Levant

How the UAE Is Cracking Down on Illicit Iranian Finance

Iran’s attacks on the Gulf state have created an opportunity to starve Iran’s proxy network of funds.

Is the Islamic Republic Down and Out in the Levant and Beyond?

Since October 7, 2023, Iran’s theocracy has watched its entire westward foreign policy crash, disabled by an Israeli counterattack and its shockwaves.

For a Better Druze Future, Jumblatt Needs New Ideas

Walid Jumblatt, Lebanon’s most seasoned and cunning political operator, has navigated every twist of the country’s turmoil since taking the reins of the Druze community in 1977. Convinced that his...

The End of the Middle East’s Oil Bonanza

The Middle East has finally arrived at the grim reckoning long barreling toward it: a ruinous collapse of oil revenues that renders government deficits utterly unsustainable. Among the wealthy Gulf...

Iraq Almost Takes a Stand Against Iran’s Terrorist Proxies — Then Doesn’t

The Iraqi government did the right thing and froze the assets of Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis, but once the story made news on December 4, the government walked its decision back within hours. In...

Turkey’s Push for Regime Change in Syria: The Jihadi Highway

Syria’s civil war broke out in March 2011, in reaction to the brutal crackdown by the regime of Bashar al-Asad of popular protests that were part of the wider Arab Spring. In supporting the Syrian...

A major battle in The Long War 

The roots of the current Middle East conflict trace back centuries

Iranian drone and missile attacks against Israel: June 13–16, 2025

David Daoud is senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, where he focuses on Israel, Hezbollah, and Lebanon affairs. Ahmad Sharawi is a research analyst at the Foundation for...

As Iran Retreats, Islamist Turkey and Qatar Surge in Lebanon

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, a Sunni, entered the stadium of Beirut’s Sports City to watch the classic football game between the two rival teams Nijmeh and Ansar. When the Shia supporters of...

‘No Impunity’: Israel Strikes Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Damascus

Daylight Sortie Over Syrian Capital: The Israeli Air Force struck a Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) command center in Damascus on March 13. The site, located in the Dummar suburb...

10 Things to Know About Turkey’s Interventions and Influence in Syria

Turkey intends to position itself as the most influential foreign actor in Syria. Following the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011, Turkey built close ties with jihadist militias fighting Bashar...

Disruptions and Challenges in the Middle East

Significant challenges await the Trump administration’s attention.

Good news and bad news from Lebanon as Nawaf Salam elected premier

Israel-bashing president of the International Court of Justice hardly seems the one to bring peace with neighbor

Lebanon’s Mahan Air theater was meant to cover ceasefire deal non-performance

A false narrative has emerged claiming Lebanese authorities searched an Iranian plane last week at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport over suspicion the aircraft was smuggling...

Naim Qassem on Hezbollah’s post-ceasefire posture

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem delivered two speeches—one on November 29 and another on December 5— after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that took effect on November 27. Most...

IDF Eliminates Hezbollah Official Overseeing Weapons Transfer From Syria to Lebanon

Israel Eliminates Senior Hezbollah Member: An Israeli airstrike in Damascus killed Salman Nemar Jamaa, a senior Hezbollah figure responsible for liaising with the Syrian army, on...

Iran reacts to Israel’s direct retaliation

Once again, in 2024, history was made in the Middle East. On October 25, Israel took credit for a long-expected military retaliation against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The attack reportedly...

How U.S. Adversaries Undermine the Perception of Election Integrity

The Story of the Next Lebanon War Starts Now

Beirut, the once-fabled “Paris of the Middle East”, has been down on its luck in recent years. The lack of attention to Lebanon’s decline is now translating into complacency about the combustible...

Hints within Nasrallah’s speech about Hezbollah’s retaliation for Beirut strike

The Levant has been on unusually high alert since a Falaq-1 missile fired by Hezbollah struck a soccer field in the community of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights, killing 12 Israeli children. Israel’s...