Policy Analysis

In October, Lebanon was elected to one of ten non-permanent member seats on the United Nations Security Council. Come January 2010, Lebanon will assume Asia's "Arab League" seat, replacing Libya for a two-year term on the critical international body. The UNSC seat was the brainchild of Lebanon's president Michel Suleiman

The New York Times convened an online panel of three Middle East experts to discuss the implications of a potential prisoner swap between Israel and Hamas to free captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. The following is a contribution by Washington Institute Ziegler distinguished fellow David Makovsky, director of its Project

On November 18, Iraqi vice president Tariq al-Hashimi vetoed an elections law passed by parliament just ten days earlier, likely delaying elections that had previously been slated for January 2010. Such elections are a factor in the planned U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, with U.S. military officials stating that they will

On November 18, 2009, Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Shaul Mofaz, IDF, addressed a special Policy Forum luncheon at The Washington Institute to discuss his new proposal for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. General Mofaz, former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff and Israeli minister of defense, as well as

Since the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraqi cities last June, Iraq has experienced a series of high-profile attacks by al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) and its affiliates that raises questions about the durability of its stabilization process. Last week, Iraqi authorities arrested 73 people related to AQI and suspected

On November 6, 2009, Ghaith al-Omari, Ehud Yaari, and Robert Satloff addressed a special Policy Forum luncheon at The Washington Institute. Ghaith al-Omari, advocacy director at the American Task Force on Palestine, is former director of the international relations department in the office of the Palestinian president. Ehud Yaari is

This is the second of a two-part series examining recent military developments involving Hizballah and Hamas. PolicyWatch #1600 examined the implications of the recent intercept by the Israeli navy of a large Iranian arms cargo intended for Hizballah. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) recently monitored the launch of a 60-km-range

The following is an edited version of Dr. Robert Satloff's November 6, 2009, Policy Forum presentation at The Washington Institute. The presentations by Ghaith al-Omari and Ehud Yaari are published as PolicyWatch #1602. How is it possible that an administration that came to office committed to the pursuit of Arab-Israeli

Even as the West seeks to engage Iran in negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program, Iran continues to arm rogue regimes and terrorist groups in blatant violation of UN Security Council Resolution 1747. Such aggressive behavior on the part of Iran in support of terrorist groups and rogue regimes highlights a

PolicyWatch #1600 is the first of a two-part series examining recent military developments involving Hizballah and Hamas. The second part will focus on Hamas's acquisition of long-range (60 km/37.5 mile) artillery rockets. On November 3, 2009, Israeli naval forces intercepted an Antigua-flagged cargo ship approximately 100 miles off Israel's coast

Turkey's ties with its neighbors have been transformed since the Justice and Development Party, or AKP, came to power seven years ago. Some analysts have described the AKP's foreign policy as a "zero problems with neighbors" approach. However, Turkey's new foreign-policy environment indicates otherwise. Under the AKP, Ankara has indeed

When US President Barack Obama visited Turkey in April, hopes were high that the US-Turkish relationship was finally getting the boost it needed. Ties between Washington and Ankara, wounded during the previous US administration, needed a presidential hug, and Obama certainly obliged. By visiting Turkey on his first trip to

Long-running tension between the government of Yemen and a rebellious clan in a remote border area has the potential to erupt into a major regional crisis, with media reports suggesting that the tension has the characteristics of a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. On November 10, the Iranian

Ever since the end of the war in the summer of 2006 between Israel and the radical Lebanese Shiite organization, Hezbollah, there has been a major effort on the part of Hezbollah to rearm, especially with offensive weapons such as rockets and medium-range missiles. The organization has also rebuilt its

The bloody "first war" between Israel and Lebanon in 1982 rooted out the destabilizing presence of the PLO, but left Hizballah, the Iranian-backed "Party of God," in control of southern Lebanon. The "second war" involving Israeli forces on Lebanese soil took place in summer 2006 in response to a violent

Despite its success as the first Muslim Brotherhood organization to control and govern territory, and in part because of that success, Hamas today is under significant stress. In the West Bank, Hamas faces a severe security crackdown that has driven the movement underground. And in Gaza, Hamas has been forced

The European Union has long debated the merits of Turkish EU membership. But now, nearly a decade after Islamists took the reins of power in Ankara, the central question is no longer whether Turkey should be integrated into Europe's economic and political structure, but rather whether Turkey should remain a

The New York Times convened an online panel of six Middle East experts to discuss the implications of Mahmoud Abbas's announcement on Thursday that he would not seek reelection in a presidential vote he has called for in January. The following is a contribution by Washington Institute Ziegler distinguished fellow

On November 2, 2009, Uzi Rubin and Michael Elleman addressed a special Policy Forum luncheon at the Washington Institute to discuss how U.S. missile defense capabilities match up to Iran's growing missile arsenal. Uzi Rubin was the founder and first director of the Missile Defense Organization in the Israeli Ministry

Israel's options vis-a-vis Iran's nuclear ambitions are frequently discussed by experts and analysts abroad. A vast body of literature already has been produced by U.S. scholars debating whether Israel should, could, or finally would choose to mount a preemptive strike against Iran's key nuclear installations in an effort to disrupt