On Tuesday, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) held a panel entitled, “Lebanon and the Arab Spring: A Congressional View of Lebanon’s Roles Amidst Historic Change in the Region.” USIP President Richard Solomon gave introductory remarks.  Mona Yacoubian, Senior Program Officer for the Middle East and Director of the Lebanon Working Group, moderated the panel.  Congressman Charles Boustany (R-LA), the son of Lebanese immigrants, offered his perspective on how ...

The Bahraini government officially accused Hezbollah of helping train anti-government opposition in an official report sent to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. The report claims that the group has been training opposition figures at camps in both Lebanon and Iran and also accuses them of targeting other Gulf nations as well.  Bahrain also claims that Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah of meeting with senior leaders of Bahrain's largest Shi'ite opposition group ...

Writing in the International Herald Tribune, Jean Marie Guéhenno asserts that the 'Arab revolutions are beginning to destroy the cliché of an Arab world incapable of democratic transformation."  In place of this narrative, she states, a new one is building and that the source of the revolutions stems from a thirst for Western style freedoms "mobilized by Facebook and Twitter."  She refutes these claims and states that the revolutions are "about ...

Last week, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy hosted an event entitled, "Lebanon Today: Internal Politics and the Arab Spring."  Speaking at the event were May Chidiac, president of MCF Media Institute; Michael Young, opinion editor for the Beirut Daily Star; Hisham Melhem, Washington bureau chief of Al-Arabiya; and Michael Doran,  visiting professor at New York University's Wagner School of Public Service. May Chidiac noted how protests in the ...

Nabih Berri, Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, has said he is optimistic that Prime Minister-designate Najib Mikati's new cabinet will be officially formed  shortly after the Easter holiday.  The speaker said that most of the "thorny issues" has been resolved and that negotiations were focusing on "final touches."  The formation of a new government has been in a three month long deadlock with political infighting over specific cabinet portfolios and ...

Courtesy of Al Jazeera After a violent crackdown on Sunday protests left up to 17 dead in Homs, thousands poured into the streets on Monday in funeral rallies to mourn the victims.  More videos of Monday's protests can be viewed at The New York Times blog The Lede.  Meanwhile, Hezbollah expressed its support for embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday.  Hezbollah MP Nawwaf Moussawi said that stability in Syria is essential for ...

On Monday, the Bahraini security forces released 86 detainees following legal procedures taken according to royal decree 18 regarding the State of National Safety.  However, the government also expelled more than 15 Lebanese people living in Bahrain following a speech by Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in which he expressed support for the Bahraini opposition's demands.  Authorities also stripped more than a dozen Lebanese of their work and residency protests ...

David Schenker, of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and former U.S. Defense Department official, argues that U.S. policy of maintaining stability in Damascus is not the country's vested interest.  Schenker says the Bush administration routinely sidelined any policy aimed at regime change or destabilization fearing that the possible alternatives to Assad were worse despite the regime's active anti-U.S. policies, particularly regarding Iraqi insurgents. While the Pentagon never advocated ...

Bilal Y. Saab, writing for The National Interest, argues that a collapse of the regime would have ripple effects across the Middle East and the country's network of external relations could collapse.  He outlines two ways in which a post-Assad Syria could develop.  On the positive side, Syrian intervention in Lebanese politics could essentially be eliminated along with its support for Hezbollah.  This would significantly weaken Hezbollah he argues.  The ...

The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held an open nomination hearing to confirm the appointments of Mara E. Rudman, to be Assistant Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development for the Middle East, and Robert Patterson, to be Ambassador to Turkmenistan. Senator Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-PA) presided over the nomination hearing. For full notes, continue below or click here. Senator Casey began the hearing by highlighting the fact that ...

On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing on the implications of uprisings in the Middle East has on U.S. policy. The Committee—chaired by Senator John Kerry (D-MA) – with ranking member Senator Dick Lugar (R-IN) in attendance –requested the testimony of William J. Burns, Under Secretary for Political Affairs. To read full notes, continue below or click here for pdf. Senator John Kerry opened by stating that the ...

On Thursday the Brookings Institute hosted an event focused on the recent trip of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) to the Middle East entitled: “Revolution in the Middle East: A Trip Report by Senator John McCain and Senator Joseph Lieberman.” The event was opened by Strobe Talbott, President of the Brookings Institute and moderated by Robert Kagan, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute. For full notes, ...

Majdoline Hatoum, writing at the Arab Reform Bulletin, discusses the difficult road ahead for Lebanese PM-designate Najib Mikati as he attempts to form a new cabinet strong enough to endure the political turmoil expected to following the release of the UN's Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL)'s report. Former PM Saad Hariri and the March 14 coalition has labeled Mikati as a tool of Hezbollah, placing Mikati in a difficult position as he attempts ...

In a speech on Monday commemorating the 6th anniversary of his father's (former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri) assassination, outgoing PM Saad Hariri announced that his party would be joining the opposition.  He also directly challenged Hezbollah, accusing the group of having used the threat of violence to assume power: "Those who are in the leadership position now used their weapons to get there. So good for them. Congratulations on the stolen position." ...

Lebanese Prime Minister-elect Najib Mikati, backed by Hezbollah, is holding talks to form a new government.  Outgoing Prime Minister Saad Hariri has said he will not join the new government while Mikati pledged to seek good relations with the United States and "consensus" on how to handle the U.N.-backed special tribunal.  Michael Young of Lebanon's The Daily Star posits Hariri's options as the talks get underway.  The first option, he points ...

Jennifer Rubin writes that a Hezbollah-controlled government is essentially an Iranian "conquest" of Lebanon and represents a "horrible setback" for U.S. attempts to counter growing Iranian influence in the region.  She quotes Tony Badran of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies who says that the current situation shows that the "main driver is Iran" along with Elliott Abrams who said that the U.S. may still be able to effectively back anti-Hezbollah ...

The militant group Hezbollah has won backing from a majority of Lebanese MPs after Druze leader Walid Jumblatt and six other members of his Progressive Socialist Party switched their allegiance from Saad Hariri and the March 14th movement.  The group nominated Najib Mikati, a former billionaire businessman and Prime Minister, with support from 65 of the 128 members of the Lebanese Parliament.  A Hezbollah-dominated government may signal a realignment of Lebanon away from ...