Exclusive Interview: Former Navy Commander on How To Stop the Houthis
SUBSCRIBER+ INTERVIEW — Almost from the first volley fired last fall by Houthi rebels at vessels in the Red Sea, the group has surprised observers […] More
Gaza
As Houthi Attacks Continue, Calls for a New Approach
OPINION – “They [the Houthis] don’t have to do much to win. It’s a very low bar. They just have to continue attacking, however small. […] More
What Will the U.S. do if Israel Crosses “Red Line” in Gaza?
SUBSCRIBER+ EXCLUSIVE REPORTING –As President Joe Biden and other world leaders grow increasingly frustrated with the bloody stalemate in Gaza—no release of hostages, no end […] More
Former Secretary of State Pompeo: Ukraine Will Get U.S. Aid
SUBSCRIBER+ INTERVIEW – Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told The Cipher Brief in a weekend interview that he believes U.S. military aid to Ukraine […] More
Can the Gaza War End With Hamas Leaders at Large and Netanyahu in Power?
SUBSCRIBER+ EXCLUSIVE REPORTING – Nearly every week, politicians and headline writers tell the world that a ceasefire in Gaza is at hand. A new deal […] More
Ground Truth: The Disconnect, Context and Challenges of Israel’s War against Hamas
You may fly over a land forever; you may bomb it, atomize it, and wipe it clean of life – but if you desire to […] More
Calculating the Impact of the Drone Strike that Killed Saleh Al-Arouri
SUBSCRIBER+EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW – A drone strike that killed the deputy chief of Hamas’s political arm, Saleh Al-Arouri and five others in southern Beirut on Tuesday […] More
Israel can’t just ‘hold’ the moral high ground, it has to maintain it
OPINION — “The distinction between a well-regulated army and a mob, is the good order and discipline of the first, and the licentious & disorderly […] More
How Iran is Reshaping the Middle East
OPINION — The October 7th terrorist attack on Israelis and its devastating aftermath for Palestinian civilians should be a wake-up call that extends beyond these […] More
The ‘Axis of Resistance’ Media Machine is far-reaching in the Middle East
OPINION — Saudi Arabia suffered a painful defeat in the information war against the Houthis. The Houthis’ media strategy was effective in painting Saudi Arabia […] More
Peace in the Middle East is Dependent on Ideas, Not Fighting
OPINION — The Palestine National Authority (PNA), the interim body created after the 1993 Oslo Accords to administer Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank and […] More
Is Iran’s ‘Ring of Fire’ Strategy Heating Up?
CIPHER BRIEF REPORTING – A second aid convoy arrived in Gaza as Israel continued striking targets in the region ahead of an expected ground operation […] More
The Higher-Order Effects of Negotiating with Hamas
OPINION — In 2011, after five and a half years in captivity and complex negotiations involving an Israeli activist, Israeli government officials, and outside foreign […] More
More than Merely an Intelligence Failure
OPINION — For national security and intelligence experts, one question continually resonates: how could Israel’s highly regarded intelligence infrastructure not predict and warn of Hamas’s […] More
Intelligence Overshadowed: Israel’s Grand Strategy in the Face of Hamas’s Unexpected Assault
OPINION — The history of intelligence in the modern era is closely intertwined with failures of early warnings and unexpected strategic events. These include the […] More
How the Middle East Conflict Leads Back to US National Security
In the Biden Administration’s highest-level face-to-face visit, Secretary of State Antony Blinken is traveling to the Middle East to seize momentum created by last week’s […] More
Violence in Gaza: “An Ugly Witch’s Brew”
Since the United States declared the opening of its new embassy in Jerusalem, violence has broken out along the border between Israel and the Gaza […] More
Forget the Ultimate Deal: Trump and Netanyahu Should Save Gaza For Now
When Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu visits President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday, they might commiserate over the domestic investigations each are facing as […] More