Policy Analysis

The sudden removal of several ministers is most likely a response to popular dissatisfaction with the government's performance at home.

On December 2, 2014, Ambassadors Itamar Rabinovich and Michael Oren were presented with the 2014 Washington Institute Scholar-Statesman Award for their contributions to the academic study of the Middle East and the practice of diplomacy. Oren is the author of two acclaimed books -- Power, Faith and Fantasy: America in

The attack on Kobane, pitting ISIS against Kurdish forces, is a political as well as military battle given its presence on the border between Turkey and Syria.

It is time to press the Iranians to make the tough choices they have been unwilling to make, including through greater involvement in regional crises such as the Syria war.

Assad's power base is not monolithic, and rising discontent could serve as a vital opportunity to reconcile various Syrian religious groups.

An intensive discussion with the head of Dutch intelligence covering the role of the Syria campaign, advances by the new generation of European jihadists, and steps officials can take to understand and reduce the threat.

A crucial bloc within Egypt mainly wants stability, rather than the deep institutional reforms that a true revolution would require.

Friday's meeting offers an opportunity to discuss the kingdom's domestic challenges, the proposed no-fly zone in northern Syria, and the potential ramifications of ramped-up training of Syrian opposition forces on Jordanian territory.

How an historic operation thirty years ago to save Ethiopian Jews succeeded -- and nearly failed.

Leaders in Baghdad and Iraqi Kurdistan have taken a brave step toward reunifying the country through revenue sharing. The United States should support implementation of the deal.

A tactical shift by Hezbollah should not be seen as a genuine change in its ideology: it was and remains the party of Iran, not Lebanon.

The question remains open as to how effective the Iranian proxy can be fighting simultaneously against the Syrian rebels and the Israeli military.

Amid electoral boycotts and continued concerns about ISIS and Iran, King Hamad has reappointed a prime minister whom Washington regards as an impediment to political progress.

While each country looks at the jihadist problem through a different lens, all are concerned and want to take an active role in combatting it.

Although a nuclear agreement might encourage banks and investors to reengage with Iran, low oil prices and longstanding economic problems could affect how the deal is perceived.

Washington needs to change the negotiating dynamics so that the next round of talks is more successful than the past year's efforts.

Although past uprisings have been quickly snuffed out, the latest calls for mass protests have been more strategically savvy and explicitly violent than usual.

Officials believe a bad deal would leave Iran with the ability to develop more advanced centrifuges, continue with previously undisclosed missile work, avoid intrusive inspections at certain facilities, and 'sneak out' with insufficient warning.

Implementing a nuclear agreement will be no easier than reaching one, and Washington will have little influence over what Iran decides to do over time about the deal.

The following is an excerpt from Mr. Singh's unpublished manuscript on China's current and future role in the region. To read the full paper, download the PDF. Even as it pursues greater economic engagement with the Middle East to satisfy its energy needs, it is not at all clear whether