Write stuff about military affairs, North Africa, and the Middle East. Once a field person and evaluator of US development & humanitarian aid.
Washington, DC
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With the #US working on expanding the Abraham Accords, my first post on this platform is about my early summer essay with @mattduss on how the accords drive regional conflict with #Iran.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/05/07…
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This @JordiGraupera profile of Michael Walzer is fantastic.
It shows how a thoughtful person reconciles competing views to try, in my view, to ultimately get it right.
“There is a sense in which the carnage of Gaza, the ongoing carnage, simply made the war unjust,” he said.
New Yorker profile of Michael Walzer: "Michael Walzer wrote “Just and Unjust Wars” half a century ago. The war in Gaza made him rethink one of its fundamental." newyorker.com/culture/person…
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As a person with a PhD who used to make money ending/winning bar fights I can tell you the CIA was never a good fit for me. Even though Jean-Luc Picard was my guy.
“Trump’s CIA wants 'PhDs who could win a bar fight.' Pangs of embarrassment hit me—less for the fool I had been than a vicarious embarrassment. I know how many young men without real prospects in life are ready to be the fools of the next generation.” un-diplomatic.com/p/a-phd-wh…
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I remember when this letter came out. I was in college, this is when I knew I wanted to attend University of Chicago for grad school. And I did. Thanks to @Idooren!
The mainstream media was so impervious to skepticism about the Iraq War that a group of international relations professors paid for an ad laying out the case against the war. Open letters have their place.
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I had a 3 month work project in Nablus a few years ago, I travelled via Palestinian buses. IDF soldiers definitely pointed their guns in my face. It was bad then.
But, I have no experience to compare to @infinite_jaz is describing here. This is evil.
newyorker.com/news/q-and-a/b…
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Zuri Linetsky retweeted
"The reason I keep bringing up the Palestinians throwing rocks to protect Heidi is because, I mean, I can’t emphasize enough how much these young men are . . . Yesterday, they put their lives on the line. There were soldiers there, and soldiers will shoot when somebody is throwing rocks. These young men put their lives on the line to protect a sixty-three-year-old Jewish American journalist. And, I mean, these guys are heroes. If they were not doing that, so many villages would’ve been overtaken. They are literally the only defense. [On Saturday] I was in a village called Jalud, and the exact same thing happened. We got attacked by settlers, and it was these young men, whom we call the shabab, who fought them back with rocks. And the reason I just want to put a fine point on this is because, for me, just in terms of where things are going with Israel-Palestine politically, I think that a sort of discursive shift in how we talk about Palestinians’ right to defend themselves needs to happen." @infinite_jaz to @IChotiner
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💯just like savior last year. Is he sticks with it, he will get a shot.
I get Oilers fans are frustrated with Howard but give him credit. The points haven't come but he's doing what this staff wants from him...in a role he isn't built for or familiar with. He's forechecking, been fairly responsible defensively & kept his shifts short. He's adapting.
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Food continues to be a weapon of war in #Gaza.
“The WFP said about 1.4 million people, or two-thirds of Gaza's population, face crisis levels of food insecurity or worse, including roughly 200,000 people in emergency conditions.”
When international attention moves elsewhere, so does funding: WFP cuts aid for Palestinians in Gaza, leaving 500,000 without monthly food assistance. @Reuters: reuters.com/world/middle-eas…
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Essential thread on what is actually up for debate or change in the upcoming #Israeli election.
Unfortunately there is little daylight between the candidates to lead the country.
Israel’s election, despite party nuances, is largely a battle between different right-wing approaches for a state that has consolidated control between the river and the sea. That raises complex questions about what we can expect to change — and what will likely stay the same. 🧵
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Ya I have heard a number of centrist democrats & US Jews say that Eizenkot will change things.
Perhaps they were not really aware that he came up with the Dahiya Doctrine? And that he commanded the West Bank occupation?
Eisenkot is outflanking Netanyahu from the right, promising that he is even more against a Palestinian state than Bibi.
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Make some time in your day to listen to @mattduss & @stevenacook debate whether the Middle East Benefited from the Abraham Accords. They discuss (in part) essay with Matt for @ForeignPolicy
Hosted by @NicholasDanfort.
foreignpolicy.com/podcasts/c…
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If you follow politics in #Ethiopia & #Eritrea this @alanboswell discussion with @MikeWoldemariam is excellent via @CrisisGroup’s The Horn.
