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Sat, 14 Nov 2009 18:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 14, 2009, 6:30 PM to 10:00 PM
- November 16, 2009, 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM

On November 14-16, 2009, the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings brought together top Israeli and American policymakers, journalists, and members of the public and private sectors to Jerusalem for discussions on the most critical issues in the Middle East.
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Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 09, 2009, 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM

On November 9, the Brookings Doha Center hosted a policy discussion with H.E. Mohamad Chatah, the Lebanese minister of finance, H.E. Ghassan Khatib, director of the Palestinian Government Media Center, and H.E. Ayad Al Samarrai, speaker of the Iraqi Parliament on the project of inclusive national dialogue and state-building in Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, and Iraq. The speakers examined past and current nationally-driven conflict resolution efforts.
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Mon, 12 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT
President Barack Obama’s 2009 Nobel Peace Prize immediately triggered strong reactions worldwide. Hady Amr and Steven Barnes write that the prize presents President Obama an opportunity to build on his recent efforts to foster dialogue between America and people of all faiths around the globe.
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Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- October 01, 2009, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
On October 1, Shibley Telhami, Saban Center nonresident senior fellow and Anwar Sadat professor for peace and development at the University of Maryland, presented results of the 2009 University of Maryland/Zogby International opinion poll, conducted in August 2009, that surveyed Israeli Arabs and Palestinian public opinion.
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Wed, 09 Sep 2009 09:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- September 09, 2009, 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM
On September 9, the Saban Center at Brookings hosted a policy discussion with Alon Pinkas, former Consul General of Israel in New York and current President of the U.S.-Israel Institute at the Rabin Center in Tel Aviv. The discussion came in advance of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s trip to New York to attend the UN General assembly and amid debate over the health of the United States-Israel relationship.
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Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak visited the White House for the first time in five years this week. His message was that Arab nations want peace but Israel must make concessions first. Martin Indyk joined Diane Rehm to discuss the future of U.S.-Egypt relations and the Middle East peace process.
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Thu, 23 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Anouar Boukhars, visiting fellow at Brookings Doha Center, says the world has watched the rearrangement of practices and strategies of American foreign policy under the Obama administration with interest and fascination. By making Arab-Israeli relations a top priority, Boukhars believes Obama is determined to address the tough unanswered challenges of the past.
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Tue, 30 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

In a new Saban Analysis Paper, six Brookings experts analyze the main policy approaches toward Iran. In examining the benefits and drawbacks of the nine options—including engagement, persuasion, airstrikes, and containment—the authors refrain from recommending one policy over the other. Rather, they present the details of the policies in a manner that allows readers to understand the complexity of the challenge that is Iran and decide for themselves which group of policies is best.
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Fri, 12 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Hady Amr discusses the good and bad news related to Lebanon's recent elections in which a pro-American coalition won. Amr notes that while there are many positives, the electoral system, in which parliament is seated on sectarian lines needs to go.
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Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
President Obama’s speech in Cairo has been heralded as a historic moment in redefining and reorienting the U.S. approach to the Muslim world. Michael Fullilove examines the issues, themes and tone of Obama’s speech while exploring the implications of the speech for U.S.-Muslim relations, particularly in reference to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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Fri, 05 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT
In broadly and directly addressing the Muslim World, President Obama undertook a complex task. Mirette Mabrouk points to Obama’s discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and his promises of U.S. economic aid to the Middle East as particularly dynamic areas of the speech.
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Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

On June 4, President Obama delivered what was billed as a “major speech to the Muslim world” in Cairo, Egypt. As a follow up to commentary prior to the speech, the Saban Center at Brookings’s Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World asked leading experts and policy-makers from the United States and the Muslim world to submit their thoughts on the speech.
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Tue, 02 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

