Syrian rebels from the “Al-Qasas Brigade” or “Justice Brigade” run through an olive grove to avoid Syrian Army snipers, Oct. 20, 2012 (photo by Flickr user syriafreedom licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license).

U.S. President Barack Obama’s strategy to counter the so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq has three central components: pressuring the Iraqi government to change its policies that fuel support for IS and to rebuild its military; conducting U.S. airstrikes to weaken IS and prevent it from gaining an outright military victory; and training and equipping militias to fight IS on the ground, including Kurdish forces in Iraq and Syrian rebels. All of these components are shaky to one extent or another, but the third is the most precarious of all, reflecting the Obama administration’s desperate effort to balance […]

The Islamist Ennahda party holds a large rally in the Mediterranean port city of Sfax in southeast Tunisia, Oct. 2014 (Atlantic Council photo).

Tunisia’s parliamentary elections on Sunday confirm the erosion of trust over the past three years in the Islamist party Ennahda, which failed to live up to its electoral promises and implement an effective post-revolutionary political agenda after the ouster of longtime autocrat Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. Nidaa Tounes, the secular party led by Beji Caid Essebsi, an 87-year old anchor of the country’s old guard, won with 39 percent of votes, while Ennahda, which dominated the 2011 elections under the leadership of longtime dissident Rachid Ghannouchi and governed the country until ceding power to an interim government in January 2014, […]

This image made from an undated video shows Tarkhan Batirashvili, known as Omar al-Shishani, among a group of Islamic State fighters (AP Photo/militant social media account via AP video).

As militants from the so-called Islamic State (IS) advance across Syria and Iraq, the battlefield exploits of a 28-year-old field commander known as Omar al-Shishani—“Omar the Chechen”—have become a prominent narrative in the conflict. Born Tarkhan Batirashvili, the IS fighter is increasingly credited by observers as a superlative tactician who has overcome the group’s disadvantages in size and equipment to score a string of recent victories in Iraq. Batirashvili is an unlikely war hero for the radical Islamist brigades. Only a few years ago, after serving as a sergeant in the Georgian army during the 2008 war with Russia, Batirashvili […]

Thick smoke and flames from an airstrike by the U.S.-led coalition rise in Kobani, Syria, as seen from a hilltop on the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border, Oct. 20, 2014 (AP photo by Lefteris Pitarakis).

While the world watches the battle over the Syrian border town of Kobani in light of Turkish tensions with its Western partners in the fight against the so-called Islamic State (IS), there are significant Kurdish undercurrents that have largely escaped attention. Regardless of whether Kobani falls or Syria’s main Kurdish rebel group, the People’s Protection Unit (YPG), ultimately manages to hold the town, the resistance that Syria’s Kurds have put up for a month now against vastly superior IS forces has already become “a defining moment for nationhood and identity”for Kurds everywhere—a kind of Kurdish Alamo. As Kobani’s YPG fighters […]

Members of the U.N. investigation team take samples from the ground to test for chemicals in the Damascus countryside of Zamalka, Syria, Aug. 29, 2013 (AP Photo/Local Committee of Arbeen).

A series of recent media reports have refocused attention on chemical weapons and highlighted the threat presented by their possible use by terrorists. Stories about the so-called Islamic State (IS) seizing the remains of Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons stockpile in Iraq; the large number of abandoned chemical weapons that U.S soldiers discovered during the post-Saddam occupation of Iraq; and the continued cases of chemicals being used as weapons of war in Syria have all generated concern and alarm. But they also highlight the ways in which the international chemical weapons regime must be updated to reflect the current nature of […]

Two UH-60 Blackhawks assigned to U.S. Army Europe’s 12th Combat Aviation Brigade on approach to pick up soldiers during a mission rehearsal exercise (Photo by SPC. Glenn M. Anderson).

Since the U.S. Army left Iraq and began withdrawing from Afghanistan, it has struggled mightily to reinvent itself and convince Congress and administration policymakers to preserve much of its force structure. This has been an uphill battle. For many Americans, the Army has become synonymous with counterinsurgency in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since the U.S. doesn’t expect to fight a major land war with another nation, it was easy—if incorrect—to conclude that it no longer needs a large Army. This forced military leaders and national security experts who believe in the enduring importance of land power to appeal for preserving Army […]

A Turkish forces soldier on an armored vehicle uses his binoculars as he patrols on the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border, overlooking Kobani, Syria, Oct. 16, 2014 (AP photo by Lefteris Pitarakis).

Turkey recently announced that only Syrian refugees would be allowed to cross the border to fight against the so-called Islamic State (IS) in the besieged town of Kobani. In an email interview, Sinan Ülgen, a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe, discussed domestic influences on Turkey’s Syria policy. WPR: How unified is the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) on Turkey’s Syria policy, and how does the Turkish opposition view the AKP’s policy? Sinan Ülgen: The Turkish government’s policy on Syria has never really been popular. There are no dissenting voices within the ruling party given the strong party discipline. But […]

Smoke rises from a fire in Kobani, Syria as seen from Mursitpinar on the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border, Oct. 15, 2014 (AP photo by Lefteris Pitarakis).

