Middle Orient

Biden Must Take Risks, Talk Straight, and Act Boldly Wars in the Middle East rarely end cleanly. Some observers, however, have expressed the hope that the Israel-Hamas war could upend a dangerous status quo and eventually lead to more stability in the region. The war is often compared to the …

Key Takeaways: Hamas and other Palestinian militias are exploiting the Israeli hostages they are holding to ensure that Hamas and its partners are involved in any negotiations about the future of the Gaza Strip. Hamas having a role in the future of the strip is incompatible with Israel’s stated war …

Driving from Israel to the West Bank is like stepping through the looking glass. The world is almost identical, but subtly altered. Scenery deceives; palm trees line the centre of a boulevard, but they are short and stubby. The same off-white buildings that populate Jerusalem dominate Ramallah, but they are …

President Joe Biden ordered the U.S. military to carry out retaliatory airstrikes against Iranian-backed militia groups after three U.S. servicemembers were injured in a drone attack in northern Iraq. National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said one of the U.S. troops suffered critical injuries in the attack that occurred earlier …

By providing the residents of the Gaza Strip with various services, UNRWA exempted Hamas from its responsibilities as the governing body, such as creating a working economy that would pay for education and healthcare, and allowed it, instead, to invest resources in building tunnels and manufacturing weapons. “They [UNRWA] teach …

Qatar seems to be the “go-to guy” for almost anything important going on in the last few months, especially over the last weeks. The influence of the Emir Tamim Bin Hadad Al-Thani has grown completely out of proportion, and for a good reason: Qatar invests heavily in the Western world, …

Established In: 2012 Established By: Fadi al-Mellah; Abu Ali Badran; Munir Abboud (Badr Brigades commander) Also Known As: Quwat al-Jalil; Galilee Forces – Lone Wolves; Country Of Origin: Syria Leaders: Fadi al-Mellah; Munir Abboud; Operational Area: Syria, Lebanon, Gaza Strip; Number Of Members: 4,800 Involved In: Suicide attacks, Terrorist attacks, …

Established In: 15 June 2014; Established By: Unknown; Also Known As: People’s Mobilization Committee (PMC), Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), PMF; Country Of Origin: Iraq; Leaders: Falih Alfayyadh; Key Members: Falih Alfayyadh, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis; Operational Area: Iraq, Syria; Number Of Members: 150,000; Involved In: Armed Attacks, Bomb Attacks, Assassinations; The …

Summary:Until the international community is ready to bridge the gap between Israel’s and Palestine’s plans for Gaza’s future, day-after negotiations only serve to distract from ending the bombardment and the urgent humanitarian crisis now. With the Israeli bombardment of Gaza in its third month and a permanent ceasefire nowhere in …

If the Biden administration thought that by rescuing Iran’s economy, which had hit bottom, and removing the Houthis from the list of Foreign Terror Organizations would make both Iran into an ally, the generosity appears to have backfired. If the Iranian regime is allowed to advance to nuclear weapons capability, …