All Policy Analysis by Ben Fishman

A new government, delayed tax hikes, and extra Gulf aid can alleviate unrest for now, but such measures cannot mask the kingdom’s fundamental need for unpopular economic reforms.

Instead of focusing on national-level polls, UNSMIL can work to facilitate municipal elections, development projects, and a dialogue among the country's militias.

Given the potentially imminent demise of a key powerbroker, Washington will need to refocus on transition issues in Libya and help the UN implement its action plan.

By increasing Amman's funding amid austerity measures elsewhere, Washington has reaffirmed the kingdom's strategic importance, but close engagement is needed to make sure the money is well spent.

Despite its less than definitive verdict, the trial of Ahmed Abu Khattala showed that federal prosecutors, the intelligence community, and the FBI have pursued the case with apolitical professionalism.

The international outcry over a videotaped slave auction underscores the urgency of addressing the country's broken political system.

The success of the initiative will depend on a serious commitment from Libya's various factions, broad international support, and improvements to daily life for the public.

Rather than leaving the job to Europe, Washington can articulate a clear Libya policy at the September UN General Assembly meeting, thereby making a political deal more likely to achieve and enforce.

Secretary Tillerson should bear in mind that his diplomatic efforts over Qatar's role in the Middle East will have significant implications for the balance of power in Libya, not just the Gulf.

With President Donald Trump participating in his first international summits, several of America's EU and Gulf allies will be considering the future of Libya. Trump's statement in April that he sees no role for the United States in Libya not only signaled a lack of interest in the fragile state

To take a strong step forward on a major ongoing conflict, the president should listen closely to a U.S. ally and make a clear statement in support of Libya's unity government and the UN-sponsored peace process.

Doing so will make two conflicts harder to resolve, and rob Libyans of the opportunity to take advantage of Fayyad's considerable skills as an institution-builder and reformer.

If the Trump administration steers away from the internationally backed unity government and toward the Russian/Egyptian-backed strongman, Khalifa Haftar, it risks ending Libya's fragile accord and sparking another civil war.

A vote by Libya's HOR against recognizing the cabinet of the unity government adds a new threat to the country's stability, despite advances against the Islamic State.

Together with a domestic oil deal, the American airstrikes could mark an important turn for the war-torn nation.

As rival militias continue to dominate Libya's political and security landscape and the Islamic State threatens to evolve into a different but no less potent problem, the West should consider stepping up its efforts to foster a unified and functional national government.

The following is an excerpt of this article. Read the full text (PDF). When John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt published a paper decrying the influence of the Israel lobby on American foreign policy in March 2006, they received a torrent of criticism from former policymakers, historians, politically-inclined academics, and several

Copies of the highly anticipated new book The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy by John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt arrived on bookshelves in Washington late last week despite a reported "embargo" from the publisher until its official September 4 release. In a sign of the book's controversial nature, the

Hamas's victory in Gaza last week was a military coup of Fatah's security forces -- not a Palestinian civil war involving the majority of each faction's supporters. Fatah's armed forces collapsed in the face of a long-planned, well-executed campaign targeting the headquarters and leadership of the faction's security organizations. The