top of page


Re: The United States and Syria (Again)
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) took the city of Baghouz, ISIS’ last stronghold in Syria, in March. While formally the SDF still...
chiefofstaff1
Jun 11, 20195 min read


A New Model of Power Transfer in the Post-Soviet World
Transfers of power in illiberal and authoritarian states are rarely fluid. We have very few examples of peaceful and lasting regime...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 30, 20194 min read


A Diplomatic Conundrum: Seeking Peace in Afghanistan
The World Economic Forum this year in Davos, Switzerland, made clear the unfortunate stress that continues to increasingly pressure...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 18, 20196 min read


Nation-Building at Gunpoint: How American Hubris Failed Afghanistan
Heavily guarded by steel-anchored concrete walls, the American embassy in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, symbolizes a striking ground...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 17, 20194 min read


A Tale of Two Utopian Visions: As the Islamic State Crumbles, a Kurdish Feminist Army Takes Its Plac
In the first few months of 2019, streams of women, children, and surrendered fighters have trickled out from the Islamic State’s last...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 16, 20195 min read


What the FIFA World Cup, Kim Jong-Un, and Donald Trump All Have In Common
From the 86,000 seats in Lusail Stadium (one of nine stadiums under construction) to the newly constructed gleaming residential...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 5, 20196 min read


Syria: What Went Wrong
Inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, a group of Syrian demonstrators took to the streets of Deraa to protest...
chiefofstaff1
Mar 6, 20194 min read


An Epidemic Without a Name
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a term that was coined in 1980 by the American Psychiatric Association in their Diagnostic and...
chiefofstaff1
Mar 2, 20198 min read


An Asymmetric Affair
In October 2018, Saudi Arabian operatives killed a Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, at the country’s consulate in Istanbul. Khashoggi...
chiefofstaff1
Jan 5, 20194 min read


An Inevitable Regime Change
After the Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979, loyal supporters of Ruhollah Khomeini believed that he would advance the nation, uphold the...
chiefofstaff1
Dec 18, 20186 min read


How Muslims are Changing the Face of Renewable Energy
Worldwide, climate change disproportionately affects the Muslim world, with recent increases in heat waves, floods, droughts, and extreme...
chiefofstaff1
Dec 9, 20185 min read


Khashoggi’s Murder and the Western Exceptionalist Media
News of the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi embassy in Istanbul has crashed international headlines in...
chiefofstaff1
Dec 6, 20187 min read


Taking Root
Though now one of the most arid regions in the world, the Middle East was once home to a lush environment. Sadly, the scattering of...
chiefofstaff1
Nov 25, 20183 min read


The Marriage Between Law and Activism in Palestine
The 2014 annual policy conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the largest Zionist political lobby in the US,...
chiefofstaff1
Nov 18, 20187 min read


Bahrain’s Silenced Revolution
While the Arab Spring saw revolutions across the Middle East, there is one revolution that has been suppressed on the ground, in the...
chiefofstaff1
Nov 16, 20184 min read


The Syrian Civil War: America’s Cynical Role
The Syrian civil war that began more than seven years ago has resulted in the deaths of countless innocents: estimates range from a few...
chiefofstaff1
Nov 13, 20185 min read


Discrimination of Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon
My grandfather Fayez Hamdan Fayad will never forget the year 1948. A Palestinian refugee, he will always remember the time he was forced...
chiefofstaff1
Oct 19, 20185 min read


Behind the Curtains of the Gulf’s Domestic Help Industry
First published by the BBC in 2017, a video showing a young woman clinging for her life before falling from a seventh-floor window of a...
chiefofstaff1
Oct 17, 20184 min read


The Lament Over Jerusalem: The Consequences of the Greek Orthodox Church’s Land Sale Policy in
One hundred years ago, Sir Edmund Allenby and the soldiers of Britain’s 10th Light Horse Regiment passed through Jaffa Gate, an imposing...
chiefofstaff1
Jun 2, 20185 min read


Irrigating Injustice: Contradiction and Inequality in Israel’s Water System
For decades, Israel has received international praise for its water conservation and management techniques. Using methods such as drip...
chiefofstaff1
Apr 11, 20183 min read
bottom of page