The Syrian Brotherhood: On the Sidelines
History weighs heavily on any political movement, and the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria is no different. Over eight decades, the group has adapted to survive. This malleability has kept the Brotherhood, or Ikhwan, alive as an independent organization, but historical experiences have changed it in profound ways and are helping to marginalize it during the current crisis.
Gulf Governments Offer Financing for U.S. Strike on Syria
Like pieces fitting together in a jigsaw puzzle, Arab governments – presumably from the oil-rich Gulf Cooperation Council – offered to finance a U.S. military strike on Syria, according to comments made by Secretary of State John Kerry during testimony September 4 with the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In an exchange with Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) on the potential cost of U.S. military action in Syria, Kerry said,
The Lessons of Benghazi: One Year Later, Never More Urgent
The situation in Libya one year after the attack on the U.S. Special Mission in Benghazi on September 11, 2012 is chaotic, dysfunctional and disheartening. It remains not as abjectly horrible as it could be—the General National Congress did this summer finally approve a framework (however imperfect) for electing a constitutional assembly, and UN-backed efforts are under way to create an unofficial dialogue of national reconciliation—but these advances paper over ever-deeper failings, many of which were not inevitable.
Syria: Time to Act
Co-authored by W. Robert Pearson, former U.S. ambassador to Turkey. This article first appeared on The Huffington Post.
Collection Spotlight: Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy
Decoding Al-Qaeda’s Strategy: The Deep Battle Against America by Michael W.S. Ryan, 2013
Collection Spotlight: Revolt in Syria
Revolt in Syria: Eye-Witness to the Uprising, by Stephen Starr, 2012
The Iraqi Factor in the Syrian Crisis: Catalyst or Inhibitor?
Iraqis who cast their votes in postponed local elections in Anbar and Nineveh on 20 June had a lot on their plates. Beyond issues relating to the provision of services locally, the last weeks before the elections saw massive protests against the central government in Baghdad. The many angry slogans on display included calls for greater autonomy for the Sunni-majority areas of Iraq as well as expressions of solidarity with the mainly Sunni Syrian opposition movement.
Demography and Violence in Lebanon
The sun is beating down and it isn’t even midday. Clutching the all-important paperwork that will get them coveted UN food vouchers, Syrian refugees look harried. The women pull at their children to hurry through the litter-filled yard of the sports club in the town of Bar Elias that serves as a distribution center for the UN’s hard-pressed World Food Program (WFP). Unlike their men, who head for the shade to smoke and exchange news, the women don’t dally, making for the snaking lines into a crowded hall where they will be called in groups by registration numbers.
Hezbollah's Plunge into the Syrian Abyss
Randa Slim, MEI Scholar and adjunct research fellow at the New America Foundation, discusses the implications of Hezbollah's growing role in Syria for Lebanese politics and Lebanon's Shiite community.
Hezbollah's Plunge into the Syrian Abyss
The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome MEI Scholar Randa Slim for a discussion on the implications of Hezbollah’s growing role in Syria for Lebanese politics and Lebanon’s Shiite community. Recently returned from a trip to the region, Slim will examine Hezbollah’s potential end game in Syria, and whether Lebanon will be able to resist being drawn into the conflict following Hezbollah’s plunge into the Syrian abyss.
Hezbollah's Plunge into the Syrian Abyss
The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome MEI Scholar Randa Slim for a discussion on the implications of Hezbollah’s growing role in Syria for Lebanese politics and Lebanon’s Shiite community. Recently returned from a trip to the region, Slim will examine Hezbollah’s potential end game in Syria, and whether Lebanon will be able to resist being drawn into the conflict following Hezbollah’s plunge into the Syrian abyss.
Hezbollah's Plunge into the Syrian Abyss
The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome MEI Scholar Randa Slim for a discussion on the implications of Hezbollah’s growing role in Syria for Lebanese politics and Lebanon’s Shiite community. Recently returned from a trip to the region, Slim will examine Hezbollah’s potential end game in Syria, and whether Lebanon will be able to resist being drawn into the conflict following Hezbollah’s plunge into the Syrian abyss.
Hezbollah's Plunge into the Syrian Abyss
The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome MEI Scholar Randa Slim for a discussion on the implications of Hezbollah’s growing role in Syria for Lebanese politics and Lebanon’s Shiite community. Recently returned from a trip to the region, Slim will examine Hezbollah’s potential end game in Syria, and whether Lebanon will be able to resist being drawn into the conflict following Hezbollah’s plunge into the Syrian abyss.
Panel 1: Crisis in Syria: Can Turkey Rise to the Challenge? – MEI's 4th Annual Conference on Turkey
The Middle East Institute Center for Turkish Studies’ Fourth Annual Conference on TurkeyPanel 1: Crisis in Syria: Can Turkey Rise to the Challenge?Volkan Bozkir, Grand National Assembly of TurkeySteve Heydemann, United States Institute of PeaceAnne Richard, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, U.S. Department of StateModerator: Robert Worth, New York TimesJune 14, 2013, 10:00am-11:30 am