Arab & Islamic Politics

On October 14, 2009, The Washington Institute honored President William Jefferson Clinton with its 2009 Scholar-Statesman Award .

Egypt's National Democratic Party (NDP) conference is fast approaching, but the meeting—which will formally set the stage for political succession—isn't making headlines these days. On October 6, the Los Angeles Times reported on how the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood is reacting to sales of an Artificial Virginity Hymen Kit; still other

This article originally appeared on the Middle East Strategy at Harvard (MESH) Web site. Turkey's experiment with Islamists-turned-democrats might be coming to a tragic end. When the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, rooted in Turkey's Islamist opposition came to power in Turkey in 2002 and declared itself a democratic

PolicyWatch #1588 is the second in a two-part series discussing trends within the Muslim Brotherhood. This piece addresses the potential for the group's return to violence in Egypt, while PolicyWatch #1585 focuses on the organization's divisions in Jordan. Amid the uncertainty over Egypt's impending political succession, Egyptian security forces have

This week, in a striking symbol of improved U.S.-Libyan relations and Tripoli's reengagement with the international community, Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi is set to address the UN General Assembly. Previously, Qadhafi refused to visit the UN headquarters because it was located within the borders of "an enemy of humanity." Although

The agreement by the United States and other world powers to launch negotiations with Iran on October 1 -- despite the regime's refusal to discuss ending its uranium enrichment program -- makes clear that there will be no meaningful progress to stop Iran's drive for the bomb when world leaders

In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Ottoman Empire, having suffered military defeats at the hands of Europe, realized it could match its rivals only by becoming a European society itself. So it embarked on a program of intense reforms. In 1863, Sultan Abdulaziz established Darussafaka, the empire's first high

Two recent cases in Turkey involving American think tanks serve as evidence that anti-Americanism often spreads because of what people hear from their governments, and that such rhetoric, if not countered immediately, can have a debilitating effect on America's standing overseas. The most recent Turkish case concerns a June 2009

It's hard to believe, but nearly three weeks into a major crisis involving Syrian sponsorship of terrorism in Iraq, the United States is feigning neutrality. That's a big mistake. Given that almost 130,000 U.S. troops remain in harm's way trying to bolster Iraq's stability, and given America's longstanding concern with