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Order from Ashes

@orderfromashes.bsky.social
494 followers 176 following 195 posts

International policy that's independent, critical, and progressive.

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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Lebanon's grassroots solar boom has mostly benefited those who own their homes and can afford the investment—installations have plateaued at <25% of households. A new report by @erverd.eurosky.social offers a case study of one way the boom could become more equitable: tcf.org/content/repo...
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
Since Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz on March 2, Western hawks have revived colonial-era schemes to build pipelines from the Gulf to Israel. These fantastical proposals won’t work, and cannot solve the growing energy crisis. New report from CI fellow Zack Cuyler.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 28/04/2026
Syrian truckers successfully fought to shield their industry from the economic liberalization agenda of Ahmed al-Sharaa's government. Now, the Syrian business community is crying foul. The story underlines the tense challenges facing Syria’s new leaders. New report from @abujamajem.com
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
America’s war economy helps no one. Short term: ends lives, undermines democracy, makes daily life unaffordable. Long term, even worse: pitches world into recession and dystopia. New Order from Ashes episode from @eamonka.bsky.social and @tcambanis.bsky.social youtube.com/playlist?lis...
Title image for Order from Ashes podcast episode "A War Economy That Only Destroys"
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
The pain that consumers are feeling from the Iran war is real, and likely to get worse. But those short-term costs are only the tip of the economic iceberg, writes CI editor-in-chief @eamonka.bsky.social in a new commentary.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Rural Lebanon’s near-total transition to solar is inspiring for emerging economies, writes CI contributor Camillo Stubenberg in a new report. But it also carries warnings: left unmanaged, Lebanon’s unlikely solar revolution could harden into another tale of haves and have-nots.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
Lebanon’s energy crisis spurred a stunning revolution in rural solar energy. But cities are still chugging diesel. Broadening the benefits of solar requires good state policy, argues CI contributor Camillo Stubenberg.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
With Iranian drones hitting Iraqi targets and local militias choosing sides, CI fellow @sajadjiyad.bsky.social 's warnings from our recent roundtable on the Iran war are looking grimly prescient.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
So far, a combination of diplomacy and Houthi interest calculations have kept the Yemeni militants out of the Iran war, writes @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social. But if they enter the fray, it could have serious implications for global shipping.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
America won’t be able to control when the Iran war ends, writes @tcambanis.bsky.social. But leaders should use all means to block funding for America’s continuing participation. Meanwhile, the most vulnerable—in the US and worldwide—will suffer from eroded security and spiking energy prices.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
The "forever war" paradigm doesn't really describe the Iran war, writes @abujamajem.com. This U.S.–Israeli attack is something more acute, and immediate—this is a war of aggression, chaotic and wild.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Israel has shifted from managed containment to comprehensive destruction writes @yaelmiz.bsky.social. Long-term consequences will be devastating.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Hezbollah escalated a war with Israel that had never ended, despite a nominal ceasefire. Renewed fighting will punish Lebanese civilians, but will probably also further weaken Hezbollah. @abujamajem.com in new roundtable tcf.org/content/comm...
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
The predictable regional fallout has begun from America's reckless war of choice against Iran. New roundtable from @tcambanis.bsky.social @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social @sajadjiyad.bsky.social @yaelmiz.bsky.social @abujamajem.com tcf.org/content/comm...
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
Lebanon’s grinding energy crisis has benefited generator owners, smugglers, and large fuel importers. But in a new report based on three years of fieldwork, @charlielawrie.bsky.social identifies a more basic, root cause of the crisis: the country’s structural dependency on fossil fuel.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
Only int'l cooperation can stop the Houthi arms program. But US disengagement & regional tensions make a coalition unlikely. Now, there’s growing danger the Houthis are exporting their deadly capabilities to war zones in Africa. - @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social @veenaa.bsky.social + Henry Thompson
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
In a decade, Yemen’s Houthis have transformed from low-tech insurgent group to regional power that can fire missiles up to 2,600km. Our new report shines a light on the inner workings of the Houthis’ startling expansion. By @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social @veenaa.bsky.social + Henry Thompson
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 10/02/2026
No one has been able to constrain the Houthis. Why? Using OSINT research, our report reveals how the Houthis built an astonishing arsenal in secret using a complex web of global supply chains. By @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social @veenaa.bsky.social and Henry Thompson & w support from @XCEPT_Research
