Deradicalization in the Middle East and Lessons for Gaza’s Future

Weapons exhibition for children in Gaza, June 2023. Photo credit: Mohammed Talatene/dpa via Reuters Connect.

As Israel continues its military campaign against Hamas in Gaza, policymakers in Jerusalem often use the term “deradicalization” when discussing Gaza’s future, mentioning it as a condition for the end of hostilities and calm. Yet Israeli politicians have not proposed concrete plans for its implementation,though everyone agrees Hamas’s murderous ideology (and the organization itself) must […]

The Failure of the “Economic Peace” Model in the Middle East

Economic peace illustration

On September 26, 2021, Israel’s then Prime Minister Naftali Bennet took the podium at the UN General Assembly and laid out a grand vision for the Middle East. It was a modernist, advanced, technological future (as befitted Bennet, a former high-tech entrepreneur) in which Israel would play a major role – focused upon a world […]

Iran’s Attack Requires a Broad Response

Israel's Arrow 3 interceptors operate against long-range Iranian missiles over the city of Ashkelon, Israel in the early morning hours of April 14, 2024. Photo credit: REUTERS/Amir Cohen

Iran’s attack on Israel, with more than 170 drones and 120 ballistic missiles, was the largest that Tehran has ever launched against the Hebrew state.  Previously, Iran used proxy forces, including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Houthi rebels in Yemen, to rain down rockets on Israeli homes and ships. Now, Iran is attacking directly and striking at well […]