Israel Program

America’s most valuable and vulnerable ally in the Middle East, Israel, faces an onslaught of threats. Syria’s civil war continues to rage with Sunni and Shiite radicals sitting on or near Israel’s border. Lebanon is a failing state where Hezbollah is stockpiling precision-guided munitions (PGMs) that may be able to evade Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. Tehran-backed terrorists, including Hamas, launched more than 4,000 rockets into Israel during the May 2021 escalation, and continue to stockpile weapons for future conflict. And the Islamic Republic of Iran continues to inch forward with its nuclear weapons program. As these threats loom large, Israel’s adversaries also seek to delegitimize Israel through lawfare and boycotts.

FDD’s Israel Program leverages FDD’s regional and subject matter expertise and its centers on American power to produce actionable research and develop policy options to address the threats facing Israel while encouraging the expansion of the historic normalization agreements between Israel and the Arab world.

FDD’s Israel Program team includes fellows and analysts with a wide range of backgrounds, including Middle East and regional subject matter experts, language skills, lawfare experts, and experience in government, military, intelligence, finance and technology. FDD’s Israel Program involves a range of efforts, including developing the U.S.-Israel Operations Technology Working Group, identifying illicit networks behind the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) efforts, supporting the new Eastern Mediterranean energy alliance, addressing the China-Israel relationship and protecting U.S. interests, supporting a pressure campaign to counter the Islamic Republic in Iran, combatting terrorist use of human shields, maintaining Israel’s Qualitative Military Edge, and exploring ways to advance the historic normalization agreements.