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Military & Security

Policy Analysis on Military & Security

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Articles & Testimony
Bibi “Natanzyahu” Plays Bad Cop on Iran
Washington’s conspicuous silence over the nuclear sabotage at Natanz no doubt stems from the fact that Israel has bought more time for negotiations.
Apr 14, 2021
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  • David Pollock
Kokuka Courageous tanker, Gulf of Oman
In-Depth Reports
Deterring Iran in the Gray Zone
Insights from Four Decades of Conflict
The United States has repeatedly failed to understand the unique requirements of gray zone deterrence. A U.S. strategy would not only facilitate more successful diplomacy with Tehran but also enhance efforts to counter other actors such as China and Russia.
Apr 14, 2021
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  • Michael Eisenstadt
Iranian sailors on board a naval vessel in the Strait of Hormuz
Brief Analysis
Iran and Israel’s Undeclared War at Sea (Part 2): The Potential for Military Escalation
Although both sides have sought to keep their tit-for-tat maritime attacks under control, they pose a substantial risk of miscalculation and escalation that could jeopardize international shipping.
Apr 13, 2021
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  • Farzin Nadimi
An Iraqi member of a Shia PMF militia
Articles & Testimony
Team of Legal Gladiators? Iraqi Militias’ Tortured Relationship with Law
Iran-backed armed groups hate being exposed as criminals in the eyes of a populace that cares deeply about rule of law, so they have turned Iraq’s legal sector into a battlespace.
Apr 12, 2021
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  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
Articles & Testimony
‘Suspicious’ Blackout at Iranian Nuclear Site Almost Certain to Prompt Retaliation
Israel was silent the last time there was a mysterious explosion at Natanz, but this time Iran is not only being embarrassed, it is being humiliated.
Apr 12, 2021
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  • Simon Henderson
Sabereen cartoon
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Sabereen News
Sabereen News is the main social media conglomerate supporting all "resistance" actions and factions in Iraq.
Apr 9, 2021
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  • Hamdi Malik
  • Crispin Smith
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
RA img
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Raba Allah
Raba Allah is the "mothership" for vigilante and counter-protester groups developed by the Kataib Hezbollah network.
Apr 9, 2021
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  • Hamdi Malik
  • Crispin Smith
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Iranian sailors on board a naval vessel in the Strait of Hormuz
Brief Analysis
Iran and Israel’s Undeclared War at Sea (Part 1): IRGC-Hezbollah Financing Schemes
Recent maritime escalation between the two countries stems mainly from Iranian efforts to fund Hezbollah, underscoring the financial interdependency between the Lebanese militia, Tehran, and the Syrian regime.
Apr 6, 2021
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  • Matthew Levitt
Articles & Testimony
Russia Seeks Regional Buy-In for Its Syria Plans
Moscow is using calibrated military power and complex diplomacy to persuade Turkey, Qatar, and other countries to back its solutions.
Apr 6, 2021
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  • Anna Borshchevskaya
MD
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Rising Profile of Fasail al-Muqawama al-Duwaliya in Convoy Bombings
The group has intensified its claims of convoy attacks, shifting from Anbar-focused roadside bombings to incidents on the Kuwaiti border.
Apr 2, 2021
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  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight
KH flag
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Kataib Hezbollah
Kataib Hezbollah is the premier militia in Iraq, operating under Iran's direct command and fielding a wide range of cells responsible for kinetic, media, and social operations, some bankrolled by the Iraqi state.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Michael Knights
  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
WH
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq
A facade group with unique ties to Kataib Hezbollah, Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq has been used exclusively to claim or threaten attacks against Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Brief Analysis
Yemen’s “Southern Hezbollah”: Implications of Houthi Missile and Drone Improvements
As the Iran-backed rebels make further range leaps that bring them closer to reaching Israel and other countries, the United States needs to start viewing them as a proliferation challenge beyond Yemen’s civil war.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Michael Knights
AK img
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Kataib Sarkhat al-Quds (formerly known as Ashab al-Kahf)
The first and best-known of the facade groups that Iran-backed militias use to conceal their involvement in operations, Kataib Sarkhat al-Quds (formerly known as Ashab al-Kahf) has a particularly strong connection to AAH and, more recently, HaN.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
  • Sary Mumayiz
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Satellite map of wider Rea Sea with country names
In-Depth Reports
The Case for a Holistic U.S. Policy Toward the Emerging Red Sea Region
To promote stability and other U.S. interests, Washington must reshape its approach to this increasingly complex staging ground for global competition.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Elana DeLozier
◆ Transition 2021
QJ
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Qasem al-Jabbarin
Qasem al-Jabbarin is a Kataib Hezbollah-directed facade group that specializes in roadside bombings against Iraqi supply trucks servicing the U.S. military in Iraq.
Apr 1, 2021
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  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Brief Analysis
The Islamic State Threat in Syria Two Years After the Caliphate
Since losing its territorial base, the group has shown troubling signs of recovery amid a deteriorating situation at al-Hawl refugee camp.
Mar 31, 2021
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  • Ido Levy
AD graphic
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Saraya Awliya al-Dam
This minor facade group is occasionally used to claim bombing attacks on U.S. supply convoys and rocket attacks on the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Mar 29, 2021
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  • Crispin Smith
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Video
Brief Analysis
Iran's Long Game in Syria
Three scholars explore the stunning breadth of Iranian dominance over Damascus and what this means for any U.S. plans to foster stability in Syria or reopen negotiations with Tehran.
Mar 29, 2021
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  • Oula A. Alrifai
  • Nakissa Jahanbani
  • Mehdi Khalaji
Articles & Testimony
What Biden Can Do for Libya
The U.S. does not always have to be at the head of the table, but it has to be present and ready to jump in if progress stalls on issues such as advancing political dialogue, holding elections on time, and addressing Russia’s worrisome military encroachment.
Mar 26, 2021
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  • Ben Fishman

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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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