Our Publications

In this article, Prof. Joshua Krasna examines the trajectory of Israel’s relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain five years after the signing of the Abraham Accords. He notes that while the agreements initially generated momentum in trade, investment, and public engagement, many of the major economic initiatives stalled even before 2023, partly due to Israeli regulatory barriers and growing Emirati frustration with developments in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

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Prof. Krasna explains that the October 7 attack and the ensuing war significantly intensified these strains. Although formal diplomatic ties remain intact, Gulf states have increased their humanitarian support for Palestinians, and public sentiment in the UAE and Bahrain has grown more critical of Israel. He highlights that renewed discussions of potential Israeli annexation in the West Bank have prompted explicit warnings from Emirati officials, who view such moves as contradicting the spirit of normalization.

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The article concludes that while cooperation continues on an institutional level, the political and public foundations of the Abraham Accords have weakened. Krasna presents the current phase as one of caution, in which further progress depends heavily on Israeli domestic policy choices and the broader regional climate.

A piece published in the Maghreb Review on July 3 by Dr. Jonathan Ghariani, , entitled “The Madrid Multilateral Peace Process and the Era of Partial Normalization Between Israel and the Peripheral Arab States (1992–2000),” explored the Madrid multilateral conference from  November 1991. This was the first instance of broader Arab–Israeli discussions on a wide range of issues. There, Israel and Arab countries discussed ater, the environment, arms control, economics, and refugees. The conference also ultimately led to the signing of the Oslo accords in 1994 between Israel and the PLO. Dr, Ghariani argued that while accepting the importance of the Oslo accords and the Israeli–Jordanian Peace Treaty,it is crucial to analyse the link between the Madrid multilateral negotiations and the process of semi-normalization that occurred between Israel and the peripheral Arab states in the 1990s. The working hypothesis is that the multilateral negotiations established the necessary mechanisms that enabled the normalization agreements to take place.

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On February 13, 2025, the head of our Morrocco forum, Dr. Jonathan Ghariani, published an article entitled “The Turkey-Qatar Axis and its Impact on Post-Asad Syria. Dr. Ghariani highlighted Turkey’s growing dominance in post-Asad Syria, backed by Qatar’s economic and diplomatic support, Ankara’s military interventions target Kurdish forces and capitalize on the diminished role of Iran, increased Qatari and Turkish influence in Syria may heighten tensions with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Israel.

A joint publication from fellows Dr. Nir Boms and Itai Melchior, released on July 2, 2025, in our teams first official cooperation with the Atlantic Council, taught of the shift in Syrian-Israeli dynamics since the emergence of the interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Boms and Melchior wrote how in a surprising turn of events, Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former jihadist turned transitional Syrian president, is unexpectedly becoming a force for regional stability by positioning himself as a pragmatic leader over the past six months, championing power-sharing, minority rights, and economic revival.  With moves like breaking ties with terrorist groups, opening the door to international inspectors, and easing U.S. tensions, his leadership could be a rare win-win for both Israel and the U.S. The article lays out why his rise might reshape Syria’s future and even help boost Middle East peace efforts. 

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