Policy Analysis

The Arab Spring has recalibrated the regional system by ushering in a tri-axial Middle East.

By limiting potential strike options, Washington risks undercutting diplomacy and being drawn into the kind of intensive, open-ended engagement in Syria that it wants to avoid.

Although a military response to Syria's August 21 chemical weapons attack is on hold, Washington can restore credibility and pressure by threatening to strike immediately if the Assad regime uses such weapons again.

An in-depth report on the various opportunities and obstacles that have arisen following major offshore gas finds in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Political and fiscal pressure is pulling Libya apart at the seams and creating conditions that threaten neighboring countries.

This two-part PolicyWatch discusses how the jihadist group ISIS has gained a foothold in Syria. Part I outlined the group's recent successes; this installment describes how it could face popular discontent if it attempts to enforce its socially conservative agenda or commit high-profile abuses. Despite its successes in Syria so

Al-Qaida and its affiliates have been well-positioned to take advantage of the recent regional upheaval, some of which the group predicted years ago.

If U.S. strikes are seen as seriously undermining the Assad regime's viability, Hezbollah's global networks could be called on to retaliate against Israeli or Western interests.

President Obama should use Moscow's gambit as an opportunity to turn international and domestic momentum back in his favor on Syria, even while recognizing it for the cynical feint that it assuredly is.

This two-part PolicyWatch assesses how ISIS has gained a foothold in Syria by learning from past jihadist mistakes in Iraq. Part I discusses the group's recent successes; Part II discusses jihadist mistakes in other countries and whether ISIS is repeating them. In August, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham

Washington Institute military expert Jeffrey White contributes to an online debate on the merits and goals of potential intervention.

The Islamists who lead Morocco's current government remain in power only by the skin of their teeth, and recent events indicate they may be vulnerable in the future.

As members of Congress consider President Obama’s request to undertake military action against the forces of President Bashar al-Assad, The Washington Institute presents the following guide to help Americans better understand the crisis in Syria. Since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in2011, our experts have conducted extensive research

Given the nature of the regime's passive defensive capabilities, a powerful U.S. operation of at least several rounds may be necessary.

It is time to ask those who oppose Syria strikes if they are comfortable with a position that will likely rule out any diplomatic outcome on the Iranian nuclear program.

The governing Islamist party will emerge from recent setbacks as a much weaker player, and more obstacles are likely to come.

On September 3, 2013, Matthew Levitt and Frederic C. Hof addressed a Policy Forum at The Washington Institute. Dr. Levitt is director of the Institute's Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence and author of the new book Hezbollah: The Global Footprint of Lebanon's Party of God . Ambassador Hof, a

Bahrain's decision to restrict contact between foreign diplomats and political activists should be condemned by Washington and ignored by the U.S. embassy in Manama.

Iran's new president will soon be tested on his ability and willingness to address international concerns about his country's nuclear program.

Members of the Syrian opposition are correct in describing Alawite army general Ali Habib Mahmoud's "defection" to Turkey over the past few days as a "blow to the morale" of the Assad regime. He is the most prominent military official to leave Syria since the July 2012 departure of Brig