Policy Analysis

On February 5, Matthew Levitt, director of the Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute, testified before the House regarding the implications of the Fatah-Hamas reconciliation and its effects on the propects for Middle East peace. The following is an excerpt from his testimony.

Domestic issues, rather than the war raging next door, currently dominate Lebanon's politics.

Another prominent Salafist militia has emerged in Syria, further complicating Washington's efforts to find rebel factions that align with U.S. interests.

Washington Institute fellow Andrew Tabler and Syria expert Brian Fishman discuss the need for direct action. Download a PDF of the full debate.

Providing for Syrian refugees has been difficult for cash-strapped Jordan, but more troubling is the prospect of foreign jihadists moving across the border.

Although Assad's ouster would bring welcome disruption to the Iran-Hizballah axis, Israel's leaders are focusing on the potential security risks of Syria's deterioration, including chemical and missile proliferation and jihadist border violence.

How Israel contributes to U.S. hard and soft security, from defense and intelligence to economic competitiveness and sustainability.

Assad's ouster would create significant risk of widespread violence in Iraq, but also a fleeting opportunity to regain leverage over the Maliki government.

Washington should remind Morsi that his current mode of governance is stoking perpetual unrest and impeding financial assistance.

In October 2012, an Iranian-American car salesman pleaded guilty to his role in an audacious plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States. The plot, to be carried out in a Washington, D.C., restaurant, drew nearly as much attention for its clumsy execution as it did for

The Egyptian president's trip to Berlin is an opportunity for the West to call him out on worrisome trends.

The fighting next door has potential economic, sectarian, political, and security repercussions that merit intense U.S. intelligence cooperation with Turkey.

As the Assad regime continues its bloody campaign to remain in power, Washington Institute scholars assess the impact of current and potential spillover on Syria's neighbors, Turkey, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, and Lebanon.

Avoiding the next diplomatic crisis will require the new secretary of state to invest time and effort in the less-glamorous but essential task of effectively managing the department.

New opposition-led legislation on term limits gives Washington an opening to press Baghdad on improving relations with the Kurds.

To undermine the Assad regime's exploitation of humanitarian assistance, the United States and its allies should provide aid directly inside Syria through credible international NGOs.

A Russian state oil company is sharply increasing its exports to China, with potential negative consequences for Tehran.

How did so many Western analysts get Egypt's Islamist movement so wrong?

Five steps toward crafting an "expeditionary diplomacy" doctrine that secures both U.S. interests and the brave officials looking out for those interests.

Two years after Egypt's revolution, U.S. diplomacy comes full circle.