Policy Analysis

In May 2018, Iraqis will again dip their forefingers in that purple ink and choose their representatives for Parliament. Unlike previous elections, this election has a unique taste of importance as it comes right after the declaration of victory against IS (Islamic State) in Iraq. The next parliament will form

On June 5, 2017, yet another dangerous crisis broke out in the Middle East: The Arab Quartet, whose members are Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt, decided to cut diplomatic ties with neighboring state Qatar. The response of American and Western media to the affair has been

March is a bittersweet month for Kurds. It is the month for celebrating the Kurdish uprising against Saddam Hussein in 1991, the original declaration of Kurdish autonomy 1970, and most notably Nowruz, which Kurds consider their national day of freedom and welcoming spring. But, March is also the time of

1- How Should the New U.S. President Play the "Kurdish Card" in the Middle East? Frzand Sherko - January 10, 2017 Kurdish researcher Frzand Sherko argues that while the next U.S. administration may no longer want to play a direct role in the Middle East, they can still leverage the

The majority of Kurds had serious hopes that Kurds in Iraq and Syria would have a better political future when Islamic State was defeated in Mosul and Raqqa. Kurds had prevented the spread of global terrorism. They did not expect a gift, but they hoped that their basic rights as

Iraq is entering into another electoral season, yet elections and political parties alone do not mean successful democracy. Rather, government policies and strategies need to be drafted in line with good governance standards in order to ensure synergy between all domestic actors (the state, institutions, civil society organizations, and society)

February 28, 2018 This piece by Firas Elias presents a best-case scenario for the Turkish operation in Afrin. It suggests that Ankara’s action may deny Iran access to the Mediterranean, disrupt or even reverse the Damascus regime’s gains in the crucial hinterland of Aleppo, and pit IS against Iranian proxies

February 27, 2018 The latest Iranian reaction to the Turkish military operation against the Kurds in Syria’s northwest province of Afrin highlights the political complexity of the Syrian case. Though Turkey and Iran have previously demonstrated a high level of political agreement regarding the Kurdish issue in northern Syria, including

February 21, 2018 Despite the current tactical moves by the Assad regime’s remaining forces to “protect” the Kurds in Syria’s northwestern Afrin province, the regime continues to threaten Syrian Kurds and hint at a restoration of the status quo: a reversal of the federation and self-administration of their areas and

February 07, 2018 In the past few weeks, Iraqi politics were thrown into confusion as Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi briefly aligned his electoral coalition with the Fatih Coalition, the electoral alliance led by some of notorious Iran-backed Iraqi militia (PMF) leaders. The union lasted less than 24 hours, but for

February 01, 2018 Arab and Western circles are anticipating the possibility of change in Iraq and some distancing from Iran. However, the basic fact is that Iraq is going through a very complex change that is transforming it into a province of Iran, fully tied to Iran politically, economically, and

January 24, 2018 The Turkish offensive into Afrin, the westernmost enclave controlled by Kurdish factions in northern Syria, opens another sad chapter in the long Syrian conflict. Immediate attention from Washington can contain the situation. It has been advised to address the underlying tensions plaguing Syrian relations and maintain its

January 17, 2018 The Iraqi narrative is simple and slightly apologetic: While the danger may have been over-felt, still, the “Islamic State” was at the gates of Baghdad, threatening to storm the capital city, and bluntly promising large-scale massacres of its Shia population. Thus sweeping through the majority of northeastern

January 9, 2018 Following the eruption of the recent protests that began in Iran on December 28, 2017, due to growing inflation and unemployment, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei accused Iran's enemies of “trying to strike the Iranian nation.” Iran occupies an important position in the eyes of international and

January 5, 2018 The use of the term “Kharijite,” an Islamic sect that is well-known in Islamic history and heritage, has accompanied the emergence of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria to the point where the term “Kharijite” is used today to directly refer to the organization. Just as

At this current juncture there is not a viable path for either Syrian rebel forces nor for the opposition to win the war on their own. Saving Syria requires international cooperation by executing an effective plan to end the crisis. The best way forward is for the United States to

December 20, 2017 There have recently been a number of announcements claiming military defeat of the Islamic State in its strongholds of Mosul, Raqqa, and in the Syrian-Iraqi border town of al-Bukamal. And yet new questions arise on the lack of hard evidence of the group’s defeat, in the form

November 2, 2017 In mid-August, TV screens showed us the strange footage of Islamic State militants and their families travelling in buses protected by the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), Hezbollah, and the Syrian Arab Army (SAA). Yesterday enemies, today the LAF, Hezbollah, and SAA are keen to move the Islamic

October 18, 2017 Millenarianism, or “end of days” messianic speculation, is thriving and evolving -- and being weaponized by both Sunni and Shia radical movements – as evidenced by the Islamic State on one side, and Hezbollah and other Iranian proxies on the other. While still limited and contained, the

October 16, 2017 Fear that Iran is working to build a bridge to the Mediterranean as a path to regional hegemony is hanging over U.S. military thinking and actions in Iraq and Syria. Allowing this suspicion to drive strategy could drag America into an unpredictable conflict that may continue long