March, 2021

• 13 March

  Syrian refugees are no longer guests in Sudan

  

  Sudan is changing its rules for Syrians wishing to reside in the country after years of being able to travel to Sudan without a visa, and the right to work, education and medical care. Since the outbreak of the civil war in Syria a decade ago, over 11 million Syrians …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Is Iran Losing Its Grip on Its Proxy Militias in Iraq?

  

  Earlier this month, a prominent researcher and security expert in Iraq, who was close to the new prime minister and to Western governments, was gunned down outside his home in Baghdad. While the identify of his assailants remains unknown, Hisham al-Hashimi had many enemies, given his history of speaking out …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Iran Is Already Raising the Stakes for Biden in the Middle East

  

  Just days into the new year, Iran announced that “a couple of hours ago,” it had started enriching uranium to 20 percent—a level that experts say would put it within a six-month sprint of converting its entire nuclear stockpile to bomb-grade material. Tehran’s move Monday raises the pressure on President-elect …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  The Nuclear Deal’s Fate Lies in Politics—in the U.S. and Iran

  

  In the four decades since Iran’s Islamic Revolution, relations between Tehran and Washington have seen deep enmity offset by brief periods of rapprochement and tactical cooperation. As a new U.S. administration settles into office and asserts its intent to, in President Joe Biden’s words, “offer Tehran a credible path back …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Lessons From Tunisia’s Past Crises Can Help Resolve This One

  

  As Tunisia marked the 10th anniversary of the removal of dictator Zine el Abidine Ben Ali on Jan. 14, people poured into the streets, defying a nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. While every January brings some form of popular protest around the revolution’s anniversary, things are different this year.

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Bulgaria’s Fragmented Opposition Hopes to Ride Wave of Discontent

  After a turbulent year, April’s elections are bound to bring about a shakeup in the country’s parliament – but with opposition forces so divided, the governing parties’ defeat is far from certain. Bulgaria’s Game of Thrones is starting to look more and more like a different movie – perhaps the …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Kosovo’s Courts Struggle to Hold Corrupt Officials to Account

  Kosovo has made progress in reducing a backlog of corruption cases, but very few corrupt officials end up behind bars. Its rivals in Kosovo’s February election, Vetevendosje [Self-Determination] vowed to reinvigorate the fight against endemic corruption in Europe’s youngest state. Winning in a landslide, Vetevendosje will have the chance to …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Serbian Government was ‘Blind’ to Security Unit’s Deadly Threat

  In November 2001, the Special Operations Unit, a Serbian State Security special forces unit, staged an armed mutiny and blocked highways, saying that they wanted the government to stop extraditing Serbs to the UN war crimes court in The Hague. Looking back almost 20 years later, veteran journalist Milos Vasic …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Cyber-Attacks a Growing Threat to Unprepared Balkan States

  Balkans states might be prepared on paper, but in practice they are struggling to confront the growing threat from cyber-attacks. Bosnia doesn’t have a state-level strategy. It wasn’t voting irregularities or the counting of postal ballots that delayed the results of last year’s parliamentary election in North Macedonia, but an …

  Read More »
• 13 March

  Kurti’s Kosovo Win Puts Spotlight on Tensions with Albania’s Rama

  There’s no love lost between Edi Rama and Albin Kurti. But if Rama wins a third term as Albanian prime minister, their relationship may shape relations between Albania and Kosovo for years to come, with ramifications for the region.

  Read More »