Afkār is a publication of the Middle East Council on Global Affairs, providing short-form analyses, insights, and perspectives on regional issues and developments from the Council's experts and outside contributors. Afkār is published in English and Arabic, and is edited by Omar H. Rahman.
Two major bouts of violence across Syria have tested the caretaker government’s ability to maintain security and exposed its weakness. If Damascus does not build its capacity, its legitimacy will further erode and risk state failure.
Israeli actions in Syria are following a familiar pattern of behavior, using false pretexts for advancing self-serving objectives. How long with the world continue to tolerate Israel's unlawful use of force in the Middle East?
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces’ assault on Port Sudan’s infrastructure marks a chilling escalation in Sudan’s civil war—one that threatens to collapse humanitarian operations, disrupt oil flows, and ignite regional instability.
While U.S. sanctions waivers provide a welcome reprieve, fully lifting all international sanctions on Syria is crucial to the country’s economic recovery and post-war reconstruction.
A recent upsurge in violence in the Libyan capital portends a familiar and dangerous path for the war-torn country, and the urgent need for a political reset.