Just as the United States thought it had made progress convincing Turkey to help fight the so-called Islamic State (IS)—particularly in the current battle for Kobani, the Kurdish town near Turkey’s border with Syria—Ankara came out with a rather disconcerting announcement. Turkish warplanes, officials said, had launched bombing raids, but they had struck Kurdish guerrillas in Turkey, not IS. The bombing raids against Kurdish rebels in southeastern Turkey did not directly change the balance in Kobani, but their timing was a particularly brazen defiance of international pressure. The U.S.-led effort to “degrade and destroy” IS has put a harsh spotlight […]

Fighters of the Islamic State waving the group’s flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, Raqqa, Syria, photo post Aug. 27, 2014 (AP photo/ Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group).

The elusive unicorns wandering the forests of America’s Middle East policy are the so-called moderates who will battle the extremists on behalf of the Western world. There is a touching faith among many parts of the U.S. foreign policy establishment in the existence of these moderates, who simply require sustained U.S. support in order to step forward out of the shadows of the stagnant status quo regimes and extremist movements that dominate the region. These moderates, according to this rosy view, can already field a disciplined and effective fighting force. But better yet, they can also be trained quickly and […]

Armed men belonging to the Self-Defense Council of Michoacan guard a checkpoint in western Mexico, May 9, 2014 (AP photo by Eduardo Verdugo).

The emergence of self-defense groups in the state of Michoacan in Mexico earlier this year is yet another chapter in the history of nonstate actors that contest the government’s monopoly on violence. While many circumstances are specific to Mexico, parallel cases in Colombia, El Salvador and Nigeria can help illustrate how such groups form and why they persist. Mexico Earlier this year, violence in Mexico once again made international headlines. On this occasion, however, the media feeding frenzy wasn’t caused by the most recent macabre innovation of cartel gunmen or the arrest of a prominent drug lord. Instead, a heterogeneous […]

This image taken from video shows heavy shelling by warplanes in the Eastern Ghouta area near Damascus, Syria, Dec. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Shaam News Network via AP video).

On the edge of Damascus, Syrian rebels have united in an effort to break the crushing siege of the suburbs known as the Ghouta. And to do so, they have rallied behind the controversial but charismatic Zahran Alloush, the Salafist head of Jeish al-Islam (the Army of Islam) and one of the most prominent rebels in Syria. Syria’s rebels have announced alliances, mergers and charters in the past, but they have nonetheless remained largely atomized countrywide. While infighting among rebels unaffiliated with the so-called Islamic State (IS) has been exaggerated, cooperation has remained mostly ad hoc. Coordination has been hamstrung […]

An Islamist flag flaps in the main square in Maan, southwest of Amman, Jordan, July 4, 2014 (AP photo by Raad Adayleh).

In the U.S.-led coalition against the so-called Islamic State (IS), one country has remained relatively aloof: Israel, which has only provided some intelligence when asked. Israel has a good reason for this stance. Unlike Syria and Iraq, where IS controls swaths of territory, or Iraq, where its takeover of Mosul and other northern towns has weakened an already fragile state, it is not a direct threat to Israel. As a result, Israel does not want to get involved in what is amounting to a regional war. But IS does pose an indirect threat to Israel. And while Syrian militants from […]

Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, Aug. 15, 2014 (AP photo by Ivan Sekretarev).

Throughout the Ukrainian crisis, Russia has demonstrated a keen appetite for both territory and power. It has shown less concern for international agreements and institutions. While Moscow has largely kept the United Nations out of the conflict, it has permitted the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to monitor the situation on the ground. Even this looks like a mere ploy to deflect Western criticism: Russia has used OSCE peacemaking efforts backed by Germany as a cover for its efforts to destabilize Ukraine, and its proxies in the east of the country have menaced and kidnapped the organization’s observers. […]

Fighters of the Islamic State waving the group’s flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, Raqqa, Syria, photo post Aug. 27, 2014 (AP photo/ Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group).

President Barack Obama has set his course for the U.S. conflict with the so-called Islamic State (IS). The deep roots of the extremist organization, the chaotic conditions in Iraq and Syria, and Obama’s determination to limit American involvement will make this a long slog. Months, even years will pass with few demonstrable gains. Whoever moves into the White House after Obama will inherit the crisis. Over time, though, the situation will undergo major shifts, each forcing the United States to re-examine its strategy. To be ready to exploit opportunities and avoid risks, American leaders must anticipate what the big “game […]

Supporters of presidential candidate and former President Michelle Bachelet wave flags during a victory rally in Santiago, Chile, Dec. 15, 2013 (AP photo by Jorge Saenz).

Electoral democracy is flourishing across Latin America. But if the region has eagerly embraced pluralism to decide policy, many problems must still be addressed, ranging from insecurity and corruption to balancing economic growth with environmental concerns. This report covers the full spectrum of Latin America’s challenges. Mexico Mexico’s Energy Reform: A Major First Step on a Very Long JourneyBy Jed BaileyJan. 3, 2014 Rise of Self-Defense Groups Highlights Mexico’s State-Level Security ChallengesBy Benoît Gomis and Jerónimo MoharJan. 24, 2014 Mexico’s Scaled-Backed Gendarmerie Force No Security PanaceaBy Nathaniel Parish FlanneryAug. 1, 2014 Central America and the Caribbean Border Disputes, Political Tensions […]