A Deal Is Still Possible in Syria

As U.S. President Joe Biden and his team focus on the Iran nuclear file, the war in Syria remains a festering wound at the heart of the Middle East. Although the current administration has made no…

James F. Jeffrey

Balancing the Arab Gulf Momentum

Most of the news coming out of the Middle East, these days, is about the Arab Gulf countries’ unprecedented diplomatic activity on both regional and international horizons. The Arab Gulf region is…

Dalia Ziada

Iraq Elections 2021

The Iraqi Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) announced 96% of the initial results for the early general elections held on Oct. 10, the fifth parliamentary vote since 2003. Many…

Mahdi Karayem

Ebrahim Raisi and His Nuclear Project

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) criticized Iran for stonewalling an investigation into past activities and jeopardizing important monitoring work, possibly complicating efforts to…

Mahdi Akabaei

America’s “Other Options” on Iran

“We’re putting diplomacy first and seeing where that takes us,” US President Joe Biden said during his first meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the White House on August 27. “But…

Ahmed Taher

The New Safavids

When Ismail al-Safavi came from Anatolia and occupied Tabriz from 907 AH to 1502, he declared himself a Shah and issued the first royal command calling for the prayer “I testify that Ali is the…

Gamal Abd El-Maboud