Since the war that erupted on October 7, a profound crisis has unfolded in Turkish–Israeli relations. One of the main manifestations of this crisis is the legal campaign Turkey is waging against Israel. Turkey is operating in this arena to entrench a lasting narrative of Israel’s culpability while refusing to recognize its security needs vis-à-vis a murderous terrorist organization and by portraying Israel as having violated international law, an act that must be punished. The Turkish moves have implications that go beyond the damage...
Every strategy proposes a plan of action for changing the situation. In his book on strategy, Prof. Lawrence Freedman defines strategy as “the art of building power.” It is the ability “to get more out of a situation than the starting balance of power would permit.” At the same time, alongside strategies of “what to do” are prohibitions of “what not to do”: the Ten Commandments, the Code of Hammurabi in Mesopotamia, Islamic prohibitions on consuming alcohol and charging interest, and the imperative to prevent harm to noncombatants in...
In recent months, the Trump administration has intensified its campaign against proponents of political Islam. This effort has been reflected in state-level proclamations by the governors of Texas and Florida, designating the Muslim Brotherhood and the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) as “foreign terrorist organizations,” as well as in a presidential order stating that branches of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Jordan, and Lebanon should be considered “terrorist organizations.” These moves have reignited discussion in...
This interactive map highlights the deployment of U.S. military assets and other relevant actors in the region. The current U.S. posture signals deterrence and readiness for offensive military operations, while reflecting a strong preference to avoid a protracted conflict. Combined with intensified ISR activity and diplomatic signaling, this configuration supports coercive diplomacy but also increases the risk of escalation through miscalculation in an already volatile theater. The map is updated regularly and as accurately as...
Relations between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have shifted in recent years from a close partnership to open competition over leadership, prestige, and regional influence. Behind the façade of “Gulf unity” lies a deep rift stemming from differing threat perceptions and a struggle for economic and regional primacy. The rise of Mohammed bin Salman and the Saudi aspiration to lead the Arab world clash with Abu Dhabi’s activist foreign policy, which has sought to free itself from Saudi hegemony. This competition is...
US military aid to Israel has, for decades, constituted a central pillar of the strategic relationship between the two countries and a foundational component of Israel’s national security concept. Beyond its financial scope, this aid serves as an institutional, political, and symbolic anchor of the alliance between Jerusalem and Washington, embodying the United States’ commitment to preserving Israel’s qualitative military edge in a challenging regional environment. The current multiyear agreement (2019–2028), signed in 2016, sets...
The accelerated growth of high-performance computing—particularly for artificial intelligence applications—has driven a sharp increase in electric demand, water consumption for cooling, and land use in dense urban areas. These trends are placing unprecedented pressure on existing data-center infrastructure. Against this backdrop, an innovative approach has emerged in recent years: the deployment of subsea data centers, which leverage the maritime domain as an alternative infrastructure platform, with both environmental and...
The radicalization of Palestinian society in the Gaza Strip is not a new phenomenon, but the process has accelerated and deepened dramatically since Hamas’ takeover of the territory in 2007. Under its rule, an extremist religious-nationalist ideology has been systematically embedded across all spheres of Gaza life—from education and religious institutions to welfare and the media—producing a profound “Hamasification” of public consciousness.
The war that erupted on October 7 brought unprecedented ruin to the Gaza Strip, both...
Tensions between Iran and the United States, which escalated following an American military buildup several days after the outbreak of protests across Iran, are currently in a temporary lull. This pause comes amid plans to hold a meeting between the two countries on February 6 in Oman (after a last-minute crisis that put the talks at risk was likely resolved). President Trump is aware of the risk to the credibility of US deterrence should no meaningful achievement vis-à-vis Iran be attained, given the expectations created by the...
For Turkey, Iran’s stability is not merely a foreign policy issue but a core component of national security with direct implications for the Turkish economy. Sharing a long border with the Islamic Republic, Ankara views any significant upheaval in Tehran as a potential multidimensional threat. These threats range from waves of migration and disruptions in the energy and trade markets to the central concern of a governing vacuum that could strengthen Kurdish separatist actors (the PKK and its affiliates) along the shared border....
The Board of Peace was initially conceived as a focused initiative intended to support the stabilization and reconstruction process in the Gaza Strip, as part of President Trump’s 20-Point Plan, which was anchored in the UN Security Council Resolution 2803. However, a review of its charter indicates a substantial deviation from its original purpose: the board is now defined as a global conflict-resolution mechanism outside the UN framework, with no reference to Gaza and no limitation to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. This gap...
The brutal suppression of the protest wave in Iran has led to a radical shift within the reformist camp toward the regime. Senior reformist figures, who in the past adhered to a cautious and restrained discourse and affirmed their commitment to the Islamic Republic’s core principles, have in recent days expressed positions that challenge the very political conception underpinning the current regime. This shift follows years in which reformists emphasized the necessity of evolutionary change over revolutionary transformation. Together...