On June 4, President Obama delivered what was billed as a “major speech to the Muslim world” in Cairo, Egypt. To provide context for this event, the Saban Center at Brookings’ Project on U.S. Relations with the Islamic World asked leading experts and policy-makers from the United States and the Muslim world to submit commentary on what they hoped to hear from President Obama’s speech.
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Sun, 31 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Tamara Cofman Wittes and Martin Indyk joined a group of Middle East experts, journalists and activists to discuss what should be said by President Obama during his trip to Egypt in June. Wittes argued Obama must redefine how America's role is viewed and Indyk stated that, among other things, a sincere commitment to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute is necessary.
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Wed, 27 May 2009 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- May 27, 2009, 12:30 PM to 01:30 PM
In this edition of the Scouting Report, Brookings expert Tamara Cofman Wittes and Politico senior editor Fred Barbash discussed the issues involved with the ongoing Arab-Israeli conflict and re-invigorating the Middle East peace process.
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Fri, 15 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT
In an interview with the Council on Foreign Relations, Martin Indyk downplayed the prospects of any confrontation over the Mideast peace process between President Barack Obama and new Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in their first meeting. Still, he said, Netanyahu could have trouble reconciling Obama's desire for a two-state solution with the Palestinians with opposition from his political base.
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Thu, 14 May 2009 14:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- May 14, 2009, 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM
On May 14, Foreign Policy at Brookings held a journalist roundtable to discuss upcoming meetings between U.S. President Barack Obama, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Martin Indyk, director of the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, and Tamara Cofman Wittes, senior fellow and director of the Middle East Democracy and Development Project, explored the issues and answered questions.
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Tue, 31 Mar 2009 18:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- March 31, 2009, 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM

On March 31, 2009, the Brookings Doha Center hosted Saeb Erakat, Head of the Palestine Liberation Organization Negotiations Affairs Department, for a policy discussion. Erakat opened the session by responding directly to the inauguration speech given a few hours earlier by Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. He expressed disappointment in Netanyahu’s failure to highlight the two-state solution in his speech and said that the Israeli leader's call for Palestinians to rule themselves is not a possibility when they must live in a continued state of occupation.
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Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- March 20, 2009, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM
On March 20, the Saban Center hosted Itamar Rabinovich, Charles and Andrea Bronfman Distinguished Visiting Fellow, to present a comprehensive analysis of the interaction of American, Israeli, and Syrian policies over the last three decades. He was joined by Frederic Hof, CEO of Armitage Associates, L.C.
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Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT
The recent high-level meeting between U.S. and Syrian officials in Damascus effectively ends recent U.S. policy of isolating Syria. Bilal Saab examines this dialogue and the future of U.S.-Syria relations.
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Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Donors have pledged $4.4 billion in new aid to rebuild Gaza, yet serious questions remain regarding the fate of the Palestinian economy. Navtej Dhillon writes that the West Bank and Gaza need more than a lifeline of aid to achieve real development for a growing youth population.
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Fri, 13 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Following parliamentary elections in Israel, Martin Indyk writes that even though the right-wing bloc won a majority and a hard-liner has become the kingmaker, it is premature to declare the end of the two-state solution and the death of the Middle East peace process.
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Mon, 02 Feb 2009 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- February 02, 2009, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM
On February 2, 2009, The Brookings Doha Center (BDC), a Project of the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, hosted its second videoconference, bringing together Ambassador Martin Indyk, Director of the Saban Center, via live feed from Washington and Hady Amr, Director of the Brookings Doha Center in Qatar. The discussion focused on the key players and policies of the new Obama administration and what changes this would likely mean for the relationship between the United States and the Middle East. Both speakers offered their thoughts before taking questions from audience members.
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Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Bilal Saab writes that Israeli and Palestinian leaders are either incapable or unwilling to think strategically about ways they can resolve, or at least effectively manage, the many issues that have divided their people for more than sixty years.
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Fri, 30 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Following a three-week war with Israel, Hamas officials have recently emerged from weeks in hiding for a "victory celebration." Bilal Saab argues that while support for Hamas remains strong, anger and fears have been on the rise among Palestinians. Saab examines the war in Gaza and where Hamas can go from here.
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Wed, 28 Jan 2009 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 28, 2009, 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
With a fragile cease-fire in place in the Gaza Strip, President Obama is sending very different signals to the Middle East and the larger Arab world than his predecessor. In a web chat moderated by Politco’s Fred Barbash, Brookings expert Tamara Cofman Wittes answered questions on how these new messages are being received and the challenges that await the new president in the region.
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Wed, 21 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT
Expectations for the Obama administration in the Middle East and Muslim world are characterized by a realistic optimism, says Tarik Yousef, speaking on a BBC Arabic radio broadcast. Yousef highlights the importance of the new President’s symbolic changes in rhetoric and discusses the tests that the new administration will face in the region, from the stalled Arab-Israeli peace process to the relationship with Iran. What will beckon the administration first, however, are a pressing set of domestic policy challenges.
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Mon, 19 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk, director of the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, argues that there is an opportunity in the Gaza crisis for the new president to achieve a better future for Palestinians and Israelis. The immediate objective, says Indyk, is a sustainable cease-fire, but then President Obama should urgently to paint his vision of a comprehensive resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, summoning all leaders of goodwill to the task.
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Wed, 14 Jan 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Navtej Dhillon speaks to Edward Sayre, co-author of a forthcoming Middle East Youth Initiative working paper on Palestinian youth, on the economic conditions in the Palestinian Territories. As the Gaza crisis continues and young Palestinians face deteriorating prospects, the imperative of transforming a weak and fragmented Palestinian economy is greater than ever.
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Wed, 14 Jan 2009 14:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 14, 2009, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM

