Policy Analysis

Given their long history of terrorist plots in the West, Iranian agents and proxies could pursue multiple options for hitting back at America after the June war.

Overhauled Turkish and Emirati training programs for the Somali army and renewed funding for the African Union mission could provide the boost that Mogadishu needs, and Washington should push for both.

New oil, gas, and infrastructure initiatives have continued rolling in since the Trump administration’s removal of sanctions, but they may amount to little in the long term unless more is done to build Syria’s own capacity, tamp down on political tensions, and address bureaucratic confusion.

KH's secretary-general signaled that his terrorist organization would not face negative consequences for killing an Iraqi policeman. Thus far, he's right.

Former Israeli and Lebanese military officials discuss whether the UN force can play any effective role in the urgent tasks of expanding Beirut’s sovereignty and disarming Hezbollah.

Security experts discuss Russia and China’s varying approaches to expanding their weapons exports and broader influence in the region and beyond.

Netanyahu’s call to take over Gaza City and separate civilians from Hamas seems like a nonstarter in practical terms, but Israel could play on the group’s fear of being put back in charge of a shattered territory.

The director of the Institute’s Turkish Research Program testifies on why Ankara remains vitally important to U.S. policy in the Middle East and the great power arena despite its major domestic shifts in mosque-state relations under President Erdogan.

France, Britain, and Canada have been paving (separate) roads to nowhere with their recent statehood push, underscoring the profound gap between declaring a historic policy objective and defining a strategy to actually achieve it—ironically, the same gap Israel has fallen into since October 7.

American assistance to the Middle East apparently won’t be cut back as drastically as the Trump administration hoped, but questions abound regarding the diluted department’s capacity to actually use the restored funds effectively.

China and Russia get higher marks than the United States, and Israel normalization is on hold—but respondents view Hamas negatively, want Arab involvement in the peace process, and increasingly support moderate interpretations of Islam.

NGOs and foreign officials have already outlined many of the most crucial transitional governance and security issues that will arise during and after Israel’s eventual withdrawal—and all of them will require some degree of oversight and leadership from the Trump administration.

Instead of empty gestures, Western leaders could have pressed for a detailed postwar plan for securing Gaza, removing Hamas from power, reforming the PA, and laying real foundations for future statehood.

Both before and after the twelve-day war, the Islamic Republic has taken U.S. citizens hostage, necessitating a multifaceted U.S.-led strategy that ends the practice for good.

The violence in Suwayda has exposed the limits of Ahmed al-Sharaa’s control of Syria. But the assumption that the Druze community there is a monolith does not bear out: Damascus and Jerusalem are vying for influence amid the various leaders competing for power in the southwestern Syrian governorate.

For producers, the main concern is not lost revenue or market share but instead damage to relationships they have worked hard to cultivate.

Iran-backed terrorist militias are upping their threats against the United States and Iraqi minorities in the event the PMF is not made into a permanent institution.

Negotiations between Elbit Systems and EDGE Group over the Hermes 900 UAV system exemplify how the accords are ushering in a new era of defense-industrial cooperation.

Permanently enshrining Iran-backed terrorist groups inside the Iraqi state would be a massive blow to U.S. interests, so Washington’s reaction should be clear, proportionately harsh, and coordinated with other regional partners who have likewise been victimized by these groups.

The high-level Saudi delegation to a Damascus investment conference indicates Riyadh is betting on President Sharaa.