In-Depth Coverage

Original Commentaries

07/02/09: The U.S. Pullout from Iraqi Cities —
06/25/09: Understanding the Situation in Iran —Geneive Abdo, fellow, The Century Foundation; former Iran correspondent, The Guardian (1998-2001)
06/23/09: Solving the Problem of the Old City —Michael Bell, former Canadian ambassador to Egypt, Israel and Jordan; co-director, Jerusalem Old City Initiative, University of Windsor. Interview with Middle East Bulletin.

Setting the Record Straight

Potential Partner for Regional Stability

“As long as the current radical regime is in power in Damascus, there won’t be any negotiated peace even of the most superficial variety because the conflict is indispensible to the Syrian dictatorship. And the most probably type of change in Syria—though its likelihood is still low—to a radical Islamist regime would make any such peace even less likely.”
—Barry Rubin, director, Global Research in International Affairs Center, IDC Herzliya, “Peace on the Borderline,” The Rubin Report, May 31, 2009

“The al-Asad regime in Syria continues to play the dangerous game of allowing or accepting extremist networks and terrorist facilitators to operate from and through Syrian territory. ... However, unlike Iran, Syria’s motives probably stem from short-sighted calculations rather than ideology. It is possible that over time Syria could emerge as a partner in promoting security in the Levant and in the region.”
—General David Petraeus, commander, U.S. Central Command, testimony to the House Armed Services Committee, “The Afghanistan-Pakistan Strategic Review and the Posture of U.S. Central Command,” April 2, 2009

Middle East Analysis

An Ambassador to Syria and a Message to Iran —The National, Editorial
Once More the Smell of Falafel —Zvi Bar'el (Haaretz)
Whether Socialism: Syria Baath Party Debates Renewal —Institute for War and Peace Reporting.
Acting As If Iran Is Not Present —Tariq Alhomayed, editor-in-chief, Asharq Al-Awsat

Upcoming Events

WATCH: Prospects for a Two-State Solution: Understanding Challenges and Creating Opportunities

Featured panelists:

Brigadier General (Ret.) Ilan Paz, former head of the Israeli Civil Administration in the West Bank (2002-2005)
Ghaith al-Omari, advocacy director, American Task Force on Palestine; advisor, Middle East Progress; former advisor to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas

Discussion moderated by:

Brian Katulis, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress, advisor, Middle East Progress

When: Friday, March 20, 2009
Program: 9:00am to 10:30am

Right Signals Needed to Promote Regional Stability

June 27, 2008

Pierre Atlas, director of The Richard G. Lugar Franciscan Center for Global Studies at Marian College, “Secularism vs. Democracy in Turkey,” Real Clear Politics, June 14, 2008:

“The headscarf issue is just the tip of the political iceberg. The Constitutional Court is soon expected to declare the AKP, an openly Islamic party, to be illegal and ban its members— including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan—from parliament. This may preserve Turkey’s secularism, but it is hard to see how it preserves its democracy. Despite the current constitutional crisis, Turkey is a stable country in an unstable region. … Turkey is a country that welcomes Israeli as well as Iranian tourists—and it is the AKP government that has provided mediation for the Israeli-Syrian peace talks in Ankara. There is a lot to suggest from Turkey’s modern history and its rich Ottoman past that this crisis can be overcome in a way that could strengthen the country’s democracy—if cooler heads prevail, and if the right signals are sent from Washington and the EU."