The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

08/28/2026

"Washington’s objectives in Syria will be directly affected by how well the new government is able to channel grievances through institutions, apply laws predictably across communities, and give minorities confidence in state protection," writes Institute expert Aaron Zelin.

With Assad-era laws increasingly triggered by private complaints and enforced unevenly, U.S. officials can no longer relegate these issues to secondary tracks or assume that core administration objectives will remain unaffected.

08/28/2026

As the U.S. continues its economic pressure on Iran, here are three things Institute expert Simon Henderson is watching, including ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia’s response to Houthi attacks, and the Gulf states’ postwar dilemmas.

08/28/2026

Five years after the fall of Kabul, the Taliban has secured broad diplomatic gains. Institute expert Aaron Zelin examines the Taliban's diplomatic activity from August 2021 through today.

Read more: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/five-years-taliban-diplomacy-recognition-without-concessions

08/27/2026

As the U.S. tightens the economic squeeze on Iran, here are three things Institute Gulf expert Simon Henderson is watching.

08/26/2026

"Amid the protracted crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, Iraq has been racing to find new outlets and methods to export its crude and petroleum products," writes Institute expert Noam Raydan in Seatrade Maritime News.

Iraqi sales to Asian markets rely heavily on the strait, and efforts to establish viable alternative routes would have to overcome considerable logistical challenges—not to mention Baghdad’s bad track record with pipelines.

08/26/2026

📺Tune in on Tuesday, September 8 at 9AM ET for a timely webcast as three former directors of the National Counterterrorism Center discuss the terrorist threat landscape twenty-five years after 9/11. Institute expert Matthew Levitt will moderate the discussion.

Join us for a conversation with three former directors of the National Counterterrorism Center as they look back on a quarter century of combating the global terrorist threat. Watch live starting at 9:00 a.m. EDT (1300 GMT) on Tuesday, September 8, 2026.

08/26/2026

"Libya is trapped in a cycle in which political elites block any initiative that would restore political legitimacy to a new government," writes Institute expert Ben Fishman in Al Majalla.

Libyans are fed up with temporary solutions, but Washington’s current approach is structured to be just that—another transitional phase that lets political elites keep postponing elections and reform.

08/26/2026

"Five years after seizing Kabul on August 15, 2021, the Taliban government has won broad diplomatic gains," writes Institute expert Aaron Zelin.

Here's more on the Taliban's diplomatic project: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/five-years-taliban-diplomacy-recognition-without-concessions

08/25/2026

In the decade after the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011, Tunisia emerged as the region’s best prospect for a transition to democracy. What happened?

In this detailed study, Sabina Henneberg traces the efforts of four donors—the World Bank, IMF, United States, and European Union—to bolster economic reform during Tunisia’s postrevolutionary decade. The door may appear closed today amid President Saied’s consolidation of power, but this study explains how future efforts could yield greater success.

International actors, while expressing confidence in the country’s political progress, struggled to adapt to economic resistance from the national labor union, the destabilizing effects of terrorism, and interference from outside actors.

08/25/2026

Last week, U.S. presidential envoy Jared Kushner left the Middle East without a breakthrough on Trump’s Gaza peace plan. Here are three things counterterrorism expert Matthew Levitt is watching.