Policy Analysis

Terrorism can be diminished if the flow of money to terrorist organizations is diminished. The first step in this latter effort is to simply acknowledge its importance. After all, the war on terror is not a conventional war. The enemies in question have no unified sovereign, military, or geographical purpose

Lift up your eyes. Look to the future. There is a different world out there than the diet of Middle Eastern violence and anti-Americanism that we are fed in Europe, and that people of the Middle East are being served up as well. Nowhere is this truer than in the

Last week's suicide bombings in Istanbul—the first pair on November 15 targeting two synagogues, and a second pair on November 20 targeting the city's British consulate and a high-rise building housing a British-owned bank—cost Turkey dearly, with 57 dead and more than 700 injured. Many of the victims were Turkish

SHIBLEY TELHAMI There is no clear-cut answer to the question of whether anti-Americanism is rooted in the identity or the policies of the United States. First, the Middle East must be placed in a global context. Although attitudes toward the United States are at an all-time low in Arab and

FLYNT LEVERETT There are two main avenues by which the United States can encourage greater openness, democratization, and economic reform in Syria: an externally driven approach (e.g., supporting external opposition forces), or a strategy of engagement with the Syrian government and civil society. Historically, the latter strategy has had an

While Turkey prepares for a make or break year with the European Union (EU), perhaps a not less important issue for Ankara is its relationship with Washington. Over the past year, the U.S.-Turkish relationship has undergone some serious challenges. Despite the positive developments of the past months, today Ankara and

One of the more pleasant surprises to emerge in 2002—an exceptionally dreary year in the Middle East—was the inaugural volume of the Arab Human Development Report (AHDR). That path-breaking document, prepared by a group of courageous Arab researchers under the auspices of the United Nations Development Program, broke the mold

An odd blending of religion and politics, Hizballah was born as a movement amid the terrorism of the 1980s. By 2000, it had matured into a strategic, vital player in the Middle East, capable of influencing the region's course for peace or war. Organizationally, Hizballah has evolved from a loose

Al-Qaeda and Its Affiliates The fight against terrorism has become more complex. In recent years, the U.S. intelligence community focused on al-Qaeda. This strategy paid off; the United States has learned a great deal about effectively countering al-Qaeda proper. The terrorist network has been quick to adapt, however. Currently, there

While all eyes are focused on Iraq and Afghanistan,the Islamist insurgency in Algeria is witnessing a period of rapid evolution caused by the increasing sophistication of government counterinsurgency (COIN) operations, and adaptation on the part of the insurgent groups. The government is steadily incorporating intelligence,surveillance, and reconnaissance assets and precision

Have onerous post-Sept. 11 visa requirements denied young Arabs access to American colleges and universities? That charge was made by the authors of the "Arab Human Development Report," published last month and prepared by respected Arab researchers under the auspices of the U.N. Development Program. Their condemnation of Washington's alleged

Today, Yemeni authorities announced the capture of al-Qaeda militant Mohammed Hamdi al-Ahdal. This arrest comes amid a series of statements by Yemeni president Ali Abdallah Salih declaring his intent to release dozens of suspects with links to al-Qaeda in exchange for promises that they would renounce violence. Paradoxically, Salih and

At the heart of this sleepy South American capital of Suriname stand four golden minarets of the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Isha'at Islam mosque. Next to the mosque stands a stately wooden synagogue representing one of South America's oldest Jewish communities, which came to this former Dutch colony via Holland in the

Last week's suicide bombings in Istanbul -- the first pair on November 15 targeting two synagogues, and a second pair on November 20 targeting the city's British consulate and a high-rise building housing a British-owned bank -- cost Turkey dearly, with 57 dead and more than 700 injured. Many of

Yasir Arafat is the main problem in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, not part of the solution. Despite the developments at Oslo, Camp David, and Taba, Arafat does not really want to reach an agreement with Israel. More than three years ago, he made a strategic decision to achieve his goals through

The following is a transcript of the CNN program Insight, from an episode dedicated to the terrorist attacks carried out in Istanbul on November 15 and 20, 2003. Soner Cagaptay's remarks appear in the last portion of the transcript. JONATHAN MANN, CNN HOST: Istanbul again. Turkey suffers another double bombing

On November 15, 2003, two car bombs exploded in simultaneous attacks on two synagogues in Istanbul during Sabbath services, killing 24 people and injuring more than 300. In an effort to bypass the tight security measures that the Turkish authorities had implemented around the synagogues, the attackers apparently detonated their

President Bush's speech about nourishing democracy in the Middle East was received with predictable derision by state-run Arab media. More disturbing is the fact that the speech has failed to attract much attention in this country. It is dismissed by some as mere political rhetoric and seen by others as

Later this month, an oil tanker will leave the Israeli Red Sea port of Eilat after taking on a cargo of Russian crude oil pumped through the Trans-Israel Pipeline (Tipline). The pipeline runs between Eilat and Ashkelon, located south of Tel Aviv on Israel's Mediterranean Sea coast. The tanker will

The increase in resistance attacks in Iraq is not simply a matter of a few spectacular successes, such as the five coordinated suicide bombings in Baghdad on October 27, the downing of a Chinook helicopter on November 2, or the suicide bombing of the Italian base in Nasiriyah on November