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Military & Security

Policy Analysis on Military & Security

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U.S. soldier trains Iraqis at Camp Taji
Maps & Graphics
In-Depth Reports
Fighting Jihadists By, With, and Through U.S. Partners:
Lessons Learned and Future Prospects
Special forces have succeeded especially in such missions, but any BWT effort requires some U.S. ground presence to achieve its goals.
Oct 20, 2022
◆
  • Ido Levy
Brief Analysis
Scoring Iraq’s New Government: Metrics for Preserving U.S. Interests
The protracted post-election process has been a step backward for Iraqi democracy, so Washington will need to closely monitor the new leadership’s actions and hold Baghdad to measurable benchmarks.
Oct 19, 2022
◆
  • Michael Knights
Flag of the Syrian Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Shifting Lines and IDPs: Azaz, Afrin, and the HTS Incursion
HTS is on the move through northern Syria, leaving locals in Afrin and Azaz even more vulnerable.
Oct 19, 2022
◆
  • Rena Netjes
Wing Loong fighter
Maps & Graphics
In-Depth Reports
China's Security Presence in the Middle East:
Redlines and Guidelines for the United States
A more assertive Beijing means that Washington must work harder to protect its traditional partnerships and secure sensitive information.
Oct 18, 2022
◆
  • Grant Rumley
A Turkish outpost in Iraqi Kurdistan
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Militias Pivot Away from U.S. Targets, Toward Kurdistan and Turkish Bases
Attack metrics prove that Iran-backed groups currently see more profit in striking "near enemies" than American forces.
Oct 17, 2022
◆
  • Eric Feely
◆ Militia Spotlight
The Israeli Knesset - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
Israel Debates the Lebanon Maritime Deal
The imminent election and the resultant rush to strike a deal are distracting from what could be a significant diplomatic and economic milestone for both countries.
Oct 13, 2022
◆
  • David Makovsky
Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), walk together near Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
The SDF Is Caught Between Turkey and the Islamic State Again
As happened with past incursions, Erdogan’s latest invasion threats and preparatory strikes are fatally distracting the SDF from its crucial counterterrorism mission—and at a time when jihadist activities against it are on the rise.
Oct 12, 2022
◆
  • Ido Levy
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Insight into As-Suwayda’s Position in the Syrian Situation
As-Suwayda has been unstable since the onset of the Syrian revolution. The increasingly fractured political leadership in this majority-Druze region reflects how Syria’s ongoing conflict has warped and splintered local governance.
Oct 12, 2022
◆
  • Ishtar Al Shami
Articles & Testimony
Ten Years After Benghazi: Getting Past Groundhog Day
Of all the conflict-riven countries in the Middle East, Libya still has the greatest potential for resolution in a way that could benefit the wider region, Europe, and the United States.
October-November 2022
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  • Ben Fishman
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iran’s Dilemma in Managing Shiite Conflicts in Iraq
Iran has recently adopted a more hands-off approach in Iraqi politics, hoping that the internal fractures will eventually work in their favor.
Oct 6, 2022
◆
  • Firas Elias
Baquer Namazi, a dual U.S.-Iranian citizen who had been imprisoned in Iran, shakes hands with an Omani official in Muscat - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
The Latest Chapter in Iran’s Hostage Diplomacy
U.S. policymakers should be careful about concluding that Tehran’s decision to relax restrictions on two detained American citizens has anything to do with the nuclear talks.
Oct 6, 2022
◆
  • Henry Rome
Smoke is seen at a Saudi oil facility in Abqaiq, 2019 - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
Will a Sense of Revenge Spur Iran to Attack Saudi Arabia?
While the regime doubles down on its domestic crackdown, it has increased its threatening rhetoric abroad as well, potentially drawing U.S. assets into a new round of military escalation reminiscent of summer 2019.
Oct 4, 2022
◆
  • Farzin Nadimi
AWH graphic
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Iraqi Militia Group Makes Credible New Threat Against the Gulf States
The facade group in question tends to follow through on its warnings, so its latest rhetoric about using developments in Yemen as cause for new attacks should be taken seriously.
