Middle East

Nusra’s “Mobilize” Campaign to Recruit Children

By Sarah Sheikh Ali

In April of last year, the Nusra Front—now called Jabhat Fateh al-Sham—launched a campaign they called, “Mobilize,” in northern Syria, intended to recruit children. The campaign was conducted by 300 recruiters from the group and adopted the slogan, “Don’t be one of the qaideen [people who do not actively fight; the opposite of mujahideen].” Although […]

Anbar’s Iraqi Policemen: Between ISIS and a Hard Place

By Kamal al-Ayash, NIQASH

There have been plenty of calls for families who were displaced by the security crisis caused by the Islamic State group to return home, once their territories have been cleared of the extremists. But in the central province of Anbar, it seems that not everybody is welcome.

Military Operations in Western Aleppo, the Role of Islamists, and Russia’s new Military Buildup

By Saleem al-Omar

Last week, Jaysh al-Fateh (JAF), the opposition Islamist coalition, launched a large-scale military operation to break the regime’s siege on Aleppo, but their advance has slowed. They launched attacks on areas that have not witnessed combat before, including the Assad Suburb (Dahiyat al-Asad) in western Aleppo. Having taken control of most of the suburb in […]

Aftermath of the Arab spring in North Africa

By Mohsin Khan and Karim Mezran

At the outset of the political uprisings that began in North Africa in 2010, the four countries of Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia faced similar economic and political challenges. Over the past almost six years, the countries have adopted different approaches to address these problems, however the overall economic picture today is grim amid varied […]

Rebuilding the Middle East

In light of the ongoing battle for Mosul and the recent bombing of a school in Syria that killed twenty-six civilians, mostly children, it becomes evident that the actors behind the violence and turmoil must be removed from the conflict before there can be sustained efforts to achieve lasting stability in the region, a senior […]

Challenges Facing the Turkish-led Offensive on al-Bab

By Haid Haid

The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan announced in a speech on October 22, 2016 that the Turkish-led Euphrates Shield operation would press on to the Islamic State (ISIS)-held town of al-Bab, the group’s last stronghold in Aleppo Governorate. Erdoğan’s instructions were implemented two days later when the Turkish-led coalition suspended its offensive on the town […]