Skip to main content
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Menu
Toggle Main Menu
Homepage
Main navigation (Fikra Forum)
Articles
About
Submissions
منتدى فكرة
Trending:
Algeria
Bahrain
Toggle List of
All Issues
Issues
Algeria
Bahrain
Civil Society
Constitutions
Democracy
Economy
Egypt
Elections
Extremism
Featured
Freedom of Expression
Gaza
General
Gulf Countries
Human Rights
Iran
Iraq
ISIS
Islamist Politics
Israel
Jordan
Kurdistan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya
Morocco
Oman
Palestinians
Parliaments
Political Parties
Political Reform
Religious Freedom
Saudi Arabia
Security
Sudan
Syria
Tunisia
Turkey
United Arab Emirates
West Bank
Women & Gender
Yemen
Close List of All Regions and Issues
Close
Search Fikra Forum
TWI English
TWI Arabic:
اللغة العربية
TWI Persian:
فارسی
Fikra Forum
Close Menu
Close
Search Fikra Forum
Search
Breadcrumb
Fikra Forum
Policy Analysis
Filter by:
Keyword
Category
- Any -
Algeria
Bahrain
Civil Society
Constitutions
Democracy
Economy
Egypt
Elections
Extremism
Featured
Freedom of Expression
Gaza
General
Gulf Countries
Human Rights
Iran
Iraq
ISIS
Islamist Politics
Israel
Jordan
Kurdistan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya
Morocco
Oman
Palestinians
Parliaments
Political Parties
Political Reform
Religious Freedom
Saudi Arabia
Security
Sudan
Syria
Tunisia
Turkey
United Arab Emirates
West Bank
Women & Gender
Yemen
Date Published
- Any -
Past 7 Days
Past 30 Days
Past Year
Custom range...
Start date
End date
Sort by
Oldest first
Newest first
Reset
Found
209
results
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Escalation in Iraq Raises Questions About Tensions Between Saudi Arabia and Iran
Following the events of September 11, 2001, US-NATO military interventions brought the United States directly into Middle Eastern affairs while costing the country more than 7,000 lives and approximately $5.5 trillion dollars. However, the regional perspective of the U.S. invasion of Iraq in particular is that its main result was
Jan 3, 2020
◆
Firas Elias
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Kuwaiti Public, Including Shia Minority, Still Anti-Iran—but Wary of Conflict
As tensions between the United States and Iran escalate, oil-rich Kuwait, sandwiched between Iran and Iraq at the mouth of the Gulf, is a key U.S. partner right in the potential line of fire. It is also the most internally politically active country of all six GCC Arab monarchies, with
Jan 3, 2020
◆
David Pollock
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iraqi Reactions to Soleimani’s Assassination
After reports of Qassem Soleimani’s death were confirmed, Twitter videos emerged depicting cheering Iraqi protesters heading to Baghdad’s Tahrir Square to celebrate the death of a man who had until recently been deeply involved in Iraqi politics. However, whatever the public demonstrations suggest, the reality is that the Iraqi public
Jan 3, 2020
◆
David Pollock
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
The Tight Rope: Deterring Militias While Supporting Reformists in Iraq
In November 2019, I wrote a piece for Fikra Forum titled “ U.S. Interests and the Unsustainable Status Quo in Iraq” where I argued the case that the United States needed to adopt a riskier short-term policy in Iraq in order to be on the right—and winning side—of history in
Jan 2, 2020
◆
Michael Knights
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iran and Saudi Arabia: Imagining a Path Towards Rapprochement
Since Saudi Arabia broke ties with Iran following the 2016 ransacking and torching of the Saudi Embassy in Tehran, tensions have soared and the potential for a full-fledged military confrontation has become virtually unavoidable. With the September attack on Saudi’s oil fields in Abqaiq and the very real threat of
Dec 13, 2019
◆
Mohammad S. Alzoubi
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
The Iranian Regime’s Targeted Assault on Protesting Ahwazi People
Iranian regime forces and affiliated militias have been taking advantage of the world’s diverted attention to carry out a campaign of slaughter and mass arrests against the country’s Ahwazi Arabs. These killings are occurring in the Ma`shour (also known as the Bandar-e Ma`shour) area of the Arab Ahwaz region of
Dec 11, 2019
◆
Rahim Hamid
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
The Decline (and Fall?) of the “Fourth Persian Empire”
The timing of the Iranian government decision to lift gasoline subsidies, which has effectively doubled the cost of fuel on Iranian motorists, raises fundamental questions about the Tehran regime’s political calculus. Despite protests raging in nearby Iraq featuring open and persistent rejection of Iranian meddling and influence, and despite a
Nov 26, 2019
◆
Hassan Mneimneh
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Extrajudicial Killing of Ahwazis in Iran Continues Despite UN Condemnation
On July 18, 2019 Javaid Rehman, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran, reported that “Arab Ahwazis have continued to be subjected to violations of their rights…. [as] Iranian authorities have reportedly applied broad national security laws to target human
Sep 13, 2019
◆
Rahim Hamid
Aaron Meyer
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
The Challenge of Sovereignty: The PMF and Iranian Entrenchment in Iraq
As tensions continue to escalate between the United States and Iran, Iraq finds itself struggling to maintain a balancing act. In an attempt to curb Iranian influence and respond to U.S. pressure, Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi has moved to integrate the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), or Hash al Shaabi, into
