Research Library

This paper lays out one potential step-by-step path toward decarbonizing Saudi Arabia, imagining a sweeping restructuring of a fossil fuel-driven society and economy.

ISIS-K, a branch of the Islamic State in Afghanistan, has maintained a steady stream of violent attacks in the country over the last year. But the group may actually be organizationally weak, writes Zwan Visiting Fellow Fazal Muzhary.

A report from center experts on the evolution of Islamist politics, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, security in the Persian Gulf and displacement in the Middle East.

By Colton Cox On March 17, 2019, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace hosted a conference entitled “Religious Authority in the Middle East: Implications for U.S. Policy.” The conference, organized by the Baker Institute Center for the Middle East, was the culmination of a survey-based project of the Middle East and North African region funded by the Henry R. Luce Foundation and led by the Baker Institute’s A.Kadir Yildirim. This report highlights key findings and themes from the conference.

Declarations against violence issued by ulama on behalf of their government provide an opportunity for Muslim political leaders to signal their commitment to the international security agenda while vilifying Islamist opposition actors as terrorists. Baker Institute Blog: https://bit.ly/2LNAZrr

To what extent do Moroccans view state leadership in religion favorably, or see head of state King Mohammed VI as a source of religious authority? The author examines these questions in this issue brief, produced as part of a two-year Center for the Middle East study on religious authority in the Middle East.

How can Egypt become a more inclusive state for the different ethnic and religious groups in the country? This student brief examines the status of Egypt’s different ethnic and religious communities and intercommunal divisions, with an emphasis on the policy implications of entrenching pluralism.

By Mustafa Gurbuz, Ph.D., Arab Center, Washington D.C. The Syrian civil war drastically changed the future prospects of Kurds in both Syria and Iraq. This brief examines the challenges that prevent a politically inclusive culture in Syrian Kurdistan—popularly known as Rojava—and Iraqi Kurdistan. This brief and research paper are part of a project on pluralism and inclusion in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. The project is generously supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

By Imad Salamey, Ph.D., Lebanese American University Contemporary Arab politics have been overwhelmed by communitarian divisions. This research reviews rising transnational communitarianism in the Middle East and suggests communitarian plurality as a solution to ongoing political conflicts in the region. Imad Salamey discusses in both a short issue brief and longer research paper on pluralism and inclusion in the Middle East after the Arab Spring. The project is generously supported by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

This report summarizes the key findings from a workshop on Tunisian politics and Islam the Baker Institute hosted at the Al-Kawakibi Democracy Transition Center in Tunis on Feb. 12.