The latest conflict in Gaza has exacerbated an already fragile humanitarian situation and created another humanitarian crisis in the Middle East. The Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement hosted a discussion on the humanitarian situation in Gaza within the broader context of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.
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Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 05, 2009, 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM

Israel's continued engagement against Hamas in Gaza, now being waged with ground forces, further complicates Barack Obama's agenda for the Middle East, which also includes withdrawing from Iraq and capping Iran’s nuclear ambitions. On January 5, Martin Indyk and Kenneth Pollack offered a public memo to President-elect Obama with recommendations on how to deal with the urgent challenges that will confront him across the volatile region.
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Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

President Barack Obama will face a series of challenges in the Middle East demanding urgent attention: an Iraq that could still unravel, an Iran approaching the nuclear threshold, a faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and weak governments in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Martin Indyk and Richard Haass outline what the initial goals of the Obama administration should be in the region.
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Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Martin Indyk and Richard Haass argue to be successful in the Middle East, the Obama administration will need to move beyond Iraq, find ways to deal constructively with Iran, and forge a final-status Israeli-Palestinian agreement.
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Fri, 05 Dec 2008 17:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- December 05, 2008, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
- December 06, 2008, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
- December 07, 2008, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM

On December 5-7, in the month before the new U.S. administration enters office, the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings brought together top Israeli and American policymakers, journalists, and members of the public and private sectors, as well as leaders from Britain and Turkey to discuss the most critical issues in the Middle East.
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Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Richard Haass joined Charlie Rose to discuss the newly released Saban Center at Brookings-Council on Foreign Relations book Restoring the Balance: A Middle East Strategy for the Next President. They highlighted three major foreign policy challenges in the region that President-elect Obama will need to focus on and detailed some of the recommendations found within the book.
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Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Richard Haass note that President-elect Obama will face a series of critical, complex, and interrelated challenges in the Middle East that will demand his immediate attention: an Iran apparently intent on approaching or crossing the nuclear threshold as quickly as possible; a fragile situation in Iraq that is straining the U.S. military; weak governments in Lebanon and Palestine under challenge from stronger Hezbollah and Hamas militant organizations; a faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace process; and American influence diluted by a severely damaged reputation.
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Tue, 02 Dec 2008 09:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- December 02, 2008, 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM
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Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Kenneth Pollack joined washingtonpost.com readers to discuss his new book A Path Out of the Desert: A Grand Strategy for America in the Middle East.
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Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- July 23, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy forum luncheon in conjunction with Search for Common Ground on July 23, 2008. The Saban Center welcomed three members of Search for Common Ground’s US-Syria Working Group, including featured speaker Ahmad Samir al-Taki, director of the Orient Center for International Studies in Damascus and consultant to the Syrian Prime Minister.
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Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- July 01, 2008, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM
Arab public sentiment and opinion present critical challenges to the struggle for peace, stability and economic growth in the Middle East. On July 1, the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings hosted a discussion of Shibley Telhami’s new analysis paper, Does the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict Still Matter? with Steven Kull, director of WorldPublicOpinion.org and the Program on International Policy Attitudes, who presented data from his recent poll of 18 nations focused on attitudes towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
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Mon, 30 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In this Saban Center Analysis Paper, Shibley Telhami analyzes emerging trends in public attitudes and whether there has been a change over time in the degree to which Arabs assign importance to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the prospects of Middle East peace. In addition, Telhami addresses the ramifications of the divide between Hamas and Fatah, between the government appointed by President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah and the Hamas-appointed government in Gaza.
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Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- June 16, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM
Arab moderates who embrace a future of regional peace and democracy appear to be losing ground in today’s Middle East. On June 16, the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings hosted Marwan Muasher, former foreign minister and deputy prime minister of Jordan and Thomas L. Friedman for a discussion of Muasher's new book, The Arab Center: The Promise of Moderation, and how to make a moderate future more possible in the Middle East.
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Thu, 12 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Khalil Al-Anani says conservatism is on the rise in the Middle East. He notes that by using modern communication technology, groups like the Salafis in Kuwait have spread their conservative ideas to younger generations, thus threatening moderate Islam.