Sep 6, 2019
◆
Haitham Numan
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iraq Is the Best Option to Mediate Between Iran and the United States
After the June 13 meeting between Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei and Japanese Prime Minister Abe failed to yield fruitful results, it has become clear that the United States and Iran have reached a deadlock without much of a solution on the horizon. Nevertheless, it is widely agreed among observers
Jul 19, 2019
◆
Farhad Alaaldin
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iran’s High Strategic Value for Turkey
In a time where the balance of the Middle East is in flux, regional leaders and the international community alike should be closely following the relationship between Turkey and Iran. While the relationship between Teheran and Ankara has historically been troubled, mutual interests have sprouted newfound cooperation between the two
Jul 16, 2019
◆
Firas Elias
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
How Iran’s New Education Proposal Silences and Criminalizes Non-Persian Languages
For many decades, successive Iranian regimes have perpetrated injustices against non-Persian peoples who make up approximately half of the country’s population. Indeed, the Islamic Republic chose to follow in the footsteps of the Shah in terms of promoting Persian ethnic supremacism. Since its inception, the regime has enacted a number
Jul 8, 2019
◆
Rahim Hamid
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
During Conflict Between the United States and Iran, Iraq’s Shiite Forces Will Prioritize Iraq
“We will not allow Iraq to become a battlefield for other countries to clear their debts”—this statement would be unremarkable coming from many Iraqi politicians, as it is in sync with the current view of most Iraqi political parties and the three Presidencies of Iraq: the President, Prime Minister and
May 14, 2019
◆
Farhad Alaaldin
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
How the U.S. Government Should Think About Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces
A spirited policy debate is underway within the corridors of power in Washington D.C. over the manner in which the United States should view and treat the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Iraq’s web of paramilitary organizations. It takes a great deal of concern to elevate such a niche issue to
May 9, 2019
◆
Michael Knights
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Sunni Lebanon: An “Oddity” at Risk
In successive polls, approval of the United States within the Sunni Lebanese community has rated consistently high—a fact that stands in contrast with low numbers in other Sunni Arab populations. Certainly, part of the discrepancy reflects internal Lebanese politics. Sunni Lebanese view Washington, together with Riyadh and Paris, as backers
May 8, 2019
◆
Hassan Mneimneh
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iran’s Ethnic Minorities Are Finding Their Own Voices—America Can Help
A little-publicized fact about Iran is its ethnic diversity: though Turks and Persians are the largest ethnic groups within Iran, Iran’s eight major non-Persian ethnicities represent approximately half of the country’s total population. Each of these minority groups—Ahwazis, Kurds, Turks, Balochis, Turkmen, Qashqais, Caspeans, and the Lor tribes—collectively account for
Mar 22, 2019
◆
Rahim Hamid
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Understanding Egypt’s Limited Involvement in the Campaign Against Iran
After U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s last visit to the Middle East, Cairo has attempted to appear aligned with Gulf States’ efforts against the Iranian regime, at least rhetorically. Egypt’s participation in the Warsaw summit against Iran—which Pompeo had publicly announced in Cairo one month earlier—was perhaps intended to
Mar 21, 2019
◆
Mohamed Maher
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iraq's Kurds Weigh Their Options, Balancing the United States and Iran
A trip to Iraqi Kurdistan last week, my first since the abortive referendum on independence there in October 2017, revealed a political landscape at once utterly different and eerily familiar. In the former category is the new, widespread understanding—both among the leaders I met with and among their younger followers
Mar 20, 2019
◆
David Pollock
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
What Washington—and Iran—Should Take Away from the Warsaw Conference
“Takeaways” is the classic Washington term used to encapsulate the outcomes of high-profile diplomatic gatherings. Last week, I was invited to moderate a panel at the “Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East,” cohosted in Warsaw by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Polish
Feb 22, 2019
◆
Dennis Ross
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Local Partnerships are Key to Confronting Iran in Iraq
With its historical, cultural, and civilizational depth, combined with a deft wielding of soft and hard power, Iran currently feels that it has the upper hand in Iraq. Moreover, Iranian strategy has experienced an important development: it has moved from calling for popular revolutions against political regimes to intervening in
Feb 19, 2019
◆
Firas Elias
Pagination
Previous page
‹‹
First page
« First
…
Page
2
Page
3
Page
4
Page
5
Current page
6
Page
7
Page
8
Page
9
Page
10
…
Last page
Last »
Next page
››