Oct 3, 2022
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Jordan-Syria Border
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
The Captagon War: Smuggling on the Jordanian-Syrian Border
As drug smuggling increases across Jordan’s border with Syria, Jordanian authorities need to seek solutions in both the security and social spheres.
Sep 30, 2022
◆
  • Saud Al-Sharafat
A woman at the Al-Hawl (or Al-Hol) detention camp in Syria - source: Reuters
Brief Analysis
Detention Facilities in Syria, Iraq Remain Vulnerable to Islamic State Attacks
An attempted suicide operation against al-Hawl camp highlights the ongoing risks posed by indefinite detention of foreigners associated with IS.
Sep 29, 2022
◆
  • Devorah Margolin
A souvenir plate depicting Russian President Putin and Crimea - source: Reuters
Articles & Testimony
The Internal Forces Pushing Putin’s Escalation in the War with Ukraine
The partial mobilization suggests that he is more afraid of regime hardliners than the Russian public.
Sep 24, 2022
◆
  • Anna Borshchevskaya
Brief Analysis
For Hezbollah, a Maritime Border Deal Is a Way to Avoid War
Hezbollah leaders are not ready to act on their many threats of major escalation, so Washington and its allies should prevent the group from reaping the nascent agreement’s reputational and financial benefits.
Sep 23, 2022
◆
  • Hanin Ghaddar
Video
Brief Analysis
Israeli National Security on the Eve of Yet Another Election
A Forum in Memory of Zeev Schiff
Watch an expert forum on the new realities of the Middle East and Israel's strategic position amid deepening ties with Arab countries, Iran's regional ambitions, Palestinian political crisis, and renewed great-power competition.
Sep 22, 2022
◆
  • Amos Gilead
  • Ephraim Sneh
  • Ehud Yaari
  • Amos Yadlin
◆ Zeev Schiff Memorial Lectures
Articles & Testimony
Regional Security Cooperation Partnerships in the Middle East
The Abraham Accords have substantially increased the region’s options for countering Iranian threats, but the past performance of Arab coalitions should make policymakers cautious about expecting too much from new alliances.
Sep 21, 2022
◆
  • David Schenker
MEES map showing Israeli and Lebanese maritime border claims in the East Mediterranean.
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Israel’s Karish Gas Field: Diplomatic Opportunity or Casus Belli?
Seven experts examine how the fraught decision to start production might affect Beirut’s negotiating stance, Hezbollah’s military calculus, U.S.-Israel relations, and other factors.
Sep 20, 2022
◆
  • Simon Henderson
  • Hanin Ghaddar
  • Matthew Levitt
  • Ehud Yaari
  • David Makovsky
  • David Schenker
  • Andrew J. Tabler

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Supported by the

Military and Security Studies Program

The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program has established itself as an unrivaled source of reliable, incisive, and forward-looking analysis concerning several of the most critical national-security challenges facing the United States today: The U.S. military role in the Middle East, Iran's nuclear program and its proxy armies, the ongoing conflict is in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, the regional proliferation of missiles and weapons of mass destruction, the security dimensions of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and many other security issues on the frontline of the U.S. policymaking agenda.

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Featured experts

Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt is the Kahn Senior Fellow and director of The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program.
Michael Knights
Michael Knights
Michael Knights is the Jill and Jay Bernstein Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and cofounder of the Militia Spotlight platform, which offers in-depth analysis of developments related to Iran-backed militias.
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley is the Meisel-Goldberger Senior Fellow and Director of the Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation Program on Great Power Competition and the Middle East at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Elizabeth Dent - source: The Washington Institute
Elizabeth Dent
Elizabeth Dent is a Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where she focuses on U.S. foreign and defense policy toward the Gulf states, Iraq, and Syria.
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