From Dahiya to Damascus: A Pivotal Moment for Iran’s Regional Strategy

Building destroyed by an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, October 2, 2024. Photo credit: Fadel Itani via Reuters Connect.

Just three weeks ago, thousands of Hizbullah fighters, commanders, and activists were killed or injured in Israeli “pager” attacks. Next the terrorist organization’s top leaders, including Secretary General Hasan Nasrallah, were eliminated in Israeli airstrikes. Then, after Israeli warplanes bombarded Hizbullah’s stronghold in Beirut and bases in southern Lebanon, Israel invaded with two divisions, aiming […]

Going on Offense, Designating the Muslim Brotherhood

Photo credit: REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed.

“Dad, open your WhatsApp and see the [photos of] dead Jews. Your son has killed Jews.” “God bless you.”  “Dad, I’m calling you from the phone of a Jew! I just killed her and her husband, with my own hands.”   – Intercepted cellphone call, October 7, from Hamas elite unit member One unanswered question is […]

Israel Strikes Hizbullah: What Comes Next for Lebanon

Israeli airstrikes over Beirut’s southern suburbs, September 28, 2024. Photo credit: REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir.

Israel’s recent military actions in Lebanon and Gaza have fundamentally shifted the balance of power in the Middle East to the detriment of the Iranian-led axis and to the benefit of the American-aligned axis of Israel and Arab states, some of which have, with quiet Saudi approval, gambled on relations with the Jewish state to […]

Who Will Govern Gaza?

Photo credit: REUTERS/Amir Cohen.

Large-scale Israeli military operations against Hamas in Gaza are winding down and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is focused on Hizbullah in the north. Now the Israel government and the IDF face the long-postponed question of postwar planning for Gaza. Two options are under discussion: a multinational mission or an Israeli military administration, both as […]

The Wars in Gaza and Ukraine Are the Same War

Photos: Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS, Official State Department photo by Chuck Kennedy via ABACAPRESS.COM.

The deep partisan divisions in the United States affect many public issues, including the ongoing wars in Europe and the Middle East. The Israeli war of self-defense in Gaza commands strong support among Republicans but elicits less enthusiasm among Democrats. By contrast, Democrats generally endorse Ukraine’s war of self-defense against Russia, following the lead of […]

Can India Mediate Between Israel and Iran?

Iran's Foreign Minister Hussain Amir Abdullahian meets with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, in Tehran, January 15, 2024. Photo credit: Majid Asgaripour/WANA via REUTERS.

Four decades in the undeclared conflict between Israel and Iran, the storm of war looms even larger over the Middle East, threatening to engulf its citizens in an unprecedented turmoil. If the confrontation between Israel and Iran escalates, the mediator most trusted by both sides may not hail from Beijing, Moscow, or Washington, but from […]

Easier Said than Done: Renewing Maximum Pressure on Iran

Former Chairman of Iran’s Central Bank Abdolnasser Hemmati at a press conference. Photo credit: Morteza Nikoubazl via Reuters Connect.

In July 2015, much of the world exhaled with the announcement that a nuclear deal had been struck among the United States, its partners, and Iran. Although the terms of the deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) were — and remain — contentious, for many, the deal denied Iran the ability […]

Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran – How Should Israel Prioritize Enemy Arenas?

Israel faces a strategic dilemma regarding prioritization of the multiple arenas of attacks it faces across the region: Can it continue to prioritize Gaza while maintaining the current low tempo of operations in Lebanon and preparing for responses from Iran?  In Gaza, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) has made significant progress since the Hamas invasion […]

Iran Threatens Argentina on Anniversary of the AMIA Attack

A memorial service 30 years after the AMIA attack, Buenos Aires, July 2024. Photo credit: Cristina Sille/dpa via Reuters Connect.

On July 18, 1994, a car bomb exploded in front of the Buenos Aires Jewish community center (known as AMIA) leaving 85 persons dead and over 300 wounded. Until the October 7 Hamas attack, this was the largest terrorist killing of Jews since the Holocaust. On the 30th anniversary of this attack, the Tehran Times, […]

The Trump II Administration and the Iranian Nuclear Challenge

The world is on fire with two major wars in Europe and the Middle East and Iran has a malign involvement in both. As a party to the Beijing-Moscow-Tehran axis it supports Russia in its aggression against Ukraine. Iran has fueled conflict through its proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, threatening America’s close ally, Israel, […]