Middle East & North Africa

155 Items

Israeli Arab politician Ayman Odeh casts his vote in Haifa

AP/Ariel Schalit, File

Analysis & Opinions - Haaretz

Israel Election Results: Netanyahu Will Pull Out All the Stops — Including Military Action — to Hold on to Power

| Sep. 18, 2019

Chuck Freilich writes that Israelis voted to save their democracy. But the country may soon face a severe constitutional crisis if Netanyahu, facing political failure and criminal prosecution, adopts Nixon-style desperate measures.

Syrian army soldier stands at a check-point

AP/Sergei Grits

Analysis & Opinions - Haaretz

The Assad Regime Won Syria's Civil War. Can It Survive an Israeli Attack?

| Mar. 10, 2019

Chuck Freilich writes that the Syrian conflict has triggered Israel's primal fear: the threat of an entrenched Iranian presence on its borders. If a resurgent, unreliable Russia doesn't step in, then Assad and his army will be Israel's first targets.

 People walk past by an election poster of Turkey's president and ruling Justice and Development Party leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, and Muharrem Ince, presidential candidate of the main opposition Republican People's Party, in Istanbul, Tuesday, June 19, 2018.

AP Photo/Emrah Gurel

Analysis & Opinions - Brookings Institution

Unfair play: Central government spending under Turkey’s AK Party

| June 20, 2018

On June 24, Turkey will go to early presidential and parliamentary polls. The snap elections come amidst significant macroeconomic turmoil. As fears persist over the strength of Turkey’s economy, what can be said about how the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has managed public resources since its arrival into power in 2002? Do patterns of government spending reflect development or economic needs or do political priorities largely dictate how budgets are allocated?

A day after the elections, people walk past a billboard with the image of Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Istanbul, Monday, June 25, 2018.

AP Photo/Emrah Gurel

Analysis & Opinions - Economic Research Forum

Local winners and losers in Erdoğan’s Turkey

| June 19, 2018

Throughout the 2000s, Turkey was portrayed as a model of social and economic success for other countries in the MENA region. Ahead of the country’s early presidential and parliamentary polls, this column reports research evidence on how the ruling Justice and Development Party has managed public resources and fostered local economic development since it took power in 2002. The government has played a substantial role in influencing local economic performance on a discretionary basis.

Tawakkol Karman, Future of Diplomacy Project Fisher Family Fellow, speaks on human rights at Harvard University

Benn Craig

News

Tawakkol Karman Speaks on Human Rights

| Dec. 19, 2016

Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni activist and recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, served as a Fisher Family Fellow with Harvard’s Future of Diplomacy Project. An outspoken and passionate advocate for human rights, she was critical of the inaction of international institutions and developed nations in response to rights violations in the Middle East.

Jens Stoltenberg speaks to students at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Bennett Craig

Speech

The Three Ages of NATO: An Evolving Alliance

| Sep. 23, 2016

Jens Stoltenberg,NATO Secretary General, discussed the future of the NATO alliance during this speech, given at the Harvard Kennedy School on September 23, 2016. He described the alliance as a responsive organization, capable of adapting to changes in the international security landscape but committed to the continuity of its founding values. In particular, he emphasized the necessity of maintaining a policy of absolute solidarity among member states, especially  in light of the exacerbating civil war in Syria and Russia’s aggressive stance toward countries to the East of NATO member state borders.

(AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)

(AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File)

Analysis & Opinions - Project Syndicate

How to Help the Middle East

| Sep. 08, 2016

Opinion polls indicate that the vast majority of people in the Middle East want to be governed by legitimate states that uphold the rule of law, protect civic rights, and promote coexistence among communities. The goal must be to reach a grand bargain that takes into account the major issues dividing the region, including the status of the Palestinians and Kurds, and creates conditions for viable political settlements in Syria and Iraq.