Hezbollah military parade in Nabatiyeh, Lebanon, late 2014. Photo Credit: Al Jazeera/Getty. In the past year, Hezbollah has come to face a paradigm shift in the Middle East. As economic turmoil raises domestic tensions and regional instability continues to threaten Lebanon, the group must continue to meet its fundamental policy needs. Key determinants of Hezbollah’s … Continue reading The Future Direction of Hezbollah

A Hamas election rally. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons. In late August, the Gaza Strip was rocked by a pair of suicide bombings that killed three police officers and injured multiple civilians.[i] Overt challenges to Hamas’s supremacy are rare, but they are not without precedent. Hamas was the victim of targeted explosions in 2015 and 2017, … Continue reading Instability in Gaza: Assessing Hamas’s Grip on Power

Houthis protest against Saudi-led coalition airstrikes in September 2015. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/ Henry Ridgwell. In September 2019, the United States held direct negotiations with Houthi rebels for the first time in four years. The United States should continue to negotiate with the Houthis to influence them toward combating two mutual enemies: AQAP and ISIS … Continue reading US-Houthi Collaboration Can Defeat AQAP and ISIS in Yemen

ISIS militants. Photo Credit: AP While the territorial caliphate in Iraq has collapsed, ongoing issues within the country and recent protests provide opportunities that the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) could exploit to re-gain some power. Continuing instability and insecurity in Iraq has allowed the group to target local leaders and intimidate civilians. … Continue reading Instability & Opportunity: The Potential for an ISIS Comeback in Iraq

Smoke rising in Rasulayn after Turkish shelling. Photo Credit: Arif Hudaverdi Yaman/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images. Turkey’s invasion into Northeast Syria in the wake of the Trump Administration’s withdrawal of troops that were supporting Kurdish partners in the area has left the once stable region in turmoil. The United States’s choice to leave Kurdish allies … Continue reading A New Balance of Power in the Middle East? Consequences of the U.S. Abandoning the Kurds

A woman and her children flee Northern Syria as Turkish forces advance. Photo source: REUTERS/Rodi Said. At a meeting in mid-September Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan outlined a plan to create a safe zone in northern Syria wherein up to three million Syrian refugees currently residing in Turkey could be relocated.[i] This plan, though, rests … Continue reading How Turkey’s “Safe Zone” Could Become a Killing Field for Syria’s Civilians

Palestinian President Abbas addresses the UN General Assembly. Photo Source: Reuter/Lucas Jackson. In mid-September, Israel held its second election in five months to determine the makeup of the 22nd Knesset. Noteworthy was the impressive performance by Benny Gantz and his centrist Blue and White Party, which outmaneuvered Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing Likud for a 33-32 seat … Continue reading Unfreezing the Status Quo: Palestinian Politics After Mahmoud Abbas