Tag: Shia
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Why Hezbollah is unlikely to engage in the Israel-Iran war—for now
MENASource June 17, 2025 • 8:54 am ET David Daoud Israel’s inevitable strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities has finally occurred. The Israelis on Friday launched extensive, non-stop airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear and military sites, coupled with assassinations of Tehran’s senior-most officers and nuclear scientists. Iran had built up Hezbollah’s massive arsenal to deter precisely such…
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If the War Between Israel and Iran Continues, the US Should Stay Out of It
June 17, 2025 US security is not at stake—no matter how many times Netanyahu goes on US television to claim otherwise. Supporters of Iraqi pro-Iran groups hold a cutout of US President Donald Trump during a protest in Baghdad near the US embassy, on June 16, 2025.(Ahmad Al-Rubaye / AFP via Getty Images) From a…
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How the US can reduce the risk of wider war in the Middle East
New Atlanticist June 16, 2025 • 3:45 pm ET Caroline Zier Israel has again demonstrated an uncanny ability to rewrite the regional playbook with a multi-pronged, multi-day attack on Iran’s nuclear program, air defenses, and military leadership. The first phase of attacks in particular—strikes at the heart of Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, the decapitation of…
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Iran’s Four Possible Responses to Israel — and Their Risks
Israel’s attack on Iran opens the next phase of the Great Middle Eastern War that began on Oct. 7, 2023. Over the past 20 months, that war has played out on fronts across the region and has drawn in actors from around the globe. There is much we don’t yet know about what has happened, let alone…
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Israel’s Iran strike provides a historic chance for Middle East realignment
Inflection Points June 14, 2025 • 8:00 am ET Frederick Kempe Israel’s stunning strikes on Iran—bigger, bolder, and more strategic than what has preceded them—are much more than a military response to a potential nuclear threat. They present the opportunity for a regional remake, having hit the Middle East’s greatest obstacle to sustainable peace, security,…
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After Israel’s strikes on Iran, these four questions could determine the Middle East’s future
The questions after Israel’s sweeping strikes against Iran’s military and nuclear sites outnumber the answers. In particular, there are four key questions whose answers will help determine the trajectory of the Middle East and perhaps beyond—not only over the coming weeks, but potentially for the coming years: 1. What is the scale of Israeli military operations in…
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What Lebanon’s municipal election results mean for Hezbollah
MENASource June 4, 2025 • 9:37 am ET David Daoud Lebanon’s political machine is moving again. In May, the Lebanese concluded country-wide municipal and mayoral elections—their first in nine years—on the heels of Joseph Aoun filling Beirut’s two-year presidential vacancy, and an uncharacteristically speedy appointment of a prime minister and cabinet. Mere momentum should not…
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Turkish-American defense and energy partnerships suit the new transatlantic landscape
The week following last November’s US elections, the newly formed American Turkish Business Roundtable (ATBR) gathered in Istanbul for a press event where ATBR directors, General Jim Jones and General Tod Wolters (both retired and both former SACEURs), addressed the impact of Donald Trump’s election victory on US-Turkey relations. At that moment, bilateral ties were…
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The Hojjatieh Society and Politics in Iran
Dr. Moatasim Siddiq Dr. Mohammed al-Sayyad In contemporary Iran, critical scrutiny is increasingly directed toward the competence and coherence of the state’s administrative, political and ideological structures, particularly in light of the mounting crises that have recently undermined the broader objectives of the “Islamic Republic.” Externally, Iran-aligned groups have suffered substantial setbacks in Lebanon, Syria…
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A New Two Pillar Policy in the Persian Gulf?
Editor’s Note: Arash Reisinezhad is a Visiting Scholar at the Department of Government in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University. He is also a visiting fellow of the Middle East Centre at London School of Economics and a former Assistant Professor of International Relations at the University of Tehran. Reisinezhad’s publications include…