Policy Analysis

Initial estimates vary widely, but getting the numbers right is important -- not only for retrospective judgment, but also for future reference, particularly with regard to further minimizing civilian casualties.

A primer on how the group has achieved its dominant position in Lebanese politics, engaged in terrorist activity worldwide, and played a major role in the Syrian war.

It would be naive to think that economic growth will solve all of the Middle East's thorny dilemmas; but it would be equally naive to believe that they can be solved without it.

The Saudi government is expanding its counterterrorism work to confront the ISIS threat.

As the United States and its partners figure out how to rebuild Gaza without replenishing Hamas's military capabilities, which brought on the destruction in the first place, they can draw on broad international consensus and past agreements.

President Obama needs to go to war with the Islamic State, or it will go to war with America.

As Abadi's ratification approaches, Washington should encourage him to swiftly signal his commitment to decentralization, security reform for the Sunnis, and a revenue-sharing deal with the Kurds.

If Hariri is to lead Lebanon out of the current morass, he will have to take a risk and stray from Beirut's well-worn path of complete acquiescence to Hezbollah.

The naming of a new prime minister should give Iraq's various constituencies another chance -- perhaps their last chance -- to unite under one flag and one government.

The world came to the rescue of the refugees on Mount Sinjar, so why does it continue to ignore thousands more Iraqi minorities who face imminent threat of extermination by jihadists?

Erdogan will go down in history as the leader who transformed Turkey economically, but the liberals will transform it politically.

When Israel cracks into its U.S.-funded weapons stockpile, even President Obama doesn't hear about it.

At present, Iran is unlikely to accept more limitations on its nuclear activities, but that doesn't mean Washington has to settle for a watered-down deal that further damages U.S. strategic interests.

Under circumstances analogous to America's Civil War, Iraqis of all stripes are still trying to make their Western liberal constitution work, so Maliki's final duty is to withdraw gracefully.

Hamas should be shielding the people of Gaza from the worst of the fighting, not using them as human shields.

When Hezbollah declared its support for the Assad regime against the Syrian rebels, the group damaged its credibility as a voice against oppression. Yet Hezbollah’s recent successes in Syria have allowed it to strengthen its domestic political position. By strategically partnering with the Shiite Amal Party and the Christian Free

The former chief of staff to Israel's defense minister joins veteran peace envoy Dennis Ross to discuss the potential for a prolonged ceasefire and reconstruction.

In ordering limited airstrikes in Iraq, President Barack Obama has reluctantly become involved in a crisis he wished to avoid. Given that Iraq's leaders seem too diverted by the political turmoil in Baghdad to address the grave threats to their country, one can perhaps understand his hesitation. Nevertheless, his narrow

Given the consolidation of jihadist gains and the lack of interest and capacity among neighboring states to uproot ISIL in Iraq and Syria, the group is likely to endure absent a more assertive U.S. policy involving military and political operations.

Erdogan has the political and constitutional wherewithal to transform Turkey into a presidential system, and he will likely do just that.