Middle East
Regional security, proxy networks, escalation risk, and conflict diplomacy across the Middle East.
181 Dispatches
Israel At War: The Crisis The World Didn't See Coming
How Hamas launched Operation al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, 2023, breaching Israel's defenses in a coordinated assault that reshaped the Middle East balance
Nagorno-Karabakh: Can the World Prevent Another Caucasus War?
Explore the Nagorno-Karabakh crisis, its devastating blockade, the collapse of Russian authority, and how Turkey, Iran, and the EU shape another potential
Iran's Quds Force: The Shadow Hand of the Islamic Republic
Explore Iran's Quds Force — its origins in the Iran-Iraq War, proxy network across the Middle East, assassination plots, and rising regional influence.
The Syrian Civil War: A Downward Spiral to Madness
A comprehensive account of the Syrian Civil War from 2011 to present, covering the Assad regime, rebel factions, ISIS, foreign intervention, and
The Art of War: Proxy Warfare Through the Ages
How major powers use proxy warfare to fight without direct conflict — from Byzantine politics to Ukraine, Syria, Yemen, and the new Cold War.
Frozen Conflicts: Predicting the Sites of Future Wars
Frozen conflicts from Taiwan to Kosovo to northeast Syria represent the most likely sites of future wars. Learn how these unresolved wars reignite.
Kurdistan's Military History: A Stateless Nation's Fight
Nestled between the Taurus and Zagros Mountains, straddling modern-day Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, lies Kurdistan: a nation without borders. The Kurds,
Could and Should Ukraine Join NATO?
An in-depth analysis of whether Ukraine can and should join NATO, examining the strategic benefits, escalation risks, and alternative security
Mossad: Israel's Secretive Foreign Intelligence Agency and Its Global Operations
Explore Mossad's origins from Haganah, its assassination protocols, famous operations like the Eichmann capture, organizational structure, and future
Should the US Have Intervened in Syria in 2013?
Analysis of the 2013 US decision not to intervene in Syria after the Ghouta chemical attack, and how inaction shaped the war's outcome and global politics.
Operation Opera: Israel's Daring 1981 Raid on Iraq's Osirak Reactor
How Israel destroyed Iraq's Osirak nuclear reactor in 1981, the assassinations that preceded the strike, the F-16 raid itself, and its disputed legacy.
The Iran-Iraq War: Eight Years of Trench Warfare, Human Waves, and Chemical Weapons
How Saddam Hussein's 1980 invasion of Iran spiraled into one of the deadliest wars in modern history, ending with roughly two million dead and no borders changed.