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Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
As indirect peace talks between Israel and Syria continue in Turkey, Ariel Kastner writes about the current climate in both countries regarding a possible breakthrough. One party that is so far missing in these talks, he contends, is the United States as a mediator or participant.
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Mon, 02 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Hady Amr believes that after 7 years of the Bush Administration’s blunders in Iraq, Lebanon and Israel-Palestine, Middle East leaders are beginning to solve their own problems. He writes that the new president of the United States will have to find a way to encourage the Middle East to continue to take responsibility for their problems while also restoring American credibility throughout the region.
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Wed, 21 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Tamara Cofman Wittes discusses a new deal announced in Doha between Lebanese factions including Hezbollah. Wittes believes that this decision should force others in the Middle East to recognize that Hezbollah is a regional actor with ambitions outside of Lebanon.
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Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- April 25, 2008, 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM
The Saban Center and the American Task Force on Palestine hosted Yasser Abd Rabbo, the secretary general of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and policy adviser to Palestinian President Abbas, for an assessment of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and the prospects for a final status agreement before the end of the Bush administration.
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Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Testifying before the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Peter Rodman argued "the conditions do not exist for an improvement of relations with Syria as long as Syrian policies remain hostile to important interest of ours in the Middle East." He concluded that Syria must change course in relation to Iraq, Lebanon, and Arab-Israeli peace before the U.S. reaches out to the country.
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Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In congressional testimony, Martin Indyk argued that the current policy of isolating Syria has had mixed results. He believes that the next U.S. president should consider a different approach that could foster a more productive relationship allowing mutual goals to be realized in the troubled region.
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Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- April 14, 2008, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted the release of a new University of Maryland/Zogby International opinion poll reflecting public attitudes in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.
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Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Daniel Byman traveled to Israel and Jordan in March—a time of crisis in the Middle East. During Byman’s trip, Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired rockets against the Israeli cities of Sderot and Ashkelon, an attack occurred in the Mercaz Harav Yeshiva in Jerusalem, and Israel took retaliatory measures in the Gaza Strip. In both Israel and Jordan, Byman found that the predominant mood was one of frustration and gloom. Israelis felt trapped between their sense that inaction would encourage more violence and their recognition that the military and political options looked unpromising. Jordanians fretted that the Israeli reaction to the violence would strengthen the radicals politically.
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Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT
In February, Martin Indyk and Richard Haass engaged leading Gulf policymakers in detailed conversations about what they are looking for from a new American president. While all those with whom they spoke were fascinated by the American presidential primary elections and seem to be following the results closely, few have yet focused on the possibility that a significant change in U.S. foreign policy might result from a new administration in Washington. There was also a significant disconnect between leaders and publics: The leaders are focused on how the next administration will deal with complex regional security challenge posed by Iran, whereas the publics are hoping that a new president will resolve the Palestinian issue and press authoritarian governments to be more open, transparent and accountable.
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Wed, 19 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Lebanon is mired in a long running political crisis and the country has been without a president since November 2007. Bilal Saab writes that "three years after the withdrawal of Syrian troops, Lebanon has become less, not more stable." He offers suggestions for the U.S. to reshape its policy towards the country.
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Wed, 19 Mar 2008 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- March 19, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM
The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings hosted a policy luncheon on March 19, 2008 with Jeffrey Feltman, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs and, until recently, the U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon. Feltman addressed the crisis in Lebanon in the context of his three and a half years experience there.
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Mon, 17 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT
Bilal Saab investigates the likely responses from Hezbollah in light of the recent killing of Hezbollah commander Imad Mughniyeh.
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Wed, 05 Mar 2008 16:29:37 GMT
As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice held talks in the Middle East to discuss peace negotiations between the Palestinians and Israel, Martin Indyk stressed that a resolution to the conflict is imperative for those two parties and the region as a whole.
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Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Itamar Rabinovich discusses the phenomenon of John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt's recent book The Israel Lobby and notes that it should give Israel and its friends pause.
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Sat, 16 Feb 2008 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- February 16, 2008, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM

