Carnegie Middle East Center
As one of the region’s largest countries, Iran has sought to fill the power vacuums after the U.S.-led invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, coupled with ongoing Arab upheavals.
Turkey’s offensive in Afrin helps to dispel doubts, after the failed coup attempt of July 2016, about Ankara’s ability to project force across the border.
Tunisia has increasingly relied on the military to bring security to its border region with Libya. But the current approach risks worsening the security situation and playing into the hands of jihadis.
Turkey’s incursion into Afrin marks a significant move in Ankara’s campaign against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG).
The Islamic State’s defeat in Syria will not automatically bring displaced people home. A broader political settlement that reflects regional and national realities will be required.
There is very little opportunity for the United States to have a controlled influence inside Iran. The United States should be pursuing its national interests vis-à-vis Iran’s policy in the region and the globe.
When it comes to Iran, Donald Trump’s foreign policy looks like a scene out of Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Some Yemeni tribes regard the Houthis as a bigger threat than al-Qaeda. But as the war drags on, the tribes’ ability to push both groups out of Bayda governorate diminishes.
An economy in tatters, rampant corruption, and rising food prices are prompting ordinary Iranians to take to the streets.
Trump’s decision on Jerusalem only came after multiple US decisions that redefined Resolution 242, which affirms the “inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war”.
The Trump administration has an opportunity to reset its Iran policy in a way that puts Washington back in the lead and Tehran on the diplomatic defensive.
A discussion of the current state of the protests in Iran, how they affect the United States, and what role Washington can play, if any, in these protests.
Incidents involving Iran have been among the most sophisticated, costly, and consequential attacks in the history of the internet.
Protests in Iran’s western provinces could disrupt oil production and the finances of the regime.
It is appropriate for U.S. officials to support Iranian demands for the rule of law, transparency, economic opportunity, and personal freedom. But it is important to recognize that they are bystanders in a dynamic process whose outcome will be determined squarely within Iran itself.
Demonstrations continue across Iran, but there are notable differences from the 2009 protests that rocked the country.
As protests continue across Iran, there are many questions about the strength of the regime, the protesters’ goals, and how regional and international actors will respond.
If past protests called for a reformation of the Islamic Republic established in 1979, some of the current slogans are calling for its overthrow. While few expect the protests to succeed, the legitimacy of the Islamic revolution is being challenged for the first time.
Protest movements in the Middle East face enormous repressive hurdles and rarely have happy endings.
Morocco’s Party of Justice and Development sought to show that it is possible to carve out a larger role for government while remaining loyal to the palace.