Syria and Lebanon remain Israel’s two most proximate northern neighbors in a state of war with Jerusalem. Since the Mandate period, access to the headwaters of the Jordan River, found at the flanks of Mount Hermon in Syria/Lebanon, has complicated bilateral relations, as has foreign influence from Iran, Russia, Turkey and others. But still-unfolding political changes sparked by the Hamas-Israel war have unfrozen the status quo of perennial animosity between Israel and Syria and Lebanon.
A U.S.-mediated agreement between Israel and Lebanon provides a comprehensive path, through bilateral negotiations, for peace, full sovereignty and mutual recognition.
Before Israel’s establishment, Zionists in Palestine had contacts with Lebanese and Syrian officials, seeking information about anti-Zionist attitudes and understanding of these Arab states’ military capabilities against Israel’s establishment and survival. Since 1949 and the…
Books and Documents Oren Barak, The Lebanese Army: A National Institution in a Divided Society. Albany: State University of New York, 2009. Benedetta Berti, The Ongoing Battle for Beirut: Old Dynamics and New Trends, Institute…
For more than a century, Arab and Muslim leaders have expressed hatred for Jews, Zionism and Israel, although some have pointed internally for the failures of the Palestinian Arab national movement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu highlights strategic if incomplete achievements in wars fought since October 2023 while working to solidify his political support before fall elections.
Washington Institute Senior Fellow Michael Eisenstadt speaks about the regional effects of the 2023-2025 Hamas-Israel war and the ongoing U.S.-Israel-Iran war in March 2026.
While too much is unknown after a week of fighting to make definitive statements about the war, certain possible outcomes can be explored.
CIE President Ken Stein addresses what is and what is not known about why Hamas attacked October 7, 2023, why Israel was caught off guard, and what happens after the war across the region.
CIE President Ken Stein briefly reviews the 2023-2025 Hamas-Israel war and examines the short- and long-term consequences.
The U.S., Turkey, Qatar and Egypt commit to trying to implement President Trump’s vision for enduring peace in Gaza and the entire Middle East without offering details or obtaining the sign-on of Israeli or Palestinian officials.
Before a White House dinner, President Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu talk about Gaza, Iran, Syria and Middle East peace.
May 2025 CIE has compiled the following list of books and articles to guide understanding of the modern Middle East. For a supplement to this bibliography, click on CIE’s Annotated Bibliography of Basic Books on…
A current map showing the political borders of Israel and its nearest neighbors in the Arab world.
Netanyahu’s speech reflected on the needed elimination of Hezbollah as an enemy of Israel, a powerful militia fighting in Lebanon against Israel for four decades. On the day of Netanyahu’s speech, the Israeli Air Force killed Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader in his Beirut offices along with other Hezbollah officials.
Hezbollah has used its stronghold in southern Lebanon to launch continual attacks on northern Israel since October 8, 2023. Hezbollah says it is motivated by its support for Hamas, a fellow member of Iran’s Axis of Resistance surrounding Israel. While Hezbollah is Shia and Hamas is Sunni, both are devoted to Israel’s destruction, and both receive funding from and coordinate with Iran.
June 28, 2024 The Washington Institute for Near East’s Policy Dana Stroul leads an incisive discussion with four outstanding panelists on “Hezbollah-Israel Escalation” and the high prospects of war on June 28, 2024. The video,…
The day after Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist assault killed 1,200 and dragged more than 240 kidnapped Israelis and others to Gaza, Hezbollah opened a second front along Israel’s northern border with missile fire from Lebanon….
February 2024 Washington Institute for Near East Policy Since the Hamas-led attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah has made five public appearances to address the group’s own confrontation with Israel…
October 25, 2023 After Hamas terrorists murdered more than 1,200 Israelis and others and kidnapped at least 240 on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel’s military responses unfolded. Political and emotional reactions erupted across the region and…
Enormous tension and risks taken by Egyptian and Israeli leaderships are recounted in a brief chronology of events that led to the June 1967 war, a benchmark turning point in Middle Eastern, Israeli, and Jewish history.
This 54-minute webinar, recorded Oct. 27, 2021, is part of the Center for Israel Education’s “Israel in Context” series and is incorporated into an extensive set of documents, study guides, videos and other resources CIE has compiled at https://israeled.org/madrid-conference/ to mark the 30th anniversary of the Madrid Middle East Peace Conference, when Israel first sat at the same table with all of its immediate Arab neighbors to talk peace.
Historical Context Explore the historical context through the events and the documents leading up to the 1991 Madrid Middle East Peace Conference: 1949: Israel ends the War of Independence without secure borders or Arab acceptance….
On March 6, 1991, President George H.W. Bush tells Congress, “The time has come to put an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict.” For the next eight months, intensive shuttle diplomacy by Secretary of State James…
The clash of great powers to control the Middle East, particularly between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R., neither began after World War II nor ended with the demise of the Soviet Union in 1991. Today, China, the U.S., Russia and Middle Eastern regional powers vie to influence everyday politics and resources.
