Policy Analysis

Demonstrations in Iraq have been ongoing since mid-June, both in Baghdad and in more than eight provinces in the south of Iraq. While the improvement of public services delivery is a key demand, protesters are asking for the government to combat corruption in public sector as well. Since 2003, when

Less than a month after Iraq’s May 12 national election, which was marred by allegations of fraud, the Iraqi Parliament announced that authorities would be recounting ballots in several provinces. Among the provinces where the recount was to be held was the embattled Kirkuk, whose ownership is disputed and where

On the anniversary of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, it is timely to explore an under-analyzed aspect to Kuwait’s recovery. Much research has examined the socioeconomic and sociopolitical shifts in post-war Kuwait, such as the increase of Islamists in parliament or the popularity of other religious and political movements. Others

At the height of the Arab Spring, King Mohammad VI revamped the constitution under indirect duress, giving up some of his extensive powers to the head of government. Moroccan people greeted this move with delight and saw in it a probable initiation of a real devolution of power and the

Israel’s downing of a Syrian plane this week has demonstrated that the Syria conflict, while stabilizing in some ways, is far from reaching a clear conclusion. Even as regime forces retake the Southern regions of Quneitra and Daraa, the issue of how to manage the Syrian-Israeli borders has prompted a

What would be the effect on the United States—politically, economically, socially—if the country accommodated 100 million refugees in the span of a few years? This is the situation that Lebanon now faces. At 4,000 square miles, tiny Lebanon has welcomed more Syrian refugees in absolute numbers than the entire European

Day after day, the Iranian and Russian occupation forces supporting the Syrian sectarian regime apply a brutal scorched earth policy, destroying areas of Syria not under regime control and displacing the civilians who have withstood the earlier attacks of the regime over the years. This most recent assault, which began

For the past seven years, Egypt, guided by domestic considerations and deterred by the presence of U.S., Iranian, Turkish, Russian, and other European forces, has largely kept clear of the conflict in Syria. Nonetheless, there are signs that Cairo, motivated by animosity towards Islamist groups and by fear that the

Of all the bilateral ties between Arab states, the Jordanian-Syrian relationship has been among the most intense. Various gradations of reciprocal unfriendliness and even open animosity have characterized the two countries’ ties since the 1970s, reflecting the rise of the Ba’ath party and Hafez al-Assad. However, recent economic instabilities pushed

The results of the May 2018 Iraqi elections caught many by surprise, especially in the polling field. A series of public opinion surveys conducted between March and May predicted that the Nasr Coalition, led by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, would win the highest number of seats in the Iraqi Parliament

With Algeria’s presidential elections scheduled in April 2019, calls are now being heard from within the Algerian regime for President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to run for a fifth term. This messaging has caused controversy and confusion among Algerians, who are wondering about the unexpressed reasons for regime figures to insist on

While the very earliest civilizations in Iraq grew up around the gifts of the Tigris and Euphrates, millions of Iraqis from the North to the newly revived southern Marshes are at risk from the actions of Iraq’s northern and astern neighbors. Turkey and Iran’s increased limiting of water of the

The United States steadily continues to tighten the screws on Iran, prompting an upswing in Iranian rhetoric implying that closing the Strait of Hormuz is on the table as a military option in response to U.S. actions. While Iran’s naval capabilities are ill-equipped for a total closure, these threats from

As the FIFA World Cup final approaches, a highlight this year was the four Middle Eastern countries participating for the first time in years. Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, and Saudi Arabia each succeeded in qualifying, though their respective teams did not make it further than the first round of the Cup

The Houthi militia’s track record of betrayal and broken promises shows that it only calls for negotiations and is willing to discuss compromises when the group is at a disadvantage. These negotiations allow the group’s fighters to catch their breath, reposition themselves, and launch a new round of violence. Thus

Despite recent tensions between Jordan and other stakeholders in the Middle East, shifting dynamics across the region have recently led to the formation of a tentative U.S.-backed cooperation between Israel and such Sunni Arab states as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and the Hashemite Kingdom. While this rapprochement

On the streets of Beirut, the impact of the Syrian Civil War is more than palpable. According to recent reports, Syrian refugees make up approximately a fourth of Lebanon’s total population. Seeking to address rising acrimony and hostility between refugees and Lebanese, the country’s authorities have been searching for solutions

In June, Turkey and the United States announced that they had agreed to implement a roadmap to promote peace in the Syrian city of Manbij, which has been under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces since the 2016 expulsion of ISIS. The agreement came as part of U.S. efforts

After the outbreak of the so-called “oil and sugar” protest that began in Algeria concurrently with the Arab Spring, President Abdelaziz Bouteflika was quick to announce that he would promote far-reaching political reforms in an attempt to assuage public pressure. However, the state of journalism in the country has not

As international court hearings begin over Qatari allegations against the United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) actions during the Gulf crisis, it is worth examining the catalysts of this event, along with potential alternatives for settling the dispute. Despite relatively good relations with all sides, the Trump administration has played an ambivalent