Policy Analysis

Recent Washington Institute polls have tracked Gazans’ views on Hamas and the ceasefire with Israel, along with a wider regional decline in popularity for Hamas and Hezbollah.

Recent developments will require the U.S. to expand its objectives in Syria and to reevaluate its approach to local alliances if it hopes to shape a positive outcome to the bubbling frustrations in Syria.

Although joining BRICS is an exciting economic prospect for many governments, the addition of new member states has not been without controversy. In Egypt, news of the nation’s accession to this institution has fueled a heated internal media debate on the feasibility of the move and its impact on the deteriorating economic situation in Egypt.

In Iraq, the precarious reality and confused relationships seem to have driven al-Sudani’s government to attempt to circumvent the traditional binary choice between Washington and Moscow. This new course comes with a distinct and flashy name, the “Development Road” project, and looks to Beijing as a third way forward.

Longstanding tensions in the multi-ethnic city of Kirkuk in Iraq may once again spark confrontations between Turkey and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), the latest in a series of disagreements over the city.

A unique new public opinion poll from Saudi Arabia sheds light on popular attitudes there toward a potential deal to “normalize” relations with Israel.

In the wake of the devastating earthquake, an outpouring of solidarity and social mobilization has taken place in the country at a grassroots level. The complexity of the situation from a logistical and geographical standpoint helps explain Morocco’s reluctance to indiscriminately accept all international aid offers.

When examining the legacy of the Oslo Accords, one clear outcome is the way in which diplomatic breakthroughs—along with their failures—have deeply shaped public attitudes towards the conflict. Thirty years later, fresh polls emphasize the deep erosion of trust and support for the two-state solution in Palestinian (along with Israeli) society, but a lingering hunger for some kind of breakthrough.

Iran has stepped up pressure on Baghdad and Erbil to disarm and relocate Iranian Kurdish opposition parties in the Kurdistan Region amidst ongoing disputes between Erbil and Baghdad over budget and oil revenues.

The lesson of this current episode with Abbas should be that more research is called for to throw light on this half-forgotten chapter of history to refute such claims. Only more accurate information can help remove the Khazars from the shadows of mystery and antisemitism and place them instead in the correct historical context.

As rival Palestinian factions clash in Lebanon’s Ain al-Hilweh camp and Hamas-backed militants capture UNRWA schools, new polls indicate that public frustration in Gaza and the West Bank has grown to the point where many would back popular protests.

The sense of helplessness that deepened during the course of the intifada was also accompanied by the need to find a source of the blame. In the eyes of the Israeli public, that blame was placed squarely on Palestinian leadership.

While insufficient, a collapse of the Oslo edifice would come with a hefty price for the Palestinians, not only as individuals but also as a people seeking self-determination.

A personal journey through peace, politics, and the legacy of the Accords

The Oslo Accords were seriously flawed but now must be preserved. Some of the mistakes can probably be fixed over time to make sure the historic agreement does not remain a breakthrough into a dead end, but instead paves the way towards a stable compromise between Israel and the Palestinians.

On Sunday August 27, Deir Ezzor Military Council (DEMC) Head Abu Khawla—along with a number of senior commanders from the DEMC—were invited to meet with the commander-in-chief in the SDF Mazloum Abdi in neighboring Al-Hasakah province.

The Washington Institute conducts annual polling throughout the Arab world. Explore our latest 2023 analysis or access available data through our interactive platform.

As we look back at the legacy of the accords, it is not the Oslo Accords that failed us, but Israelis and Palestinians who failed Oslo.

Results from a new public opinion poll conducted in Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem show key differences between Palestinian attitudes and those of respondents elsewhere in the Arab world when it comes to relations with Israel and the roles of the United States, China, Russia, and other regional powers.

In the heart of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), construction of the ambitious Erbil Hills Golf Course is underway.