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Syria

Policy Analysis on Syria

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Kharab al-Jir
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Iraqi Militias Hit Two U.S. Sites in Iraq and Syria
Iran-backed groups have adopted tight message discipline so far, not claiming either of the attacks in order to avoid U.S. retaliation while simultaneously warning Prime Minister Sudani to keep pushing for U.S. withdrawal.
Apr 22, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Crispin Smith
  • Alex Almeida
◆ Militia Spotlight
Lions of the Ougaidat Brigade leaders, Syria, 2023 cropped
Maps & Graphics
Articles & Testimony
Profile: Lions of the Ougaidat Brigade
A Syrian Arab tribal militia directly operated by Iran's IRGC and tasked with fighting the Kurdish-led SDF east of the Euphrates.
Apr 15, 2024
◆
  • Abdullah Hayek
  • Kyle Robertson
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Arab Tribal and Clan Forces, Syria 2023
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Arab Tribal and Clan Forces
A newer unit of Arab militiamen in Syria, raised by pro-Assad figure Ibrahim al-Hifl to form an unbroken corridor of Iran-backed tribal fighters between Deir al-Zour and Aleppo.
Apr 15, 2024
◆
  • Abdullah Hayek
  • Kyle Robertson
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Assad and Khamenei
Articles & Testimony
Two Israeli Air Strikes, and Two Syrian Mothers and Sons
The remarkable precision of Israeli attacks on Iranian and Hezbollah operatives in Syria has raised anxiety in Damascus and abroad.
Apr 8, 2024
◆
  • Andrew J. Tabler
Screenshot of The Washington Institute's Islamic State interactive map
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
One Year of the Islamic State Worldwide Activity Map
The possibility of more terrorist attacks from Afghanistan, foreign fighter mobilizations in Africa, and dangerous ripple effects from U.S. military reshuffles in Iraq and Syria are among the many revealing data points and trends uncovered by this landmark interactive tool.
Mar 20, 2024
◆
  • Aaron Y. Zelin
  • Ilana Winter
A woman at the Al-Hawl (or Al-Hol) detention camp in Syria - source: Reuters
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Five Years After the Caliphate, Too Much Remains the Same in Northeast Syria
Islamic State fighters and affiliates detained there remain a regional threat that the international community must resolve in order to prevent a future resurgence.
Mar 19, 2024
◆
  • Devorah Margolin
  • Camille Jablonski
Kurdish fighter, NE Syria
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Iran is Attempting to Push the United States out of Syria via Hasaka Province
Using multiple militias and operating units, Tehran aims to drive the Americans out of eastern Syria, fill the resulting security vacuum, and assert indirect control.
Mar 8, 2024
◆
  • Rena Netjes
  • Samer al-Ahmad
Syria rally in Berlin
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
With the Gaza War, the Possibility of a Syrian Transition Is Even More Remote
Syrians inside the country and in refugee states await a true miracle, especially with their cause becoming highly internationalized and overshadowed by global events like the Gaza war.
Mar 7, 2024
◆
  • Bassam Alahmad
Kataib Al-Imam Ali fighters and an artillery rocket
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Kataib al-Imam Ali
A unique militia that is closer to Lebanese Hezbollah than other Iran-backed Iraqi groups, yet widely resented for prioritizing commercial success over kinetic operations.
Feb 27, 2024
◆
  • Abdullah Hayek
  • Ameer al-Kaabi
  • Michael Knights
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Esmail Qaani with a Fatimiyoun soldier in Syria
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Explaining Apparent Muqawama De-Escalation Since January 28
Since three Americans were killed, the self-styled "resistance" has been almost inactive except for a spate of fake, foiled, and disavowed attacks, pointing to an order from Iran to calm things down.
Feb 7, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Abu Baqr al-Saedi's car, Feb 7, 2024
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Abu Baqr al-Saeedi: Kataib Hezbollah Terrorist, Serving PMF Official
The Kataib Hezbollah leader killed on February 7 in Baghdad was (until now) a living nexus of Kataib Hezbollah, the Popular Mobilization Forces, and the facade group Alwiyat al-Waad al-Haq.
Feb 7, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight
Liwa al-Tafuf logo
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Liwa al-Tafuf (13th PMF Brigade)
The brigade belongs to the state-funded Popular Mobilization Forces and is a core member of Kataib Hezbollah’s cluster of militias that facilitate anti-U.S. attacks in Iraq’s Anbar province, eastern Syria, and Jordan.
