Policy Analysis

On Monday morning, May 31, the most recent convoy organized by the "Free Gaza" movement came to a violent end. With scores of dead and wounded after Israeli naval commandos took over the largest ship in the convoy, the repercussions of this deadly event will be felt on several levels

FEATURING Gen. James L. Jones, Thomas Friedman, William Kristol, Martin Kramer, and David Makovsky THE PROCEEDINGS In 1985, a small group of visionary Americans committed to advancing U.S. interests in the Middle East established the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Twenty-five years later, a special Soref Symposium celebrated the

On May 26, 2010, Matthew Levitt, senior fellow and director of the Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at The Washington Institute, testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. Nonprofit organizations are particularly susceptible to abuse by terrorists and their supporters

Eleven weeks after the March 7, 2010, elections, Iraq appears to be headed toward a sprawling "unity" government that values stability and inclusiveness over efficiency or decisiveness. Despite being an arguably safer bet for Iraq at a delicate and dangerous moment, this approach will pose several challenges for U.S. policy

A graphical analysis shows that women have been losing ground in Turkey since the AKP government came to power in 2002. Despite an increasing -- though still small -- presence in parliament, women hold fewer executive and bureaucratic posts in government. As a consequence, Turkish women are being pushed out

On Monday, Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri will visit Washington for a meeting with President Obama. In announcing the meeting, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs called it "a symbol of the close and historic relationship between Lebanon and the United States." Indeed, between 2005 and 2009, bilateral ties were

June 4 marked the first anniversary of President Barack Obama's speech in Cairo, which offered Arabs and Muslims around the world a new "engagement" with the United States. A year later, how do Arab publics see the results of that effort -- and how much do their views about it

The May 18 draft resolution proposing additional sanctions to curb Iran's nuclear program is backed by all five permanent members of the UN Security Council. Although this unanimity is the proposal's principal strength, it comes at the cost of making the draft weaker in some sections than ideas discussed previously

On May 6, Britain went to the polls to elect a new government, producing no clear result but forcing the resignation of Labor Party leader Gordon Brown. Within hours of taking over as prime minister, Conservative Party leader David Cameron had created a new body, a British national security council

In the fluid situation surrounding Iran's nuclear program, perhaps the safest bet is to expect more surprises. Despite the promising draft circulated on May 19, it is not clear how meaningful a sanctions resolution adopted by the UN Security Council will be, even if it is adopted soon. Nor is

Growing links between terrorist groups and organized crime networks pose significant challenges to authorities, but also present new opportunities as targeting terrorists' criminal activities becomes an increasingly effective strategy.

Turkey's protracted political battle between the governing Justice and Development Party, or AKP, and its opponents reached a crescendo this month with the Turkish Parliament's vote on proposed constitutional amendments. The battle over the amendments represented the zenith of the country's dangerous polarization between two broad political camps congregated around

Recently leaked documents detail an exchange between Washington and Cairo regarding the future of U.S. economic assistance to Egypt. The documents indicate that the Obama administration has welcomed Cairo's idea of ending traditional assistance in favor of creating a new endowment, "The Egyptian-American Friendship Foundation." This idea has a long

On May 11, 2010, Institute Keston Family fellow and director of Project Fikra J. Scott Carpenter cosigned an open letter to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton calling for stronger U.S. efforts to persuade the Egyptian regime to lift its state of emergency. The letter, drafted by the Carnegie Endowment

Since the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, rose to power in Turkey in 2002, special taxes on alcohol have increased dramatically, making a glass of wine or beer one of the most expensive in Europe, and for that purpose anywhere in the world. The AKP leadership is known for

On April 21, President Obama's National Security Advisor General (Ret.) Jim Jones gave a rare public speech on U.S. Middle East Policy at The Washington Institute's 2010 Soref Symposium. During his address, he focused on the new U.S. National Security Strategy that will be unveiled in the coming weeks. What

Last weekend, a combination of good fortune and exceptional law enforcement prevented a potential tragedy in Times Square and led to the capture of the alleged attempted bomber before he could leave the country. Next time -- and there will be a next time -- we may not be so

To the casual observer, Iraq's post-electoral political process might appear to be deadlocked or moving at a snail's pace. Although international observers validated the results of the March 7 election as largely free and fair, the outcome has been subjected to a series of ill-natured legal challenges. This will complicate

On May 1, 2010, Jordanian-American journalist Rami Khouri repeated Harvard professor Stephen Walt's critique of The Washington Institute in a Beirut Daily Star op-ed column. In his reply, which ran as a letter to the editor on May 8, Institute executive director Robert Satloff not only responded to the unfounded

In late March, reports emerged in the Kuwaiti press that Syria had transferred Scud missiles to Hizballah. One month on, news of the Scud transfer continues to reverberate in Washington and the Middle East. A congressional resolution condemning Syria has been drafted and the confirmation of the Obama administration's ambassador-designate