrated Egypt Trip

The visit will probably confirm the growth trend in Egypt and China’s economic, technological, and perhaps even defense relations, though Cairo is unlikely to get the help it wants on regional security threats posed by Iran and the Houthis.

Sep 1, 2026

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Shivane Anand
Grant Rumley

Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), walk together near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province - source: Reuters

After the SDF: What Comes Next for Northeast Syria and U.S. Policy

If done astutely, absorbing SDF personnel into the central government can preserve years of U.S. relationship-building and institutional knowledge while giving Washington a unique channel to build trust with Damascus.

Aug 31, 2026

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Devorah Margolin
Andrew J. Tabler

Following Up on the First Warning Shot in Operation Economic Outcast

Targeting a UAE-based bank with a serious but time-delayed action could have beneficial cautionary effects—though the wider problem of illicit Iranian financing in the Emirates will require a more concerted and lengthy Treasury Department campaign.

Sep 1, 2026

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Michael Jacobson

Photo of Syrians holding a memorial protest for family members killed by the former Assad regime.

Assad’s Speech Laws Are Putting Syria’s Security and Reconstruction at Risk

With Assad-era laws increasingly triggered by private complaints and enforced unevenly, U.S. officials can no longer relegate these issues to secondary tracks or assume that core administration objectives will remain unaffected.

Aug 28, 2026

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Aaron Y. Zelin

Webcast Tuesday: NCTC Directors Assess Progress and Remaining Challenges 25 Years After 9/11

Join us for a conversation with three former directors of the National Counterterrorism Center as they look back on a quarter century of combating the global terrorist threat. Watch live starting at 9:00 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT) on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.

Learn more about this event.

Against parliamentary hall backdrop, book cover includes Tunisian flag imagery at top, EU, USA, IMF, World Bank imagery at bottom.

Maps & Graphics

Why Economic Reform Failed in Tunisia:

Assessing Four Donors and a Country in Transition

International actors, while expressing confidence in the country’s political progress, struggled to adapt to economic resistance from the national labor union, the destabilizing effects of terrorism, and interference from outside actors.

Aug 19, 2026

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Sabina Henneberg

Institute Expertise on Israel and the Palestinians

Dennis Ross

Ambassador Dennis Ross is the counselor and William Davidson Distinguished Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He also teaches at Georgetown University’s Center for Jewish Civilization.

David Makovsky

The Institute's Siegler Distinguished Fellow and Director of the Project on Arab-Israel Relations, David Makovsky is a veteran journalist who served as senior advisor to the State Department's Special Envoy for Israel-Palestinian Relations.

Ghaith al-Omari

A former Palestinian Authority peace negotiator, Ghaith al-Omari is the Institute's Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Senior Fellow.

Dana Stroul

The Institute's Director of Research and Michael Kassen Senior Fellow, Dana Stroul was deputy assistant secretary of defense for Middle East policy during the Biden administration.

Interactive Map: Maritime Attacks in the MENA Region

Explore this new interactive tool to shed light on the actions of actors such as Iran and Yemen's Houthis that have threatened and attacked commercial shipping in the waters off the Middle East and North Africa.

Access the map.

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Interactive Maps

Screen shot of the Maritime Attacks in the MENA Region interactive map

Maritime Attacks in the MENA Region (Since 2017)

Shed light on the actions of actors such as Iran and Yemen's Houthis that have threatened and attacked commercial shipping in the waters off the Middle East and North Africa.

Screenshot of the Hezbollah External Operations Interactive Map

Lebanese Hezbollah Select Worldwide Activity

Access this interactive map to explore an open-source database of Hezbollah global operations and break through the terrorist organization's "Golden Rule" of secrecy.

Screenshot of the Islamic State Worldwide Activity interactive map

The Islamic State Select Worldwide Activity

Explore the most comprehensive public archive of Islamic State attack data, media output, government designations, and legal cases to understand the organization’s global reach,

Screenshot of the Iran External Operations interactive map

Iran External Operations 1979-present

Access this powerful interactive tool, which maps over forty-five years of Iranian clandestine operations around the globe.

Recently in Fikra Forum

A phosphate mine in Morocco - source: Reuters

Fikra Forum

The Other Phosphate: What Washington’s Moroccan Fertilizer Waiver Overlooks

The United States eased its fertilizer restrictions on the kingdom to manage a supply emergency, but Morocco could also become a key source of purified phosphoric acid—a crucial product tied to growing competition with China over battery production, supply chain integrity, and access to critical minerals.

Aug 18, 2026

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Salma Annasse

Fikra Forum

The Erosion of Public Trust in Libya's International Unification Efforts

Libyans are increasingly questioning where governance reforms fit into the agendas of Libyan elites' engagement with the parallel UNSMIL 2025 roadmap and Boulos initiative.

Aug 10, 2026

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Tahani Elmogrbi

A satellite map with political borders overlaid shows Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan - source: Reuters

After War, a Crackdown in Iran's Sistan-Baluchestan Province

Recent crackdowns against Iran's Baloch minority over tensions around mining in the province suggest that the rift between the regime

Jul 8, 2026

The Iran War's Pressure on the Egyptian Pound: Fragile Stability and Expected Shocks

The Egyptian pound is weathering significant challenges to its stability as the Iran war continues to impact oil markets and

Jun 10, 2026

Arab Public Opinion 2014 to Today

Fikra Interactive Public Polling Platform Thumbnail

Maps & Graphics

TWI Interactive Polling Platform

Interactive datasets, from 2014 to today

Jun 30, 2022

In Focus: Iran

Photo of a probe testing an indium-based quantum sensor.

China Isn’t Scared of Trump’s Squeeze on Iran

U.S. officials have demurred when asked about targeting Tehran’s most crucial Chinese lifelines, and Beijing has plenty of trade and export leverage to continue deterring Washington.

Sep 3, 2026

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Henry Tugendhat
Grant Rumley

Following Up on the First Warning Shot in Operation Economic Outcast

Sep 1, 2026

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Michael Jacobson

Dubai's The Gate complex in the Emirati financial center

Shutting Iran’s Emirati Back Door to Banks and Supply Chains

In launching its newly announced “Operation Economic Outcast,” the Trump administration’s primary beachhead should be the UAE, which has signaled

Aug 24, 2026

Photo of Iranian and Pakistani officials announcing a new memorandum of understanding to end the U.S.-Iran war.

What the Next Iran Deal Can Learn from the JPOA

The June MOU and the 2013 JPOA are not perfect analogues, but the deliberately limited terms and careful specificity of

Aug 7, 2026

Regions & Countries

Issues

Webcast Tuesday: NCTC Directors Assess Progress and Remaining Challenges 25 Years After 9/11

Institute Expertise on Israel and the Palestinians

Interactive Map: Maritime Attacks in the MENA Region

Interactive Maps

Recently in Fikra Forum

Arab Public Opinion 2014 to Today

In Focus: Iran