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas…
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Excellent point by @muhammadshehad2 “armed resistance in Gaza has accomplished the movement’s [Hamas’s] goals by putting Palestine on the world’s agenda, showing Israel’s true face, and collapsing any notion that Israel is simply managing the conflict.”
My latest: a detailed analysis of why Hamas accepted to lay down their arms; what exactly did they agree to; how will the process unfold; & what is needed for the roadmap to succeed
arabcenterdc.org/resource/ha…
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Zuri Linetsky retweeted
Saudi Arabia’s High-Stakes Gamble in Yemen
The announcement of a Saudi-backed Yemeni counteroffensive comes at a particularly dangerous moment.
The Houthis are not only continuing their attacks on strategic infrastructure in the Saudi capital; their forces are also advancing from Taiz and threatening the routes leading toward Aden.
It increasingly appears that Riyadh has concluded that the diplomatic track has reached its limits, or, more precisely, that continuing down that path would require concessions the Saudis are unwilling to make.
Saudi Arabia is therefore making a major strategic gamble: betting on an advance by its Yemeni partners, backed by a significant air campaign, American intelligence support, and European assistance in protecting critical Saudi infrastructure.
This could become a turning point in the war. A successful counteroffensive could significantly alter the military balance and put the Houthis under pressure they have not faced in years.
But the risks are equally significant. Given the weaknesses and fragmentation of the Saudi-aligned forces in Yemen, a failed offensive could produce the opposite result: a military collapse that threatens the remaining strongholds of Saudi influence in the country.
Yemen may therefore be entering a decisive phase. What happens in the coming weeks could reshape not only the battlefield, but the Saudi-Houthi confrontation for years to come. Riyadh is taking an enormous gamble, and the consequences of failure could be as significant as the potential rewards of success.
#IranWar
#yemen
🇾🇪🇸🇦Yemeni and Saudi forces launch counteroffensive against the Houthis. My report on @axios
axios.com/2026/10/04/yemen-s…
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Nearly every piece of US & allied military equipment has components that originate in China or a Chinese owned mine (think raw materials). So more “market solutions” for defense is great expect when China shuts down the market & everything stops. It’s like Japan & oil before 1941
“I am often asked whether the U.S. military should prioritize high-volume, low-cost equipment or exquisite programs. Unfortunately, the answer is both,” writes former U.S. Secretary of the Army Dan Driscoll.
foreignaffairs.com/united-st…
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This is excellent.
The Cellmate Who Taught Me the Codes of Russian Prison
newyorker.com/culture/essay/…
When the journalist Evan Gershkovich was first detained in Moscow’s Lefortovo prison, under accusations of espionage, he was placed in solitary confinement. Then, one day, guards arrived at his cell and told him to collect his things. They took Gershkovich to cell No. 85, where his new cellmate, called Seryoga to protect his privacy, refused to shake his hand and instead greeted him by asking, “What’s the trouble?” Gershkovich didn’t understand the question.
“What’s the trouble?” is a way of asking which article of the Russian criminal code the prisoner had violated. This—along with which prisoners it was acceptable to shake hands with, how to use the bathroom, and cell cleanliness—were all things that Seryoga explained to Gershkovich during their time cohabiting. Read more about Gershkovich’s experience with his first cellmate:
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Republicans have a unique ability to identify capitalist “market forces” as the solution for everything.
Here applied to defense innovation. But, unlike the Cold War, peer competitors affect defense markets as much as the US. Which he ignores.
reader.foreignaffairs.com/20…
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Hegseth & Trump should focus on buying essential parts for military equipment rather than on “lethality.” But this takes more attention & focus than they can muster.
This Screw Is Needed for Missiles and Planes. Buying One Can Take Years.
nytimes.com/2026/09/26/busin… via @NYTimes
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If only the #Trump administration hadn’t neutered the State Department and #USAID. Then the military wouldn’t have to stretch itself even more thinly, at a time when its readiness is already quite curtailed.
defensescoop.com/2026/09/17/…
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Honest question. When did the #UN General Assembly become Festivus (for the rest of us)?
mediaite.com/media/news/neta…
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