Policy Analysis

September 22, 2017 Iran is increasingly nervous about Iraqi Kurdistan’s bid for a referendum on an independent Kurdish state. This nervousness arises because of two factors. First, declaring an independent Kurdish state would encourage Kurdish separatism within the Islamic Republic of Iran. Second, a new Kurdish state would undermine Iran’s

September 21, 2017 On September 25, 2017, the Kurdistan Region of Iraq will hold a referendum on independence and succession. An independent Kurdish state is something that Kurds have sought for generations, but the notion of a referendum among Iraqi Kurds has gained strength in recent years due to disintegrating

September 20, 2017 As President Trump meets with foreign leaders at the UN General Assembly this week, new poll data demonstrates that his agenda -- combating jihadi terrorists, countering Iran, and broadening Arab-Israeli dialogue -- has great popular appeal in at least one key Arab country: Jordan. A reliable survey

September 19, 2017 Since the decision to hold a referendum on the future of Iraqi Kurdistan, there has been a fierce debate between those in favor of the decision and those against, among people of all backgrounds and positions.These debates are not without serious political intimidation against anyone who stands

September 15, 2017 The most interesting election of 2017 may be its least transparent. In October, the United Nations will elect the next Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in a race as wild as any presidential or parliamentary contest. The next director will manage

September 14, 2017 Ever since Hamas violently ejected the Palestinian Authority’s forces from Gaza in 2007, report after report has detailed the degradation of infrastructure and the inevitability of crises. The United Nations has warned that Gaza will become unlivable by 2020 — a warning repeated almost annually since 2012

September 13, 2017 On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt severed diplomatic ties with Qatar over allegations that Doha is supporting terrorism and that it embraces Iran and its regional agenda. The Saudi-led quartet (Quartet) also imposed an economic embargo of Qatar — which includes

September 13, 2017 The first time I was exposed to the work of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Egypt was in the early 1990s. I was a child in Imbaba, one of the most populous, radicalized, and poorest areas in Cairo. The area did not have

September 12, 2017 Syria’s economic and political stability have long been predicated on a grand bargain of water access. Since Hafez al-Assad seized power in 1970, the Syrian government has manipulated public access to water for political ends. The regime uses water to buy and maintain loyalty, intimidate opponents, and

September 5, 2017 Recently, another controversy erupted over a one-hour sermon delivered at the Islamic Center of Davis in California by Imam Ammar Shahin. His words sounded hateful and anti-Jewish in tone bidding to "liberate Al- Aqsa mosque from the filth of the Jews. Annihilate them down to the very

September 5, 2017 Mideast pundits often speak in terms of “age-old” ethnic and religious conflicts, or of “deeply entrenched” attitudes or prejudices. A closer look at the evidence, however, reveals that Arab public opinion can sometimes change dramatically, both for better and for worse, in the space of just a

August 30, 2017 When Russia began its military intervention in Syria, it was motivated more by political incentives than economic ones. However, now that victory increasingly favors the Assad regime, Russia has found new opportunity to bolster its foothold in the region. With the opposition forces relatively subdued and prospects

August 25, 2017 In the prolonged search for a solution, the Syrian conflict has influenced Russian-Turkish relations greatly, causing either tension or rapprochement depending on each country’s often conflicting interests. But the major change occurred after Turkey’s failed coup and Russia’s supportive position towards the Turkish regime afterwards. As a

August 24, 2017 In " Why Israel Should Listen to Jordan on the Temple Mount," Abdullah Sawalha asserts that in handling the recent Temple Mount crisis, Israel prioritized domestic political considerations over coordination with Jordan. While I agree that Israel could have handled the crisis better, I believe the piece

August 22, 2017 At a May 4, 2017 meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi was the apparent subject of criticism from Bahrain’s Interior Minister, Rashid al-Khalifa. Khalifa discussed the threat posed by Iraq’s complicity in some elements of the Hashd al-Shaabi (PMU) and Iran providing

There is much disagreement over how to engage with the deteriorating situation in Jerusalem with regard to security and politics. The recent Temple Mount crisis could have been avoided if there had been a proper assessment of the situation at the political level. Stronger consideration and cooperation with the Jordanian

August 10, 2017 In a few weeks, the citizens of Iraqi Kurdistan will vote in a historic referendum that will pave the way for the emergence of a fully sovereign Kurdish state. Almost a century has passed with Kurdish national aspirations thwarted by a world order that has otherwise accommodated

August 10, 2017 This week King Abdullah of Jordan made a rare visit to Ramallah, his first in five years, to confer with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in the wake of a crisis over security at the Temple Mount/Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. This latest outbreak of small-scale violence

August 9, 2017 The Islamic Republic of Iran and the autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq maintain cordial relations, and the two neighbors have publicly cooperated in battling the Islamic State (IS). However, this might change soon. The authorities in Tehran are increasingly frustrated with the Kurdish leadership’s decision to hold

August 9, 2017 To wish for change is very hard in a culture that fears transformation. For almost three decades Iraqi Kurdistan has seen the same government, the same faces, and the same ideas, with only the slightest changes in leadership or policies. Who is accountable for the crisis in