Policy Analysis

The activists aboard the Gaza flotilla that was raided by Israeli security forces Monday may have believed that breaking the Gaza blockade was at its core forcing Israel to address an issue the activists see as moral blindness. Yet the situation is far more complex than they would like people

The Gaza flotilla tragedy has given Hamas at least a short-term political boost while undercutting the sea blockade of Gaza, fitting well with the agenda of the flotilla's organizers, Turkey's Humanitarian Relief Fund. At the same time, the incident -- to the extent that the details are known -- has

The Ghosts of Martyr's Square: An Eyewitness Account of Lebanon's Life Struggle By Michael Young (Simon & Schuster, 295 pages, $26.00) This past February, Le Monde published a detailed report suggesting that Hezbollah participated in the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Hariri. The story was old news

The central problem with the recent nuclear deal brokered by Turkey and Brazil with Iran is that it does not quite tackle Iran's ability to weaponize its uranium stockpile. According to the arrangement, Iran is to deposit 1,200 kilos of enriched uranium in Turkey. Yet, according to the International Atomic

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.

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

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

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