Arab World

'The Law of Politics' According to Sergei Lavrov

An exclusive interview with Russia's top diplomat.

INTERVIEW BY SUSAN B. GLASSER | MAY/JUNE 2013

The Driver

An exclusive look inside the mysterious death and life of the world's most dangerous terrorist not named Osama bin Laden.

BY MARK PERRY | MAY/JUNE 2013

Why the Sheikhs Will Fall

The Gulf monarchies were once thought immune to the uprisings sweeping the Arab world. Not anymore.

BY CHRISTOPHER M. DAVIDSON | APRIL 26, 2013

Mrs. Ballarin's War

The improbable tale of a West Virginia heiress the Pentagon hired to take on Somalia's jihadists.

BY MARK MAZZETTI | APRIL 15, 2013

Did We Get the Muslim Brotherhood Wrong?

Nope. But it's time to revise our assessments.

BY MARC LYNCH | APRIL 10, 2013

The Arab League Actually Does Something

Once a laughingstock, the Arab world’s political body is closing ranks against Bashar al-Assad.

BY MICHAEL STEPHENS | MARCH 27, 2013

Why Pro Wrestling Is Perfect for the Modern Middle East

It’s safer than sex.

BY JUSTIN D. MARTIN | MARCH 22, 2013

The Tip of the Democracy Spear

The U.S. military doesn’t exactly have an unblemished record when it comes to promoting democracy. Is there a way to change that?

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | MARCH 21, 2013

In Power, But Not in Control

The Muslim Brotherhood may have the votes -- for now -- but Egypt is a ship without a rudder.

BY ERIC TRAGER | MARCH 21, 2013

Syria Is Already More Violent Than Iraq

And its destruction will define the Middle East for years to come.

BY DAVID KENNER | MARCH 20, 2013

What Obama Must Do in Israel

It’s time to stop focusing on personalities and get down to the more important business of identifying common interests.

BY SAMUEL R. BERGER | MARCH 19, 2013

Awakening the Demons

There is no Arab Spring coming to Iraq. But sectarian protests could tear this fragile country apart.

BY DAVID ALPHER | MARCH 18, 2013

The Iraq War That Might Have Been

Ten years on, newly published secret documents shed new light on potential turning points the United States missed.

BY MICHAEL R. GORDON, BERNARD E. TRAINOR | MARCH 12, 2013

Tehran Tanking

Iran's popularity in the Arab world is way down, but sectarianism is on the rise.

BY MARC LYNCH | MARCH 7, 2013

The Democracy Boondoggle in Iraq

The U.S. spent billions promoting democracy in Iraq. Now the official verdict is in: It was all for nothing.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | MARCH 5, 2013

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Democracy is in retreat. And there's a surprising culprit.

BY JOSHUA KURLANTZICK | MARCH 4, 2013

Give Us the Weapons We Need to Beat Assad

The chief of staff of the opposition Syrian Military Joint Command calls on the United States to provide arms, not just non-lethal aid.

BY SALIM IDRIS | MARCH 1, 2013

Tribes With Flags

How the Arab Spring has exposed the myth of Arab statehood.

BY AARON DAVID MILLER | FEBRUARY 27, 2013

It's Not About Us

Forget about the “war on terror.” The next few decades will be dominated by the bitter divide within Islam itself.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | FEBRUARY 20, 2013

The Terrible Twos

Can Washington prevent the turbulent Arab Spring countries from going the way of the post-Soviet states?

BY JAMES TRAUB | FEBRUARY 15, 2013

Forget the Flowers and Candy

Images from the women's rights rallies that have been taking place around the world this week.

BY NEHA PALIWAL | FEBRUARY 14, 2013

Syria's Battle Royale

The struggle for Damascus looks poised to transform this bloody conflict.

BY EMILE HOKAYEM | FEBRUARY 11, 2013

Arm the Syrian Rebels. Now.

Obama's cabinet had a plan to take down Bashar al-Assad. What went wrong?

BY MICHAEL DORAN, SALMAN SHAIKH | FEBRUARY 8, 2013

A Murder in Tunis

The assassination of a leftist politician has thrown the poster child for the Arab Spring into chaos.

BY FADIL ALIRIZA | FEBRUARY 6, 2013

Martyrs of the Revolution

If history is any guide, today’s assassination in Tunisia could set off a dangerous revolutionary dynamic.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | FEBRUARY 6, 2013

Marching Through the Monarchies

Two years after the Arab Spring awoke demons and democracy in the Middle East, I went to see whether changes had roiled the lands of royals.

BY EMMA SKY | FEBRUARY 1, 2013

The U.N.'s Deal With the Devil

The United Nations needs to work with President Bashar al-Assad's regime to provide aid to the Syrian people. But is it inadvertently funding the government's killing machine?

BY SAKHR AL-MAKHADHI | FEBRUARY 1, 2013

The Egyptian Treadmill

Why Washington isn’t panicking about Egypt’s latest crisis.

BY MARC LYNCH | JANUARY 31, 2013

The First Lab Results Are In

Democracy Lab is celebrating its first anniversary. Here are some of the things we've learned over the past year -- and where we're headed in year two.

BY CHRISTIAN CARYL | JANUARY 31, 2013

The Republic of Port Said

An insurrection along the Suez Canal represents the greatest threat yet to the Muslim Brotherhood's rule in Egypt.

BY EVAN C. HILL | JANUARY 30, 2013