Author: Barak Barfi

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Turkish units capture Mount Burseya in northern Syria on 28 January 2018, as part of Operation Olive Branch (photo: picture-alliance/AA)

Turkey′s Syrian offensive

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A war of America′s making

Bereft of a coherent Syria policy, successive U.S. administrations have obsessed over targeting Islamic State (IS) without considering the full ramifications of their actions. Turkey′s incursion into northwestern Syria is just one consequence. Analysis by Barak BarfiMore

Turkey′s incursion into Syria: The Kurdish quagmireTurkey’s Afrin offensive: Wrong, but not unjustifiedU.S. policy on the Middle East: The imperial reflex
Qatari defence ministry staff members wait while Minister of Defence Khalid bin Mohammad al-Attiyah welcomes U.S. Defence Secretary James Mattis (neither pictured) for a meeting in Doha on 22 April 2017 (photo: Jonathan Ernst Pool/Getty Images)

Qatar diplomatic crisis

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Playing the waiting game

Following the Arab Spring revolts of 2011, Qatar, which carved out a niche for itself as a regional arbiter of conflicts years ago, embraced an interventionist foreign policy that has favoured Islamists – a move that has irked Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Commentary by Barak BarfiMore

Qatar′s political isolation: The latest scapegoatU.S. Middle East policy under Donald Trump: A recipe for further catastrophes?Panama Paper revelations: The Emirs of Panama
The Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi (r.) and the Saudi King Salman on 7 April 2016 in Cairo (photo: picture-alliance/dpa/Egyptian Presidency

The Egyptian economy

Going, going, gone

Rather than trying to rescue his country′s foundering economy, Egypt′s president, Abdul Fattah al-Sisi, has been forced to relinquish territory to Saudi Arabia in return for financial aid. It′s a decision that has sparked a public outcry and widespread derision. By Barak BarfiMore

Egyptian-Saudi relations: Tightening the pursestringsRelations between Saudi Arabia and Egypt: Conditional supportInterview with Saleh Diab: ''Egypt doesn't need dollars, it needs a clear plan''
Protests against Houthi militias in Taiz (Photo: Reuters/Mohamed al-Sayaghi)

Political crisis in Yemen

Teetering on the brink

Yemen is no stranger to crisis. Exposed to a regional proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia, plagued by an entrenched al-Qaida affiliate and divided by tribal disputes and a secession movement, the country has become a poster child for everything that can go wrong in the Arab world. By Barak BarfiMore

The crisis in Yemen: The primacy of stability over real changePower struggle in Yemen: An unstable situation turns criticalIran's foreign policy in Yemen and Iraq: Arab fear of the "extended arm of Iran"Political upheaval in Yemen: The triumphant advance of the Houthi rebels
Women on the bazaar of Tripoli (photo: DW)

Libya after the Revolt

Rebuilding the Ruins of Qaddafi

With the creation of a new government, Libya's leaders should finally be able to focus on organizing the transition from the authoritarian state that they inherited to the more pluralistic one they envisage. But are they really able and willing to achieve that goal, asks Barak BarfiMore

Rebuilding Libya: The Looming Risk of DependencyPost-conflict Reconstruction in Libya: Possibilities and Probabilities
Mubarak and Arafat (photo:AP)

Commentary by Barak Barfi

How New Is Egypt's ''New'' Foreign Policy?

Egypt has announced there will be a shift in the country's foreign politics after Mubarak, truly independent from US interests. But, says Barak Barfi, contrary to general perception Mubarak has never really been an American "lackey"More

Fears of Rising Extremism in Egypts Power VacuumEgypt's Army and the People: An Unusual Alliance