Policy Analysis

While women have served in Peshmerga forces for decades, female Peshmerga have primarily found themselves maintaining border security, protecting women’s shelters, and providing medical and communication services throughout history. Female fighters rarely carried out combat-related duties and stayed far from the front lines where their male comrades were stationed. However

The United States needs to keep Europe on board, go beyond sanctions, and ensure lasting bipartisan support for its new policy.

As the Assad-Iran-Russian axis prepares for the "last battle in Idlib," the question arises: what does the ‘day after’ look like for the region when events in Syria finally come to a conclusion? It is clear that Iran’s proxy forces would prefer to create a new Syria in accordance with

Rumors of murder squads, jet identification numbers, and other ominous details will likely exacerbate regional rivalries.

Three experts discuss what Moscow's arms deliveries and growing military footprint in Syria mean for American operations in the Levant, U.S.-Russian relations, and Washington's allies in the region.

Even if exposing missile sites does not convince the group to dismantle them, it would at least counter the narrative that ‘resistance’ is good for the Lebanese people and economy.

If Riyadh did in fact order Khashoggi’s detention, it may be miscalculating the likely negative impact on U.S. diplomacy and Western investment.

Russia delivered advanced air-defense systems to Syria after the recent airplane-downing incident, but its desire to check Iran could permit continued Israeli operations in the Syrian skies.

Israeli-Palestinian peace is elusive because all of the parties, including the United States, have made a series of damaging but preventable errors.

More than a decade ago, the United States created the elite Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service to conduct, coordinate, and lead CT efforts within the country. The CTS generally thrived in this role, even as Iraqis viewed the group with suspicion owing to its secretive operations, forbidding look, and avoidance of

Tehran likely used the attack to demonstrate its unhindered regional reach, while flashing its enhanced deterrent posture through the testing of new military hardware.

Wars do not break out in developing countries without armed groups appearing alongside regime forces, and Iraq is no exception. However, the fact that armed Shia factions have united under one banner as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) has been an unexpected development in Iraqi politics. Although adhering to the

Introduction It is sometimes hard to imagine in 2018 that a different vision existed for Gaza than the one that currently exists in the news, and that Gazans live daily. Yet, I was a member of a hopeful group of technocrats who developed a clear roadmap for Gaza after Israel

The Saudi-led coalition is already eyeing gains beyond the vital western coast.

With elections for Iraq’s Kurdistan region slated for September 30, one key and often overlooked actor in the political arena is the changing role of the Islamic political movement in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). While the usual players, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK)

The Iranian president focused on the nuclear file to the exclusion of all other issues, and his country is feeling the consequences today.

When the “Arab Spring” seemed to promise a transformation from autocracy to citizen empowerment, Bassem Youssef—an Egyptian medical doctor by training—carved for himself an unprecedented niche in Arabic-language media. First on YouTube in 2011, then on broadcast television, Youssef became the “Egyptian Jon Stewart”, the first comedic commentator on serious

Enhanced Russian support for the Syrian regime could dramatically boost risks for Israeli operations, and U.S. intervention alone can shift the calculus.

A veteran Lebanese journalist discusses achievements by Iran and its chief proxy over seven years of war, and how U.S. countermeasures could still help restore stability and deter jihadism in Syria.

A former U.S. ambassador offers recommendations on how Washington can most effectively employ sanctions against Shia militias, reengage with Baghdad, and welcome a role from its Arab allies.