Syria

Policy Analysis on Syria

The Defense Department's deputy assistant secretary for counternarcotics and global threats addressed an off-the-record Policy Forum at The Washington Institute. The following is an excerpt from his prepared remarks. "The U.S. government has, for decades, dedicated significant resources to stemming the flow of illicit drugs into the United States, and

Apr 26, 2012

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William F. Wechsler

Articles & Testimony

Confronting Damascus: U.S. Policy toward the Evolving Situation in Syria, Part II

Chairman Chabot and Ranking Member Ackerman: Thank you for this opportunity to testify before the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia on the situation in Syria and U.S. government efforts to force President Bashar al-Assad to "step aside," as outlined by President Obama in August 2011. During Part

Apr 25, 2012

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Andrew J. Tabler

Brief Analysis

Assad Must Be Forced to Allow Peaceful Assembly

Videos and reports from Syria over the past week show that Bashar al-Assad's forces continue to violate the ceasefire outlined by UN special representative Kofi Annan on April 12. The regime has neither ended its use of heavy weapons in population centers nor -- an additional obligation -- pulled back

Apr 18, 2012

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Andrew J. Tabler

Brief Analysis

Could the Gulf States Intervene in Syria?

The participation of Qatar and the United Arab Emirates in the Libyan conflict demonstrated the Gulf Cooperation Council's activism and capability. In recent months, therefore, speculation has focused on possible GCC intervention in the Syrian civil war. On February 27, Qatari prime minister Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani told the Friends

Apr 17, 2012

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Michael Knights

Articles & Testimony

Are Syrian Alawites and Turkish Alevis the Same?

Could Turkey really go to war against Syria? If it were to do so, Ankara would need to find a way to deal with the increasingly sectarian nature of the conflict in Syria and its potential ramifications inside Turkey. The regime of Bashar al-Assad has enjoyed overwhelming support among Syria's

Apr 17, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

Assad Continues Violent Attacks on the Opposition

Data from one of the key Syrian opposition groups, the Local Coordination Committees (LCC), shows a persistent pattern of violent, armed regime actions against the people despite the ceasefire that supposedly went into force last week ( view the Syria Incident Database). The regime has effectively continued its struggle against

Apr 17, 2012

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Jeffrey White

Articles & Testimony

Will Syria's Sectarian Divisions Spill Over into Turkey?

Should the conflict in Syria turn Sunni on Alawite, Turkish Alevis may find themselves actively opposing any intervention organized by their own government. Observers of the growing humanitarian crisis in Syria are increasingly worried that the conflict will turn into sectarian struggle, and with good reason: the Assad regime has

Apr 16, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Video

Brief Analysis

The Free Syrian Army: A Military Assessment

On April 10, 2012, Jeffrey White and Andrew Exum addressed a Policy Forum at The Washington Institute. Mr. White, a defense fellow at the Institute, previously completed a thirty-four-year career with the Defense Intelligence Agency, serving in a wide variety of senior analytical and leadership positions. Mr. Exum, a senior

Apr 13, 2012

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Jeffrey White
Andrew Exum

Brief Analysis

Assad's Secretive Cyber Force

Cyber bullets are bullets nonetheless.

Apr 12, 2012

Brief Analysis

Changed Prospects for Turkish Military Intervention in Syria

Several recent developments have put the possibility of military action in Syria on Turkey's agenda. On April 9, Syrian forces opened fire at a refugee camp on the Turkish side of the border, killing two Syrian refugees and wounding two Turks. The number of such refugees crossing into Turkey has

Apr 12, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

After the Annan Deadline: Options for U.S. Policy on Syria

Bashar al-Assad's complete disregard for UN special envoy Kofi Annan's April 10 deadline for withdrawal of regime forces from population centers is only the latest sign that Damascus has no intention of implementing the envoy's six-point plan to deal with the Syria crisis. The fact that the regime's armed forces

Apr 11, 2012

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Andrew J. Tabler

Articles & Testimony

A Piece of Turkey Lies in the Middle of the Syrian Desert

A little-known Turkish exclave, Caber Kalesi (Qal'at Ja'bar in Arabic), is a sliver of sovereign Turkish territory that sits smack in the middle of Syria.

Apr 8, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

Syria and Turkey: The PKK Dimension

Among Syrian opposition groups, the belief is widespread that Damascus has been allowing the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) -- a group on the State Department's Foreign Terrorist Organizations list -- to operate once again in Syria. Back in 1998, the Syrian regime curbed PKK activity on its soil and cut

Apr 5, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Articles & Testimony

The Free Syrian Army vs. the Syrian National Council -- Which Should We Support?

A year into the Syrian uprising against Bashar Al-Assad, the dysfunctional nature of Syrian opposition politics isn't exactly news. But the resignation last month of Syrian dissident Kamal Labwani from the Syrian National Council (SNC) -- which he accused not only of being "undemocratic" and incompetent, but intent on undermining

Apr 2, 2012

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David Schenker

Brief Analysis

Lebanon’s Security Concerns over Syria

Since the uprising against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad began a year ago, Lebanon has lived in fear that the worsening violence will spill across the border. In recent days, that fear has come close to being realized with reports that Syrian troops fired into Lebanon during clashes with rebels. The

Mar 30, 2012

Brief Analysis

Dateline Middle East: Trip Reports from around the Region

On March 27, 2012, Robert Satloff, Andrew J. Tabler, and Simon Henderson addressed a Policy Forum at The Washington Institute. Dr. Satloff, the Institute's executive director and Howard P. Berkowitz chair in U.S. Middle East policy, had just returned from Israel and Jordan. Mr. Tabler, the Institute's Next Generation fellow

Mar 29, 2012

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Robert Satloff
Andrew J. Tabler
Simon Henderson

Articles & Testimony

The Human Rights Crisis in Syria

Testimony prepared for the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, U.S. House of Representatives Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to testify on the Assad regime's brutal year-long crackdown on Syria's pro-democracy protestors. Throughout years as a journalist and analyst based in Damascus, I followed Tom Lantos's often-critical words on

Mar 28, 2012

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Andrew J. Tabler

Articles & Testimony

Kofi Annan's Plan Is Destined to Fail

President Bashar al-Assad has agreed to U.N. envoy and former Secretary-General Kofi Annan's six-point plan to end the bloodshed in Syria. Al-Assad was wise to do so. The U.N. initiative, which endorses al-Assad's oversight of a "political process to address the legitimate aspirations" of the Syrian people, is a boon

Mar 28, 2012

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David Schenker

Articles & Testimony

Don't Expect Turkey to Invade Syria

A Turkish intervention in Syria could boomerang, ratcheting up PKK attacks and eroding the soft power Turkey has painstakingly built in the Middle East over the past decade.

Mar 25, 2012

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

The Tides of Battle in Syria

The Free Syria Army remains in the fight and should be sustained and armed to maintain military pressure on the regime.

Mar 23, 2012

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Jeffrey White

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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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Andrew J. Tabler

Andrew J. Tabler is the Martin J. Gross Senior Fellow in the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute, where he focuses on Syria and U.S. policy in the Levant.

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.

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.

Elizabeth Dent

Elizabeth Dent is the Nathan and Esther K. Wagner 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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Policy Analysis on Syria

Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics

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Policy Analysis on Syria

Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics

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