Lebanon‘s Evolving Relationship with Syria

Lebanon‘s Evolving Relationship with Syria

Friday, May 21, 2010

By: Mona Yacoubian

Lebanon’s outreach to Syria is motivated by significant shifts in the regional political landscape, particularly Syria’s renewed regional and global influence. Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri appears to have made a strategic decision that rapprochement with Syria is in Lebanon’s best interest, offering the greatest chance for stability and resolution of a number of outstanding bilateral issues including greater guarantees for Lebanese sovereignty.

Type: Peace Brief

Fighting Corruption in Security Sector Reform

Fighting Corruption in Security Sector Reform

Friday, May 21, 2010

By: Robert Perito;  Madeline Kristoff

Corruption in the security sector damages society’s trust in the government. Donors must coordinate on anti-corruption programs and make sure not to engage in corruption themselves.

Type: Peace Brief

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (Kurdish Edition)

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (Kurdish Edition)

Sunday, May 16, 2010

By: Sean Kane

Kurdish Version - Iraq’s March 2010 elections delivered a surprising virtual tie in the ethnically mixed and strategically important province of Kirkuk, making it an opportune time for fresh thinking on how to address persistent disputes over its status. The focus thus far has been on a winner-take-all permanent resolution to the status of Kirkuk. It may be more productive to consider models which give local authorities a direct role in designing potential compromises on the province, clarify...

Type: Peace Brief

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (Arabic Version)

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (Arabic Version)

Thursday, May 13, 2010

By: Sean Kane

Arabic Version - Iraq’s March 2010 elections delivered a surprising virtual tie in the ethnically mixed and strategically important province of Kirkuk, making it an opportune time for fresh thinking on how to address persistent disputes over its status. The focus thus far has been on a winner-take-all permanent resolution to the status of Kirkuk. It may be more productive to consider models which give local authorities a direct role in designing potential compromises on the province, clarify ...

Type: Peace Brief

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (English, Arabic, and Kurdish)

Finding Common Ground: Kirkuk as a Special Governorate (English, Arabic, and Kurdish)

Thursday, May 13, 2010

By: Sean Kane

English Version - Iraq’s March 2010 elections delivered a surprising virtual tie in the ethnically mixed and strategically important province of Kirkuk, making it an opportune time for fresh thinking on how to address persistent disputes over its status. The focus thus far has been on a winner-take-all permanent resolution to the status of Kirkuk. It may be more productive to consider models which give local authorities a direct role in designing potential compromises on the province, clarify...

Type: Peace Brief

The Road to Successful Transition in Afghanistan: From Here to the December 2010 Review

The Road to Successful Transition in Afghanistan: From Here to the December 2010 Review

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

By: William B. Taylor;  Jr.;  J Alexander Thier

The next seven months leading up to the December policy review will be crucial for Afghanistan’s future; at that time the Obama administration—and the citizens of Afghanistan, the United States and ISAF nations—will make a judgment about progress towards stability there. Afghans and Americans need to set a course for success, and reach an agreement of what realistic, achievable progress means, and how to accomplish it.

Type: Peace Brief

The Afghan Peace Jirga: Ensuring that Women are at the Peace Table

The Afghan Peace Jirga: Ensuring that Women are at the Peace Table

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

By: Palwasha Hassan

In late May 2010, the Afghan government will convene a Peace Jirga in Kabul to determine a national reintegration and reconciliation strategy. Afghan women have played a variety of social and political roles during the last three decades of conflict, including as peacebuilders, but now risk being excluded from current peacebuilding processes.

Type: Peace Brief

Gender

Group Inequality and Conflict: Some Insights for Peacebuilding

Group Inequality and Conflict: Some Insights for Peacebuilding

Monday, May 10, 2010

By: Michelle Swearingen

Political, socioeconomic or cultural inequalities among groups could potentially motivate political violence in societies. Research has shown that political inequalities between groups are most likely to motivate leaders, while socioeconomic inequalities motivate followers.

Type: Peace Brief

Terror on the Internet

Terror on the Internet

Sunday, May 9, 2010

By: Gabriel Weimann

Terror on the Internet, a USIP Press book by noted scholar Gabriel Weimann, uses data from an eight-year study to conclude that terrorism on the Web has increased dramatically from 1998 to today.

Type: Book