Syria

A longtime expert on military affairs, a researcher on Shiite militias, and a retired U.S. Army colonel discuss optimal partners for defeating ISIS and the heavy risks associated with allowing Iran-associated actors to expand their influence.

For the time being, King Abdullah will extract revenge on ISIS in Syria and have a freer hand to crack down on ISIS supporters at home.

Read statements from officials and experts who participated in a special conference on the multifaceted nonmilitary aspects of the anti-ISIL campaign.

If Washington continues to bomb ISIS while sidestepping the question of Assad's future, Syria may wind up partitioned between jihadist and Iranian-backed forces.

With its Lebanese Shiite constituency increasingly vulnerable, its Iranian patron hobbled by other commitments, and its regional reputation in tatters, Hezbollah will likely think twice before responding forcefully to the Quneitra attack.

The administration needs to make sure that its imminent creation of a new rebel force is conducted with clear political goals, a concrete military strategy, and due consideration of likely operational contingencies.

Even if Cairo wanted to normalize relations with the Assad regime, its need to stay on good terms with Saudi Arabia and the UAE would seriously constrain how far it could go in that direction.

A detailed discussion of how to combat both ISIS and the Assad regime, including through diplomacy and other political means as complements to the existing military campaign.

On December 2, 2014, Ambassadors Itamar Rabinovich and Michael Oren were presented with the 2014 Washington Institute Scholar-Statesman Award for their contributions to the academic study of the Middle East and the practice of diplomacy. Oren is the author of two acclaimed books -- Power, Faith and Fantasy: America in