The 2008 U.S.-Islamic World Forum, held from February 16-18, 2008, in Doha, Qatar, was an immense success, bringing together key leaders in the fields of politics, business, media, academia, and civil society from across the Muslim world and the United States. Now in its fifth year, the forum has become the foremost meeting for positive cross-cultural engagement among leaders from the United States and the Muslim world.
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Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 24, 2008, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM

Often overlooked in the headlines, Lebanon continues to flirt with renewed civil strife that could be devastating to a region that does not need any more. Bilal Y. Saab joined Nadim Shehadi and David Schenker to discuss this critical and delicate region.
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Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 16, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy held a policy luncheon discussion with Israeli Minister Ami Ayalon. Ayalon discussed policy recommendations regarding how Israel should deal with Hamas. He argued that pursuing negotiations with President Mahmoud Abbas and creating political progress on the ground in the West Bank would marginalize Hamas’s message of violence and resistance.
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Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Shibley Telhami writes that the United States could make a costly mistake by believing that Arab nations are currently motivated by a perceived Iranian threat and that the specter of Iran alone brought the Arab nations to the Middle East conference in Annapolis last fall. Telhami notes that the Bush Administration reliance on this belief was clearly reflected in the President’s recent speech in the United Arab Emerites.
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Thu, 03 Jan 2008 16:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- January 03, 2008, 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings hosted a media roundtable with Senior Fellows Kenneth Pollack and Bruce Riedel to preview President George W. Bush’s trip to the Middle East. They agreed that this is a very important time in the region and that there has been little activity on the peace process since the recent one-day meeting in Annapolis.
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Fri, 21 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Bilal Saab and Bruce Riedel argue that the Bush Administration pushed for a meeting in Annapolis "to gather the pro-U.S. Arab states under the aegis of a peace process for the purpose of containing or at least balancing the rising power of Iran."
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Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- December 13, 2007, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM

This fifth session of the Crisis in the Middle East Task Force, hosted by the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, focused on the difficult in balance among competing U.S. priorities towards given its interference with the U.S. agenda in the Middle East.
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Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Moshe Ma‘oz argues that far from there being a threatening “Shi‘i crescent,” or a Middle East about to be torn apart along Muslim sectarian lines, the pattern has been for mixed Sunni-Shi’i states to remain intact.
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Thu, 29 Nov 2007 12:30:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 29, 2007, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy luncheon launching a Saban Center analysis paper of the same name. The author, Steven Heydemann, presented a summary of the paper’s arguments; Kenneth Wollack, served as the respondent. The event was chaired by Tamara Cofman Wittes.
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Wed, 28 Nov 2007 16:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 28, 2007, 4:00 PM to 5:30 PM
International leaders, including representatives from the United States, Israel and the Palestinian Authority, met in Annapolis to develop a foundation upon which the Israelis and Palestinians can move toward a negotiated peace agreement. Brookings hosted a discussion to assess the talks and address the future of the Middle East peace process. Saeb Erekat, the Palestinian Authority's chief negotiator, participated.
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Wed, 21 Nov 2007 12:51:43 GMT
President Bush will host a meeting of international leaders to help revive the Arab-Israeli peace process. Research fellow Tamara Wittes says the talks are critical for the future of the entire middle east.
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Mon, 19 Nov 2007 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 19, 2007, 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM
The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted the fourth session of the Crisis in the Middle East Task Force. The Task Force is a monthly dinner discussion series that brings together a high-level group of policy analysts, Middle East specialists, government officials and journalists for a year-long effort to explore means of addressing the region’s many problems.
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Sun, 18 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Justin Vaisse discusses the Arab-Israeli conflict in terms of Franco-U.S. relations. He argues that the EU and France are eager to see the peace process get back on track and warns that sticking with status quo will not bring the required settlement to the issue.
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Fri, 09 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Shibley Telhami examines the probability of successful negotiations at the upcoming Annapolis meeting between United States and Middle East leaders. Telhami writes that unless the U.S. can take a new approach to controlling Hamas and also drastically improve Palestinians' lives, progress will be short-lived.
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Sat, 03 Nov 2007 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- November 03, 2007, 12:00 PM to 11/5/2007 12:00 PM

