The Washington Institute for Near East Policy

10/20/2026

"Three years after Oct. 7, 2023, the prospects for meaningful Israeli-Palestinian diplomatic progress appear worse than ever," writes Amb. Dennis Ross in Foreign Policy.

Practical steps, U.S. pressure, and greater Arab involvement are needed to overcome trauma and despair.

10/20/2026

“I think that we’ll have a minority government, and we’ll add to it one ultra-Orthodox party,” said Israel Democracy Institute senior fellow Tamar Hermann about the potential outcome of Israel’s October 27 elections.

Watch the full webcast: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/israels-most-consequential-election

10/20/2026

Israeli journalist Amit Segal outlines some scenarios that could unfold if Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu doesn't secure a 61-seat majority in Israel's Oct. 27 elections.

Watch the full webcast: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/israels-most-consequential-election

10/19/2026

The Trump administration should caution the British government against expanding its "import ban beyond restricting goods produced inside West Bank settlements" and urge Israel to embrace President Trump's 20-point Gaza plan, renounce unilateral annexation of West Bank territory, and reaffirm Israel’s commitment to the core principles of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, writes Institute Executive Director Robert Satloff.

If a bloc of major countries imposed the full range of sanctions suggested by the UK foreign secretary's statement, the consequences for Israel—and the peace process—could be catastrophic.

10/19/2026

"From Algeria’s point of view, helping to facilitate an agreement between Morocco and the Polisario Front is not necessary for it to continue to deepen its ties with the United States," writes Sabina Henneberg in Foreign Policy.

A sharp break with the UAE underscores Algeria’s ambitions to reassert its presence on the international stage after decades on the periphery, potentially affecting diplomacy over Western Sahara, among other issues.

10/19/2026

As tensions in the Gulf escalate, here are three things former Pentagon and State Department official Elizabeth Dent is watching, including the fallout from the Houthis’ attacks on Riyadh’s airport.

10/19/2026

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband's September 8 announcement that Israel's "occupation is unlawful” is "not a statement about Israeli behavior, such as a condemnation of settlement expansion, extremist violence, or land confiscation," writes Institute Executive Director Robert Satloff. "Rather, it is a statement that there is nothing Israel can do to satisfy Britain’s concerns because Israel’s very presence in occupied territory is itself illegal."

Read more: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/miliband-thunderclap-potential-implications-declaring-israels-occupation-unlawful

10/16/2026

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Eitan Danon and Joshua Kram, two leading experts on economic statecraft, national security, and the Middle East, have joined The Washington Institute for Near East Policy as adjunct senior fellows.

Danon and Kram’s research agenda at the Institute will focus on Middle East geoeconomics, examining how capital, technology, infrastructure, and economic statecraft are shaping the region.

Read more: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/about/press-room/press-release/geoeconomic-experts-eitan-danon-and-joshua-kram-join-washington

10/16/2026

On October 10, Yemen’s Houthis attacked Riyadh’s international airport. Here are three things former Pentagon and State Department official Elizabeth Dent is watching.

10/16/2026

“There are actually very few Middle Eastern Studies programs who are actually doing the work of teaching the real Middle East,” said Rachel Fish, incoming CEO of the Israel Institute.

Watch the full webcast: https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/middle-eastern-studies-america-past-present-and-future