Arab & Islamic Politics

Policy Analysis on Arab & Islamic Politics

Salafism and the Islamic State: A Video Introduction

The Islamic State (IS or ISIS) is often identified as the world’s leading proponent of Salafism, or fundamentalist Sunni Islam. The IS-affiliated perpetrators of the 2016 Brussels terrorist attacks had close ties with local Salafist groups. In their textbooks, the Islamic State promises to revive a Salafi understanding of Islam

May 23, 2016

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Jacob Olidort

In-Depth Reports

From ISIS to Activists:

New Security Trials in Saudi Arabia

In 2008, Saudi Arabia established the Specialized Criminal Court to try al-Qaeda detainees who had been connected to attacks inside the kingdom. Over time, the court's caseload has expanded to include supporters of the Islamic State, Jabhat al-Nusra and other terrorist groups, as well as activists and critics. The court's

May 23, 2016

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Lori Plotkin Boghardt

Video

Alternative Futures for the Middle East

Lasting reform will have to come from within Middle Eastern societies, a panel of American, Israeli, and Saudi experts said at an Asia Society forum.

May 20, 2016

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Dennis Ross
Michael Herzog

Articles & Testimony

Will Sisi Squander His Chance to Fix Egypt's Economy?

The latest bailout from Saudi Arabia may be the last, so Cairo needs to focus on helping itself by implementing complex subsidy and tax reforms.

May 17, 2016

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David Schenker

Articles & Testimony

France Refuses to See Islamism as a Cultural Problem

If European countries keep dodging difficult questions about Islamism for the sake of political expediency, international jihadists will continue to emerge from within.

May 13, 2016

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Fabrice Balanche

Brief Analysis

Promised Saudi Support to Jordan: At What Price?

Washington will be pleased to see Riyadh bolstering another key regional ally, but the potential development of Jordan's nuclear sector could cause headaches, and the political costs for Amman remain unclear.

May 9, 2016

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David Schenker

Brief Analysis

Saudi King's Son Drastically Reshapes Government

Sweeping bureaucratic changes, including the appointment of a new oil minister, may help the deputy crown prince impose his economic plan but could also prompt a royal family crisis.

May 9, 2016

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Simon Henderson

Articles & Testimony

Why Middle Eastern Leaders Are Talking to Putin, Not Obama

Russia is less dominant militarily but more willing to act, and that has changed the dynamics in the region.

May 8, 2016

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Dennis Ross

Articles & Testimony

Why Turkey Is Unlikely to Alter Its Syria Policy in Wake of Prime Minister's Exit

Davutoglu's departure probably won't change President Erdogan's perception that Turkey has the moral high ground by supporting Sunni rebels in Syria against the Assad regime.

May 6, 2016

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Soner Cagaptay

Articles & Testimony

Fueling the Islamic State's Engine

What makes someone become a violent Salafi rather than a non-violent Salafi depends on how they answer a basic question -- what makes someone Muslim?

May 5, 2016

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Jacob Olidort

Articles & Testimony

Possibilities for a Turkish-Iranian Rapprochement

The prospect of warmer Iranian-Turkish ties is manageable so long as the United States maintains the intent and capability to promote regional security, and assuming Ankara continues to balance any such rapprochement with its ties to the West, Israel, and Arab states.

May 1, 2016

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James Jeffrey

Fikra Forum

Defining a New Italian Role in Libya and Africa

Half a decade after the 2011 Libyan uprising, the Libyan Eastern Army is fighting against Islamist militants in Benghazi while a unified interim government in Tripoli, guided by Fayez Sarraj and sponsored by the United Nations (UN), is attempting restore order according to the Libyan political agreement of last December

Apr 28, 2016

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Maurizio Geri

Fikra Forum

The Ideology of Authority: 50 Years of Education in Syria

April 28, 2016 In the decades before 2011, Syria’s Baath Party flag, which controlled “society and state," and images of the president and “Leader” dominated all public platforms: the corridors of the state’s institutions and agencies, public squares, and even non-governmental institutions. This branding was most visible in educational institutions

Apr 28, 2016

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Dr. Raymon Al-Maaloli

Articles & Testimony

The Caliphate as Geopolitical Challenge

Until ISIS declared its so-called caliphate in 2014, this Islamic theological term barely raised flags for the West.

Apr 28, 2016

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Jacob Olidort

Fikra Forum

Arab Culture and the Yazidi Tragedy: Context and Accountability

April 28, 2016 Yazidism is a separate religion. It is not “Umayyad Islam,” and neither is it an off-shoot of Sufism. Islam, notably in its ecstatic rituals, is evidently part of the Yazidi universe ― to which Yazidism has contributed, and from which it has adapted. Still, Yazidism is not

Apr 28, 2016

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Hassan Mneimneh

Brief Analysis

Saudi Arabia's Challenging Plan to Shift from Oil

The success of Riyadh's new economic policy will partly depend on changes in social and political attitudes, as well as greater transparency on legal and other issues.

Apr 25, 2016

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Simon Henderson

Brief Analysis

Inside Iran's Runoff Election

A detailed look at what happened in the first round of this year's parliamentary elections and how it might affect round two.

Apr 25, 2016

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Patrick Schmidt

Fikra Forum

Sisi and the Absence of Politics

April 21, 2016 German philosopher and political scientist Hannah Arendt stated in one of her lectures that it is a problem when politicians make wrong decisions, but a catastrophe when they do not know how to present their decisions to the people. This saying perfectly encapsulates the Egyptian president’s latest

Apr 21, 2016

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Maged Atef

Articles & Testimony

Flipping the Script on ISIS

To curb the power of Salafi ideas, the West must help Middle Eastern countries rebuild even as they fight ISIS, so that the group's destructive, exploitative project is perceived for what it is.

Apr 18, 2016

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Jacob Olidort

Fikra Forum

Egypt’s Security and the Libyan Civil War

April 17, 2016 On the periphery of international concern, the situation in Libya continues to disintegrate. Yet Libya’s eastern neighbor Egypt has consistently exercised its influence in determining the diplomatic outcomes of the five year-long crisis. Recently, Cairo hosted talks between U.N. special representative to Libya Martin Kobler and Libyan

Apr 17, 2016

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Erica Wenig

Supported by the

Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics

The Washington Institute's Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics focuses on social, political, and economic developments in the Arab world, with an emphasis on the Arab countries of the Levant.

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Featured experts

David Schenker

David Schenker is the Taube Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and director of the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics. He is the former Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs.

Ghaith al-Omari

Ghaith al-Omari is the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Foundation Senior Fellow in The Washington Institute's Irwin Levy Family Program on the U.S.-Israel Strategic Relationship.

Hanin Ghaddar

Hanin Ghaddar is the Friedmann Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute's Rubin Family Arab Politics Program, where she focuses on Shia politics throughout the Levant.

Bilal Wahab

Bilal Wahab was the Nathan and Esther K. Wagner Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute.

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Policy Analysis on Arab & Islamic Politics

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