Just weeks before a U.S.-sponsored peace meeting on the Middle East in Annapolis, Maryland, the Saban Forum held its fourth annual U.S.-Israel dialogue from November 3-5, 2007, bringing a high-level, bipartisan U.S. delegation to Jerusalem for discussions with their Israeli counterparts on the theme of “War and Peace in the Middle East.”
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Thu, 01 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Tamara Cofman Wittes argue that the United States must strengthen its international partnerships, use diplomacy, and offer security guarantees to advance U.S. interests in the Middle East and Gulf regions. Those U.S. interests include: stabilizing Iraq, revitalizing the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and encouraging moderate Arab nations to enact political and economic reforms.
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Mon, 22 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Martin Indyk disusses the possibility of a Middle East peace agreement at the upcoming international peace conference. He asserts several middle eastern states may become more cohensive due to the Iranian extremist threat.
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Thu, 18 Oct 2007 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- October 18, 2007, 12:00 PM to 01:30 PM
The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy luncheon discussion with Itamar Rabinovich and Murhaf Jouejati. The discussion focused on current tensions between Israel and Syria, and whether there is a possibility of an Israel-Syria peace agreement.
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Mon, 01 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Bilal Y. Saab provides an independent and in depth assessment of the threat of Al Qaeda–inspired salafist jihadism to the present and future security of Lebanon.
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Sun, 23 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Suzanne Maloney argues that while Iran is part of the problem in Iraq, “there can be no effective, enduring solution without Tehran playing a constructive role.”
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Thu, 20 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Bilal Y. Saab argues that the outcome of the Lebanese presidential election on September 25 is a crucial event which could have major implications for the future stability of Lebanon.
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Thu, 20 Sep 2007 12:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
- September 20, 2007, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM
The Crisis in the Middle East Task Force addressed the topic of “Democratization and Reform” in its third session. The discussion focused on democracy promotion in the Middle East given the obstacles to change.
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Sun, 09 Sep 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Opinion by Hady Amr, The Daily Star (9/10/07
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Thu, 16 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Opinion by Bruce Riedel, Middle East Roundtable (8/16/07)
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Wed, 01 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Paper by Terree Haidet (August 2007)
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Wed, 01 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Tamara Cofman Wittes, CFR.org (8/1/07)
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Tue, 31 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Suzanne Maloney and Shibley Telhami, The Diane Rehm Show (7/31/07)
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Sat, 21 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT
A central issue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has always been finding a solution for Jerusalem. Hady Amr argues that American leadership on "shared" sovereignty for the city can help bring peace, but that the U.S. must remain committed to making it happen.
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Mon, 02 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Martin S. Indyk, Newsweek International (July 2-9, 2007 Issue)
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Wed, 27 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Martin S. Indyk, foreignaffairs.org (6/27/07)
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Mon, 18 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Shibley Telhami, The Diane Rehm Show (6/18/07)
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Fri, 15 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Does Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas know something that we don't? For five days his presidential security forces in Gaza came under organized attack by Hamas gunmen. His compound in Gaza City was under siege. But he responded to these clear challenges to his authority with observations about the madness that had infected Gaza and refused to assign blame.
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Thu, 14 Jun 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Martin S. Indyk, Australian Broadcast Corportation (6/14/07)
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Fri, 11 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Event Information:
Amr Khaled discussed how to support youth and women in the Middle East, give them hope and increase development based on the values of faith. His message stresses three parts: faith, development, and coexistence.
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Tue, 08 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Testimony by Shibley Telhami before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia (5/8/07)
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Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Shibley Telhami, Dissent Magazine (Spring 2007)
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Thu, 01 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Shibley Telhami, Survival (Spring 2007)
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Wed, 28 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT

A new Sunni-Shi'a fault line and a significant decline in U.S. influence frame the challenge to the next President's Middle East policy. That challenge requires both a return to balance-of-power diplomacy and a better balancing of interests and values to contain the Iraq civil war, strengthen the forces of moderation, prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power, and promote democratic reform.
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Sun, 25 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Shibley Telhami, NPR (2/25/07)
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Tue, 20 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Interview with Martin S. Indyk
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Wed, 14 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Testimony by Martin S. Indyk before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia (2/14/07)
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Fri, 09 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Martin S. Indyk, Suddeutsche Zeitung (2/9/07)
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Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT
Article by Shibley Telhami, Current History (January 2007)