Policy Analysis

Absent vigorous international complaints, Hezbollah will force Syrian refugees out of eastern Lebanon to face certain persecution from the Assad regime.

Preparations for the independence referendum highlight political and generational divides in Iraqi Kurdistan.

July 20, 2017 The first battle in northern Syria, which has a Kurdish majority and lies along the Turkish border, broke out in 2012 when several armed opposition groups crossed the border and attacked Syrian regime forces concentrated in Ras al-Ayn. After the groups took control of the city, Kurdish

July 20, 2017 Before Congress can reach a conclusion on the administration’s proposed budget, President Donald Trump needs to articulate a strategy for counter-terrorism and the ongoing war in Syria. A new policy should specify its political objectives regarding the Syrian government and other actors in the region. There are

Watch three expert observers examine a divided Turkey one year after the failed military coup of 2016.

A media revelation about King Salman preparing a video declaring it is time for Muhammad bin Salman to replace him could accelerate changes in order to preempt opposition from other royal quarters.

Working through its proxy Hezbollah, the Islamic Republic continues to support terrorist plots across the globe and to raise significant sums through illegal smuggling, including in South America's Triborder Area.

The latest demonstrations are unusual in that they highlight the divergence of the Western-oriented palace from much of the Jordanian people, who according to polling do not like the United States very much.

A compact size, high pay, and rigorous standards have helped the service thrive, but now it needs sustained support to become a lasting monument to U.S. good intentions in Iraq.

Areas of focus will likely include a damaged but still dangerous Islamic State, a regrouping al-Qaeda, and the wide network fielded by Iran and its proxy Hezbollah.

Most Kurds are now seeking rights in their respective countries, while downplaying the pan-Kurdish dream, giving Turkey more room to separate the PYD from the PKK instead of lumping them together.

By setting limits on Iranian deployments in southern Syria, Washington could insulate Jordan from problems on the border and encourage Iranian caution in the east, potentially decreasing the likelihood there of a U.S.-Iran clash.

Erdogan's lifelong resentment of secularists has decimated Turkish democracy.

The tepid response to the deal by Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu can be summed up in one word: Iran.

In the aftermath of Mosul's liberation, the adjacent Nineveh Plains could be a cockpit for new ethno-sectarian conflict or a test case of cooperative security arrangements, with the anti-IS coalition having strong incentives to ensure the latter.

Destroying the vestiges of IS governance will not eliminate the group -- which will continue to pose an insurgent and terrorist threat -- but it will remove any arguments the jihadists might be inclined to make about the near-term viability of their state.

Secretary Tillerson should bear in mind that his diplomatic efforts over Qatar's role in the Middle East will have significant implications for the balance of power in Libya, not just the Gulf.

For any observer of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict who views settlement expansion as an impediment to peacemaking, the latest developments suggest difficulties ahead.

July 12, 2017 The conventional wisdom in Washington has long been that the United States and Saudi Arabia have important mutual interests that sustain their bilateral relations, but they do not adhere to the same core values. That assumption is in need of reassessment. Over the past two decades, Saudi

Events on the ground are fluid in the eastern Syrian city and province, but dynamics suggest Syrian forces and their backers will prevail over the Islamic State and U.S.-supported fighters.