News
Black Gold: Natural Resources & The Kurdish Referendum
By Alex Rand
Part 2: Natural Resources Dilemma
One of the several hurdles facing Kurdish efforts for independence comes in the form of natural resources. The various Kurdish…
Into the Furnace: Harsh Realities of the Kurdish Referendum
By Alex Rand
Part 3: Political, Diplomatic, and Military Realities
Should Iraqi Kurdistan’s referendum succeed the next set of hurdles facing the KRG center around a number of…
Tremors: Implications of the Kurdish Referendum
By Alex Rand
Part 4: Implications of the Referendum
The referendum itself is not exactly a close vote by any stretch of the imagination. The ultimate result will be in favor of…
The Great Game: Obscure History Made Accessible
By Alex Rand
To most readers, the idea of cracking open a book on Central Asian history sounds unpleasant. Unfamiliar places and strange names tend to throw off most western readers, since…
Taming the Hydra: US Policy in Iraq in the Post-IS Landscape
By Tophie Fisher
On Monday October 17, 2017,the battle to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul from the hands of the so-called Islamic State (IS) began. The offensive, which is a joint operation…
Water Wars in Yemen
By Natalie Hettle
Yemen’s water crisis is the worst in the Middle East. Yemen is located on a dry, semi-arid portion of the Arabian Peninsula. Yemen has no rivers unlike Syria, Egypt, Iraq…
A War Among Friends
By Alex Rand
The age-old adage goes “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”. However, the United States now finds itself in a situation of “the enemy of my friend is still my friend”. In the…
Recent Israeli-Palestinian Relations: Intransigence Worsens, Despite Continued Efforts
By Tophie FIsher
As one of the most iconic and perpetual conflicts in the past century, Israeli-Palestinian relations in 2016 remain mired in the same caustic struggle that characterized…
The Suez Canal: A Route for Economic Stability in Egypt?
By: Taylor Giordullo
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the nationalization of the Suez Canal, a landmark feat for Egypt that defined it as an independent nation. On July 26,…