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The Myth of Iran's Ideological Straightjacket
Javad Zarif published a concession list in Foreign Affairs and called it victory. The Islamic Republic has been doing this for forty years.
Apr 5
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
22
2
11
Houthis are Running on Fumes
On March 17, I argued that Houthis have diminishing capacity but they need to save face and project strength. They would enter the war to exist it…
Apr 1
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
7
5
March 2026
How to Read the Houthis’ Late Entry Into the Iran War
My reading for the Stimson Center. Evidence on supply chains, fuel, and interdiction suggests the Houthis cannot sustain what they just announced. The…
Mar 30
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
14
5
The Saudi-Led War at Eleven: How Iran's Houthis Survived the Storm
On March 26, 2015, Saudi Arabia launched Operation Decisive Storm to dislodge the Houthis from power in Yemen. Eleven years later, the movement is…
Mar 27
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
14
12
Maximum Pressure, Minimum Strategy. What Is the Iran War For?
Iran is losing the military war and winning the economic one. The Gulf is absorbing the consequences. And Washington cannot explain what comes next.
Mar 24
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
26
13
On Houthi Bullshit and Taxonomy of Speculation
The Iran-backed Houthis are probably, definitely, possibly, and absolutely not joining the war. But also, they might.
Mar 22
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
26
14
Why Death to America Can Wait
My latest in Foreign Policy on why the Axis of Resistance's loudest member went quiet.
Mar 16
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
7
3
5
Escorting Through a Minefield: The Reality of Iran’s Strait of Hormuz Strategy
Iran's sea mines are in the water. We revisit the IRGC's February signaling that telegraphed this exact scenario as a deterrent.
Mar 12
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
16
2
13
The Red Death: Iran-backed Houthis Prepare for a Ground War in Yemen.
Iran-backed Houthis spent months converting northern Yemen's entire civilian infrastructure into a conscription apparatus. The force they built is for a…
Mar 8
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
34
2
20
Khamenei Killed in Tehran, What Happens to Iran's Proxy Network Now?
Ali Khamenei is dead and his command structure with him. But the system he built is still running, and no one in Washington is clear on what comes next.
Mar 2
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
20
1
15
February 2026
Axis Week in Brief
Confidence grows across the axis that U.S. action on Iran is not coming, Huckabee tells Carlson Israel can take land from the Nile to the Euphrates…
Feb 26
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
3
4
Axis Week in Brief
Iran talks move from Muscat to Geneva, the IRGC tests Hormuz, Russia and China mock NATO at Munich, and the Epstein files ripple across the axis…
Feb 21
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Fatima Abo Alasrar
2
3
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