Iran Oil Waivers Ended
Bottom Line Up Front The Trump Administration ended a key waiver on Iran oil sanctions as part of an effort to apply maximum pressure […] More
Iran
What a Designated Terrorist IRGC Could Mean for the U.S.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council is taking retaliatory steps after President Donald Trump announced on Monday that the U.S. will designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard […] More
Reminders for Hawks Clamoring to Attack Iran
OPINION — As Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, National Security Advisor John Bolton, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and Saudi crown […] More
The Growing Influence of Iranian-Backed Militias in Iraq
Bottom Line Up Front Iran can exercise ‘hard power’ in Iraq through several major Shi’a militias that it has nurtured. Iran’s militia allies are […] More
Iran’s Foreign Minister Resigns
Bottom Line Up Front The announced resignation of Iran’s Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, reflects a growing domestic power struggle over the 2015 multilateral […] More
I Was in the CIA. Trump’s Petty Fights and Insults Will Make Us All Less Safe.
Steven Hall spent more than 30 years in the CIA, the bulk of them running and managing intelligence operations in Eurasia and Latin America. He […] More
The Iran Brief
As part of The Cipher Brief’s special coverage in the run up to our 2019 Threat Conference in Sea Island, GA March 24-26th, we will […] More
Iran’s Resilient Revolution
Bottom Line Up Front The 40thanniversary of Iran’s Islamic Revolution finds the country in a stronger regional position than at any time since the […] More
The Islamic Revolution’s Impact on Political Islam and the Middle East
Cipher Brief Expert Emile Nakhleh is a retired CIA Senior Intelligence Service Officer and founding director of the CIA’s Political Islam Strategic Analysis Program Office. […] More
Designate IRGC’s Quds Force as a Foreign Terrorist Organization
Last month, the U.S. Department of State marked the 35th anniversary of the U.S. designation of Iran as a state-sponsor of terrorism. Tehran is part of […] More
4 Terrorism Questions for former NCTC Director Nicholas Rasmussen
This week’s release of the Intelligence Community’s unclassified Worldwide Threat Assessment made clear which groups the IC believes pose the greatest terrorist threats to the […] More
The Terrorist Threat to the U.S. Homeland
As part of the U.S. Intelligence Community’s Worldwide Threat Assessment this week, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence […] More
A Green Beret Congressman’s Take on Terrorism
As this month’s terror attacks in Syria and Nairobi make clear, organizations like ISIS and al-Shabab remain focused on launching attacks as a show of […] More
Shifting Sands of the Middle East and the Impact on the Arab World
In part two of his two-part exclusive series for The Cipher Brief, AEI Scholar Kenneth Pollack, the author of the recently-released Armies of Sand: The Past, […] More
Israel’s Top 5 Strategic Goals in 2019
OPINION — Israel is well-positioned as 2019 begins, but it is also primed to face serious challenges over the next twelve months. The following five […] More
The Growing Threat of Iranian Missiles
Bottom Line Up Front Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities enable it to project power while compensating for an otherwise modest conventional military capacity. Iran’s supply […] More
The Changing Balance of Power in the Middle East
In part one of his two-part exclusive series for The Cipher Brief, AEI Scholar Kenneth Pollack, the author of the recently-released Armies of Sand: The Past, […] More
Iran in Iraq: How Strength Can Be a Vulnerability
With U.S.-Iran tensions rising after the re-imposition of nuclear sanctions, neighboring Iraq will likely emerge as a critical battleground in the U.S.-Iran contest. As the […] More