ISIL’s International Expansion: What Does Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis’s Oath of Allegiance Mean?
The international expansion of the jihadist organization known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has become a ...
Egyptians
Napoleon in the Middle East
The French emperor’s war against an Islamic empire is instructive
Op-eds
In Latest Sanctions, U.S. Again Targets Iranians Holding Caribbean Passports
For the fourth time this year, U.S. officials blacklisted an Iranian national using a Caribbean passport while purportedly helping Iran circumvent sanctions. The U.S. Treasury Depa...
Op-eds
Egypt’s Revolution Comes Full Circle
It all looks so familiar. Nearly four years after toppling Hosni Mubarak, crowds returned to Cairo on Saturday to protest the ex-president’s acquittal over causing 239 protesters’ dea...
Op-eds
Sinai’s Volatility Increasingly Unites Egypt and Israel
Militants in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula carried out a cross-border shooting attack on Wednesday, leaving an Israeli female...
Policy Briefs
Sandstorm
The great medieval historian Ibn Khaldun centered his understanding of history on asabiyya, which is perhaps best translated as esprit de corps mixed with the will to power. In his maste...
Op-eds
America Needs an ‘Overarching Strategy’
Here’s the dilemma: How do we stop the Islamic State without strengthening the Islamic Republic? The Islamic State, a growing Sunni jihadist militia, now controls large swath...
Op-eds
Palestine’s ICC Threat: Pluses and Minuses for Mahmoud Abbas
The shooting has resumed in Gaza. But where will things go when it ends? Inevitably, in each operation in Gaza since 2008 there is a "Goldstone-ification" on the Palestinian side—a shift fr...
Op-eds
Al Qaeda’s Expansion in Egypt Implications for U.S. Homeland Security
Chairman King, Ranking Member Higgins, members of the committee, thank you for inviting me here today to discuss al Qaeda’s presence in Egypt. The uprisings throughou...
Legislative Testimonies
Crackdown By Security Forces ‘Alienating Many Young Egyptians’
Sitting on a large wooden chair with a green leafy plant by his side, the bearded man looked down to the ground and confessed to his alleged crimes. "My name is Yahia al-Mongi Saad Husse...
Op-eds
Not a ‘Bogus’ Benghazi Connection
During an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, New York Times reporter David Kirkpatrick was asked about the connections between Muhammad Jamal’s network and the B...
Op-eds
Politico Jumps in the Benghazi Debate
Blake Hounshell of Politico takes a look at the...
Op-eds
Bomb Near Cairo Bus Raises Fear of Growing Militancy
A small bomb exploded near a municipal bus here on Thursday, raising fears that deepening political polarization of the country is fueling a violent insurgency. The bombing, which injure...
Op-eds
Egypt’s New Political Transition
Egypt’s “Committee of the Fifty,” which serves as a constituent assembly, held its first deliberations last week to draft a new constitution. The meeting was a major milestone,...
Policy Briefs
Way Down in Egypt’s Land
President Obama wants to keep aid to Egypt’s new military rulers flowing. So does Republican former ambassador John Bolton. Democratic (and Muslim) congressman Keith Ellison wants to cut ai...
Op-eds
Where Is Egypt Headed?
Egypt is caught in an authoritarian vise. On the one hand, the Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated former president Mohamed Morsi and his Islamic supporters trampled roughshod over the rights and liber...
Op-eds
It’s Time to Threaten Egypt’s Aid
The Egyptian military’s slaughter of hundreds of protesters on Wednesday leaves the United States with a single clear, albeit difficult, course of action: Condition future aid to Egypt on a...
Op-eds
Rumor Busting: Benghazi, the Brotherhood, and Interpretation of Data
A couple of weeks ago, I testified at a House hearing on the terr...
Op-eds
The Great Collision
For most of those who were so hopeful when the Great Arab Revolt downed the dictator Hosni Mubarak two years ago, the travails of Egypt’s fledgling democracy have been depressing. Many in t...
Op-eds
Egypt’s Islamists Will Rise Again
Fifty years ago, the historian Elizabeth Monroe published a beautifully written book with a dismissive title, "Britain's Moment in the Middle East, 1914-1956." She captured well the British...