Feb 3, 2024
◆
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Turkish president Erdogan at NATO headquarters in Brussels
Brief Analysis
The Future of U.S.-Turkish Ties: A New Relationship, Not a Reset
Despite the welcome news on Sweden, the old Turkey is not coming back, but Erdogan’s apparent shift to legacy-building mode will give Washington opportunities to leverage his influence abroad.
Jan 26, 2024
◆
  • Soner Cagaptay
Nawaf al-Bashir (right)
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Hashemite Tribes Regiment
With support from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, this regiment aims to create a more cohesive force capable of opposing the U.S.-backed SDF on the eastern banks of Syria's Euphrates River.
Jan 26, 2024
◆
  • Kyle Robertson
  • Abdullah Hayek
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
ADL and Iran flags
Maps & Graphics
Articles & Testimony
Profile: Aleppo Defenders Legion
An Aleppo-based militia umbrella group that serves as an auxiliary unit of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in north Syria.
Dec 21, 2023
◆
  • Ahmad Sharawi
  • Abdullah Hayek
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Protesting Syrians in the town of Suwayda hold signs and Druze flags - source: Reuters
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Nonviolent Protest Movement in Suweida Continues to Resurrect Calls from the Syrian Revolution
With each day of nonviolent protest, the people of Suweida province have solidified themselves as a symbol that resonates with Syrians everywhere, whether abroad or within a country that remains split between regime, Iranian, Russian, Turkish, and local faction control.
Dec 18, 2023
◆
  • Ishtar Al Shami
Haider al-Gharrawi
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Profile: Ansar Allah al-Awfiya (19th PMF Brigade)
One of the top Iraqi proxies for Iran's IRGC-Qods Force, this Sadrist breakaway faction has long garrisoned the Syrian border and killed Iraqi protesters to demonstrate its loyalty.
Nov 27, 2023
◆
  • Ameer al-Kaabi
  • Michael Knights
  • Hamdi Malik
◆ Militia Spotlight: Profiles
Qais al-Khazali
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Militia Hair-Pulling Over Who Are "The Truest Muqawama"
Amid their ceasefire in solidarity with events in Gaza, Iraqi "resistance" leaders went back to their old habits of diminishing each other and spilling their secrets, with interesting results.
Nov 26, 2023
◆
  • Hamdi Malik
  • Michael Knights
◆ Militia Spotlight
Turkish Bayraktar TB2
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Turkish Drone War Damages SDF Infrastructure in NE Syria, Restricts Counterterrorism Efforts
The international community and the Global Coalition should pressure Turkey to cease its drone attacks and help to address the destruction of facilities and infrastructure installations.
Nov 21, 2023
◆
  • Mazloum Abdi
Photo of a blast wall with a drone mural at al-Asad Air Base in Iraq.
Video
Brief Analysis
Iranian Escalation in Iraq and Syria: Implications and U.S. Options
Four experts discuss what Washington can do about the latest spike in militia attacks against U.S. bases and local partners—even as they try to sustain the counterterrorism mission against the Islamic State.
Nov 17, 2023
◆
  • Michael Knights
  • Wladimir van Wilgenburg
  • Devorah Margolin
  • Andrew J. Tabler

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Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics

The Washington Institute's Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics focuses on social, political, and economic developments in the Arab world, with an emphasis on the Arab countries of the Levant.

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Featured experts

Andrew J. Tabler
Andrew J. Tabler
Andrew J. Tabler is the Martin J. Gross Senior Fellow in the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute, where he focuses on Syria and U.S. policy in the Levant.
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley is the Meisel-Goldberger Senior Fellow and Director of the Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation Program on Great Power Competition and the Middle East at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
David Schenker
David Schenker
David Schenker is the Taube Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and director of the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics. He is the former Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs.
Elizabeth Dent - source: The Washington Institute
Elizabeth Dent
Elizabeth Dent is a Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where she focuses on U.S. foreign and defense policy toward the Gulf states, Iraq, and Syria.
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