Peter Salisbury

New York

Researcher and Contributor at Freelance

Researcher, writer. Political economy of war and peace. Orwellian bot. Fellow @centuryintl, adjunct @columbiaSIPA. Ex @crisisgroup. RT≠ endorsement.

Articles

Assad Is Gone-But for Refugees to Return, the World Needs to Invest in Syria’s Peace

Feb 3, 2025 | tcf.org | Muhannad Ayyash |Sam Heller |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis

The dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad has fallen. Now, many of the 6.2 million Syrian refugees abroad—more than a quarter of the country’s prewar population—are thinking, finally, about going home. Whether in muddy refugee camps, crowded working-class neighborhoods in Istanbul, Beirut, and Amman, or distant European cities, they have been following the dramatic news out of Damascus and entertaining the idea, perhaps for the first time, that their children will know Syria.
The Progressive Foreign Policy Agenda Is in Shambles. It’s Time to Confront the Crisis.

Jan 13, 2025 | tcf.org | Thanassis Cambanis |Aron Lund |Peter Salisbury |Sam Heller

The progressive foreign policy agenda is in a dark place. Trump has successfully challenged the international system from the right and frustrated the progressive formulations against endless war. He has changed global dynamics and America’s domestic politics for the worse in ways that will echo long after his second term ends. If nothing else, this troubling moment offers an opportunity for clarity. Progressives have two main challenges to face.
Syria’s Civil War Has Roared Back. How Far Can the Rebels Go?

Dec 6, 2024 | tcf.org | Muhannad Ayyash |Dalia Hatuqa |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis

Seemingly out of the blue, Syrian rebels made a swift comeback campaign against the Assad regime in the last week of November. After years as a “frozen conflict,” in a few short weeks more has changed on the ground in a matter of days than at any point in the Syrian civil war, which began in 2011.
How Trump Can Make Things Worse in the Middle East

Nov 18, 2024 | tcf.org | Thanassis Cambanis |Sajad Jiyad |Peter Salisbury |Veena Ali-Khan

Many Middle Eastern leaders welcomed Donald Trump’s election victory, convinced that Trump policies would better serve their regional interests. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu openly rooted for Trump. And while authoritarian leaders in Saudi Arabia and Egypt had warmed to the Biden administration, they historically prefer Republican leaders who dispense with even rhetorical demands for human rights.
Here's What Progressive Foreign Policy in the Middle East Should Look Like

Jul 15, 2024 | tcf.org | Moien Odeh |Dahlia Scheindlin |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis

For too long, progressives have spent their foreign policy energy cleaning up the messes of others. Small groups of dissenters have fought with clarity against disasters like the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the unjustifiable use of torture and extrajudicial detention after 9/11. Many of these same progressives saw the risks of ignoring justice for Palestinians and predicted the tragedy in Gaza. But progressives don’t just oppose policy blunders.
Under Cover of Gaza War, Assault on West Bank Accelerates

Apr 1, 2024 | tcf.org | Dahlia Scheindlin |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis |Zeinab F. Shuker

This commentary is part of a Century International series exploring a shared future for Palestine and Israel that guarantees the fundamental rights of both communities. The Gaza war has exposed the bankruptcy of the existing policy frameworks. Our “Shared Future” series intends to spur conversation and promote new, better options for security, rights, and governance—for Palestinians and Israelis. While Israel lays waste to Gaza, it has placed the West Bank under a different kind of siege.
A Bolder American Foreign Policy Means More Values and Less War

Mar 11, 2024 | tcf.org | Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis |Zeinab F. Shuker |Sam Heller

The Gaza war and the regional conflicts it has unleashed are revealing that, no matter how much political, financial, and military capital Washington invests, it can no longer force the policy outcomes it wants—if it ever could. At every turn, the United States has enabled the Israeli invasion and decimation of Gaza, even as the Biden administration has touted its hopes for peace. It is a losing strategy.
Roundtable: Gaza in Crisis

Feb 12, 2024 | tcf.org | Ashraf Hassan |Aron Lund |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis

The scope and scale of destruction in Gaza beggars the imagination, even in a conflict that has witnessed many punishing cycles. The war in Gaza has entered its fifth month, sparing none of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants. Indiscriminate bombing has made the entire Gaza Strip unsafe, with families displaced multiple times and unable to find a safe haven.
Social Media “War on Terror” Unfairly Censors Palestinians and Arabic Speakers

Jan 18, 2024 | tcf.org | Aron Lund |Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis |Zeinab F. Shuker

Molly Crabapple, a U.S.-based author and artist, reportedly woke up one day in October to find that her Instagram account had been severely restricted. “Your account can’t be shown to non-followers,” read a message when she opened the app. Instagram provided no more of an explanation for the restriction, which was mystifying. She guessed it might have been triggered when she reposted a story by Democracy Now! on the state-sanctioned militarization of Israel’s settlers in the West Bank.
Blood in the Water: How the Gaza War Spilled into the Red Sea

Jan 12, 2024 | tcf.org | Peter Salisbury |Thanassis Cambanis |Zeinab F. Shuker |Dahlia Scheindlin

After months of rising tensions in the Red Sea region, a U.S.-led coalition has launched air and missile strikes on Yemen to prevent further Houthi attacks on cargo ships and to keep shipping lanes open. But military action alone is unlikely to solve the problem, and to sustainably secure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea, the United States may need to move to stop the war in Gaza—the root cause of an unfolding regional conflict that could still be halted.