Policy Analysis

After Asaib Ahl al-Haq sought a halt to the verbal attacks, Hezbollah Hezbollah doubled-down with a cutting public insult

Beijing’s sharply anti-Israel response to the Gaza conflict, prompted by its increased focus on challenging Washington, exposes the limits of its diplomatic reach in the Middle East and the broader tensions in its foreign policy strategy.

Popular anger against U.S.-sanctioned human rights abuser Rayan al-Kildani has grown in the two months since the wedding hall fire in the Nineveh Plains, casting a shadow over his election hopes.

An in-depth look at the group’s post-2007 activities confirms that it was steadily preparing the ground (and the population) for war while lulling foreign officials into awaiting a moderation that would never come.

As details emerge of potential direct links to the attack on Israel, one thing is clear: Hamas would not have been able to plan and conduct such an operation without years of Iranian training, Iranian weapons, and hundreds of millions of dollars in Iranian funding.

Sultan Haitham spoke both as a sovereign and as a prime minister accounting for progress.

Ansar Allah al-Awfiya is one of the top Iraqi proxies for IRGC Quds Force, a Sadrist breakaway faction that has long garrisoned the Iraq-Syrian border and which has killed Iraqi protestors to demonstrate its loyalty.

As Russia leans into support for Israel’s enemies, officials should look for ways to show Moscow that the threat of escalation goes both ways—including through outreach to Ukraine.

Given a couple of days of Gaza-related ceasefire, muqawama leaders went back to old habits of diminishing each other and spilling their secrets, with interesting results

The Biden administration needs to tread carefully in engaging Algeria, since preserving UN negotiations on Western Sahara and protecting Morocco’s crucial relations with Washington and Israel are paramount to U.S. regional interests

Despite not taking the time to speak with Israeli officials or even verify key details on the ground, reporters proceeded with a heavily slanted piece that raised further questions about the paper’s wartime editorial policies.

The international community and the Global Coalition should pressure Turkey to cease its drone attacks and help to address the destruction of facilities and infrastructure installations.

The risky tit-for-tat strikes between U.S. and militia forces are one symptom of a wider competition between rival actors in Iraq—one that American and European officials should work together on containing.

According to new polling, the percentage of six Arab publics who believe America has had a positive role in the war amounts to just 7%.

As Iran-backed proxies continue targeting Israeli and U.S. interests, mounting public anger in the Gulf states might spur leaders to announce production cuts at this week’s cartel meeting.

Despite reassuring U.S. officials during recent meetings, it is unclear whether Prime Minister Sudani can indefinitely placate an angry public or prevent Tehran’s militia proxies from further escalating the situation.

Four experts discuss what Washington can do about the latest spike in militia attacks against U.S. bases and local partners—even as they try to sustain the counterterrorism mission against the Islamic State.

Washington has signaled that its patience is wearing thin with the group's pivotal role in two dozen attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria in a month.

Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada's designation for terrorist activities is long overdue, reflecting its important ongoing role in attacks on U.S. forces in northern Iraq and eastern Syria.

Although Washington and its partners have kept the war from spreading so far, the lack of clear rules on some fronts—particularly Syria—has created a dangerous environment in which any actor might inadvertently cross someone’s red lines.