Policy Analysis

The controversial Hariri trial will unfold amid growing sectarian violence in Lebanon, the seemingly interminable war in Syria, and a longstanding political stalemate regarding Hezbollah's role in government.

Assad is still standing, but he is not standing alone -- and he likely no longer makes decisions alone either.

Given that Assad and his backers want to gut the transition process called for in the Geneva Communique, Washington should plan to take other steps in parallel to the Geneva process.

Given the limitations and internal divisions of Egypt's various power centers, neither the military nor any other single institution is solely in charge at the moment.

The president's fellow party members in Congress are unhappy about his perceived lack of coordination with them on various issues, leading to a potentially damaging impasse on Iran.

With Israeli acquiescence to de facto alterations of the 1979 peace treaty, Egypt has deployed substantial military forces into the Sinai to combat terrorists. But Israel remains hesitant about Cairo's inclination to increase pressure on Hamas in Gaza.

The international conference on Syria is unlikely to make headway toward a transitional government and might instead undermine U.S. interests in ending the civil war.

While delivering more Apache helicopters to Egypt may well increase the terrorist body count in the Sinai, Cairo must find a way to reduce the reportedly heavy collateral damage caused by such weapons.

Hizb Allah is the most effective force on the Syrian battlefield and has been instrumental in the preservation of the Assad regime and the success of its offensive operations since spring 2013.

Resuming direct U.S. material support for anti-Assad forces offers the only serious prospect, even if modest, for halting Syria's downward slide and its damage to U.S. interests.

North African Shiites are growing in number, forming organizations, and mobilizing around Syria and other causes, refuting the popular belief that Morocco is removed from the dynamics of the Gulf and Levant.

Although Mali could become a satellite of another North African power, Morocco's involvement is the best chance to uproot extremism there, from the inside out.

Sending a small number of U.S. Apache helicopters to Iraq would demonstrate increasing U.S. support, and any local or regional drawbacks could be addressed by offsetting measures.

Washington can provide counterterrorism advisors and air support without being dragged back into war.

Low Salafist turnout for this week's constitutional referendum could signal a broad base of support for growing jihadist violence against the post-Morsi government.

The perception that the White House is determined to include the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt's political process could hamper the Iran and Syria negotiations, among other ill effects.

U.S. efforts to intervene with radicalized and at-risk individuals can only thrive if the federal government is willing to commit money, not just lip service.

The Israeli leader showed himself capable of making bold policy reversals when he felt the country's welfare as a democratic Jewish state was at stake.

The U.S. military mission in Iraq started with a deliberate skewing of intelligence and ended that way too.

Iraq is at a decisive impasse. An al-Qaeda threat able to operate as a quasi-conventional military force has seized large portions of western Iraq, including parts of Ramadi and Fallujah, two major cities in Anbar province. While the main reason for the growth of al-Qaeda in Iraq, a faction which