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Britain’s Ban on Hezbollah: Why Now? By Nibras Kazimi - Mar 12, 2019
The oddest feature of the United Kingdom’s recent decision to censure the entirety of Lebanon’s Hezbollah as a terrorist group is that it hadn’t happened before. The second-oddest feature is that it is happening at this time. Trying to rationalize the timing has sent Middle East watchers into a tizzy of speculation, ranging from a … Continue reading “Britain’s Ban on Hezbollah: Why Now?”
Labyrinthine Iranian Politics in Choice of Iraqi Leaders By Nibras Kazimi - Oct 15, 2018
Immediately following the announcement of Iraq’s pick for president and prime minister-designate, US senator Marco Rubio tweeted out that the new line-up, nominally arrived at through political consensus among the biggest winners of last May’s parliamentary elections, had been “personally brokered” by Iranian General Qasem Soleimani of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and commander of its Quds Force. … Continue reading “Labyrinthine Iranian Politics in Choice of Iraqi Leaders”
How American Mismanagement in Iraq Gives Iran an Edge in Baghdad By Nibras Kazimi - Sep 13, 2018
On August 29, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the former president of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Masoud Barzani, beseeching him to support Iraq’s prime minister, Haider Al Abadi, for a second term, according to an American source with knowledge of the conversation. Barzani was non-committal. After all, Al Abadi was the one who … Continue reading “How American Mismanagement in Iraq Gives Iran an Edge in Baghdad”
With Bolton, an Accentuated ‘Trumpian’ Order for the Middle East By Nibras Kazimi - Mar 26, 2018
John Bolton’s appointment as Donald Trump’s national security advisor will have a pronounced effect on America’s policies towards the Middle East. But those changes will have more to do with Bolton being an effective administrator who is far more attuned to American politics than his predecessor HR McMaster, rather than any ideas or preconceptions about … Continue reading “With Bolton, an Accentuated ‘Trumpian’ Order for the Middle East”
Mismanaged Expectations at Iraq Donor Meeting Cause Infrastructure to Lose Out By Nibras Kazimi - Feb 16, 2018
Ahead of the international donor conference for Iraq, anonymous sources within US officialdom told reporters that America would not be committing any funds, even though Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was scheduled to put in a 15-minute cameo at the event in Kuwait. Then, on the first day, President Donald Trump tweeted: “This will be … Continue reading “Mismanaged Expectations at Iraq Donor Meeting Cause Infrastructure to Lose Out”