Hezbollah’s Unit 4400
On October 1, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the killing of Mohammad Jaafar Qasir, a high-value Hezbollah operative who commanded the group’s Unit 4400—the body responsible for transporting...
Central bank
Iran’s Economy Braces for Impact of Clash With Israel
Iranians remain on edge as they wait for Israel’s response to Iran’s latest ballistic missile barrage. The Iranian currency reflects local anxiety as the street value of the Iranian rial to the dollar...
Policy Briefs
American October 7 Victims File U.S. Lawsuit Against Iran, Syria and North Korea
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a U.S.-based Jewish civil rights organization, submitted a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, DC, on July 1 targeting the regimes in Iran, Syria, and North Korea for enabling Hamas’s terrorist atrocities in Israel on October 7...
Flash Briefs
Former Iranian President Ahmadinejad Vying to Succeed Raisi
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad registered as a presidential candidate on June 2. Elections to select a successor to the late Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter...
Flash Briefs
Iranian Rial’s Depreciation Persists Into Persian New Year
The Iranian rial struck a record low on March 24, trading at about 613,000 to the U.S. dollar in the unregulated market. Since January, the dollar has appreciated about 21 percent...
Flash Briefs
Iranian Rial Plunges to Historic Low
The Iranian rial plummeted to a historic all-time low on March 4, trading at about 600,000 to the U.S. dollar in the unregulated market. Amid escalating tensions in the region,...
Flash Briefs
New Canadian sanctions fall short in Lebanon
If Minister Joly is serious about opposing corruption in Lebanon, there's more Ottawa can do
Op-eds
New U.S., UK, Canadian Sanctions Target Former Lebanese Central Bank Governor
The United States, in coordination with the United Kingdom and Canada, imposed sanctions today on former Lebanese Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh and three of his associates. Washington once considered...
Policy Briefs
Lebanese Central Bank Governor Hit With Sanctions From U.S., UK, Canada
The United States, UK, and Canada sanctioned the former governor of Lebanon’s central bank, Riad Salameh, for “corrupt and unlawful actions” on August 10 but stopped short of sanctioning the...
Flash Briefs
Top U.S. Lawmakers Want Action Against Lebanon’s Corrupt Central Bank Chief
The chairman and ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee sent a letter on Tuesday to Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling on the administration to “support independent, international...
Policy Briefs
Erdogan faces growing backlash over earthquake mismanagement
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan referred to the earthquakes that struck Turkey in early February as the “disaster of the century.” The earthquake certainly wreaked havoc, making an estimated...
Op-eds
The New Nuclear Deal Would Allow Tehran to Access Up to $131 Billion of Its Foreign Assets
The Biden administration is finalizing a deal that would provide the Islamic Republic with relief from U.S. sanctions in exchange for temporary and limited curbs on Iran’s nuclear program. When the administration...
Policy Briefs
Iran Nuclear Talks in Vienna Won’t Result in a Better Deal
The nuclear negotiations in Vienna continue. The Iranians are setting the tone and pace while the Americans struggle to keep alive the possibility of a deal. The Israelis—for whom these talks will have...
Op-eds
Iran, Terrorism Finance, and Money Laundering: A Status Update Before FATF Meets Next Week
When the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) convenes its plenary next week, while not formally on the agenda, buzz on the sidelines will concern Tehran’s constant push to be removed from the FATF blacklist....
Insights
Why we must steer clear of the Lebanon aid trap
It’s time for Uncle Sam to draw the line
Op-eds
Why Erdogan Won’t Ask the IMF for Help
Turkey's economy is a mess, but its president won't seek an IMF loan because the conditions would mean giving up his extensive patronage network.
Op-eds
Lebanon is a basket case run by a terror group: don’t fund it
After two weeks of popular protests in Lebanon against the country’s corrupt political class, Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri has handed his resignation. While some see this development as a victory...
Op-eds
Iran’s attempt to force the US back to the JCPOA failed miserably
By attacking Saudi Aramco, Iran wanted to force the US to return to the JCPOA nuclear deal. It failed. The futility of Iran’s attempts to force the US to return to the nuclear deal was evident at the...
Op-eds
For Economic Sanctions to Work, Trump Must Turn up the Heat on Iran
The Trump administration's strategy of maximum pressure on Iran took full effect on Nov. 5. It included the re-imposition of oil sanctions and designation of more than 700 Iranian entities...
Op-eds
Here’s How Trump Can Bring Iran Back to the Table
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said this month that he would nev...