In The News

Deutsche Welle: Indian Prime Minister Modi Identifies Three Global Threats

January 24, 2018
The world is not preparing for its most pressing challenges, and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized global institutions for failing to recognize widespread aspirations or to confront reality. He addressed the World Economic Forum, an annual meeting of corporate, government and other leaders to review global priorities. Modi “urged sweeping reforms to modernize and restructure current...

The Guardian: Abbas Warns World Leaders Over Trump's Recognition of Jerusalem

Peter Beaumont December 7, 2017
Mere days before Donald Trump announced that the United States intends to recognize Jerusalem as capital of Israel, President of the Palestinian Authority Mahmoud Abbas made a last-ditch effort to rally diplomatic support against such recognitionl. “Abbas placed a series of phone calls on Sunday with world leaders both to ‘explain the dangers of any decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem or...

The New Yorker: Egypt Is in Trouble and Not Just from ISIS

Robin Wright November 30, 2017
A terrorist attack in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, killing more than 300 people, suggests that Islamic State fighters are finding new targets after being driven from Syria and Iraq. Egypt has had more than 1,700 terrorist attacks since 2013. “The mosque attack is the latest of many challenges facing President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, a former field marshal, as Egypt heads toward elections next year,”...

The Wall Street Journal: Strategy for the Post-ISIS Middle East

Suzanne Maloney and Michael O’Hanlon November 8, 2017
As the war against the Islamic State winds down and territory is regained in Syria and Iraq, regional and international leaders ponder the next steps. Many challenges remain: combatting other extremist groups and pinpointing sources of extremism, securing oil shipments through the Persian Gulf waterways, calming conflict among coalition partners like Qatar and Saudi Arabia, and ending divisive...

The Washington Post: Parts of Niger and Mali Are Lawless; US Strategy Might Make It Worse

Max Bearak October 24, 2017
News reports emerged that four US soldiers were killed after a surprise attack in Niger, and US lawmakers expressed surprise that troops were stationed in the country. “The United States has about 800 troops in Niger, a number which has been steadily increasing since they first deployed there in 2012,” reports Max Bearak for the Washington Post, adding that the United States “is eyeing a larger...

Foreign Affairs: How ISIS Is Transforming

Colin P. Clarke October 1, 2017
The counterterror campaign against the Islamic State since the group’s violent emergence in 2014 has made progress. Yet, “predictions of the group’s ultimate demise are premature,” argues Colin P. Clarke for Foreign Affairs. Ultimately, Clarke argues, analysts witness a transformation “from an insurgent organization with a fixed headquarters to a clandestine terrorist network dispersed throughout...

Huffington Post: As Rohingyas Flee Myanmar, India Needs To Drop Religious Criteria in Its Refugee Law

Nafees Ahmad September 26, 2017
Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees are fleeing violence in Myanmar and heading to Bangladesh, with 30,000 people trapped near the border, reports Nafees Ahmad for the Huffington Post. Meanwhile, India’s prime minister has announced plans to deport 40,000 Rohingya refugees, and India’s Supreme Court is reviewing a plea by two asylum seekers to reverse the decision. Conservatives who support...