Pakistan’s July 25 elections exemplified a new, energetic chapter in the country’s politics as voters chose longtime outsider politician Imran Khan as prime minister. In its position as an opposition party, Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek Insaf (PTI) faced consistent disparagement from the incumbent parties Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Both […]
The Navigator from CGP
Russia in Syria: Between U.S.-Turkey Dealings & an Israel-Iran Conflict
Russia’s successful intervention on behalf of Bashar al-Assad in Syria has brought about a remarkable recovery in Moscow’s standing in the Middle East. But the price of that recovery has been Moscow’s newfound obligation to become more deeply involved in the endless crosscurrents of Middle Eastern diplomacy. Two cases exemplify this new dynamic: the clash […]
Israel: No Longer “the Only Democracy in the Middle East”
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it a “defining moment” when the Israeli parliament passed the Basic Law: Israel – The Nation-State of the Jewish People. He was slightly off the mark. This law redefines Israel. The document codifies the ethno-nationalism that now dominates the Israeli political landscape. Israelis have achieved what white nationalists in […]
Syria: The End of the Opposition?
Last week, Syrian rebels surrendered control of Deraa, the so-called cradle of the rebellion against Bashar al Assad’s regime. A military campaign by the regime and Russia culminated with the raising of the national flag over Deraa on July 12 near the mosque where early protests against the regime had erupted. As part of a […]
Pakistan: Between Democracy, Extremism and the Deep State
It has been well over a decade since Pakistan began feeling the pull toward the two contradictory forces of democratization and violent extremism. These parallel tracks have one common denominator: the country’s powerful military-intelligence combine. Remarkably, despite the continuing civil-military imbalance of power and the national ideological shift to the right, Pakistan is continuing along […]
Erdogan Has All the Power: Does He Have the Answers?
Turkey’s June 24 elections have undoubtedly given birth to a new Turkey— one that is presidential in form and surprisingly more secular in substance. Sitting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won the first presidential election under Turkey’s new constitution and now has unprecedented powers to shape the government and its policies. The new constitution has made […]