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
The core problem is an all-powerful executive branch, made worse by a pliant Congress, a compromised judiciary, and grand corruption. t.co/4ykYgUCz0O (3/5)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
TCF’s new US Democracy Meter uses 23 indicators and a 100-point scale to analyze the erosion of American democracy in 2025. The results: American democracy is now at greater risk than at any time since Watergate, & may even be approaching its pre-Civil Rights Movement low. (2/5)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
The report compares data leaks with official reports from previous years, and finds that program funding has been drastically reduced in almost every sector and country in the region, with exceptions carved out for security-related funding, especially in Israel, Egypt, and Jordan. (3/4)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
US leaders should instead concern themselves with Iraq’s democratic maturity, writes @sajadjiyad.bsky.social. After all, Iraq's development—more than the ideology of its government—is the true key to making it a more positive influence in an unstable region. (3/3)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
New CI report by @delaneysimon.bsky.social‬ provides a case study of Joe Biden’s unprecedented efforts last year to sanction Israeli settlers, with crucial lessons for future sanctions efforts against Israeli settlers. (1/6) tcf.org/content/comm...
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 06/05/2025
Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs mean that the 1990s dream of peace and democracy in the Middle East through economic liberalization is dead, writes @rohanadvani.bsky.social in a new commentary. (1/6)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
Previous installment in this series argued that Iran and its network of influence were unable to coordinate a regional war but remain relevant: “Down but Not Out: Reassessing the Axis of Resistance,” tcf.org/content/repo... (6/6)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
In a new report, “The Axis of Resistance Returns to Its Local Roots,” @veenaa.bsky.social & @tcambanis.bsky.social show how Iran, Hezbollah, and the Houthis have not given up their more expansive ambitions, but have been diminished in a year and a half of war. tcf.org/content/repo... (2/6)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 22/04/2025
Faced with the most serious threat in its history, the Iran-aligned “Axis of Resistance” is turning back to basics: local power. (1/6)
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/03/2025
US policymakers need to face facts: it’s too soon to write the epitaph for the Axis of Resistance. Axis groups like Hezbollah and the Houthis have been diminished, but retain significant local power as a decentralized network, argue @veenaa.bsky.social and @tcambanis.bsky.social in a new report. 1/3
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
Even if Trump keeps Boulos around as an adviser (a big if), it's likely just an example of a chaotic approach to the Middle East driven by the personalities in Trump’s orbit. More in new commentary by @aronlund.bsky.social tcf.org/content/commentary/trumps-w… 6/6
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
@aronlund.bsky.social dives into Boulos's Lebanese political history to show that things are not so simple. tcf.org/content/commentary/trumps-w… 3/6
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
Trump II will enable more destructive experiments in fashioning “a new Middle East.” US policy could push region to new bottoms but won’t create anything good. @tcambanis.bsky.social in this week's roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
Trump II means more Israeli expropriation of Palestinian land. The man who gave Jerusalem and the Golan to Israel could sign off on recolonization of Gaza and annexation of the West Bank. Zack Cuyler in our roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 21/11/2024
Trump officials see Yemen as a low-cost opportunity to build pressure on Iran. The result will be more misery and bloodshed for Yemen—and probably more US involvement. @peterjsalisbury.bsky.social in our roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
Gulf monarchs were quick to congratulate Trump on his victory, and many are emboldened. But Trump II holds serious risks for Gulf stability, including Saudi favoritism. Veena Ali-Khan in this week's roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
MAGA boosters will try to credit Trump with opening up new economic opportunities in the Gulf. The truth is that those economies were already on the rise. @rohanadvani.bsky.social in this week's roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
Will Trump’s disdain for foreign aid extend to the Lebanese army? If so, it will further undermine the supposed U.S. objectives of strengthening the Lebanese government. @abujamajem.com in a new CenturyIntl roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 20/11/2024
Slashing foreign aid is one of Trump’s few unchanging opinions. In Syria, that could mean the beginning of a profoundly destabilizing humanitarian crisis. @aronlund.bsky.social in a new @CenturyIntl roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Trump’s approach to Syria exemplifies the chaotic incoherence of his Middle East policy. @abujamajem.com in a new @CenturyIntl roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
To get elected, Trump made impossible promises to adversaries in the Middle East. His actual policy will likely be decided by the hawks he appoints. Assume the worst. @eamonka.bsky.social in a new Century roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Trump will likely tighten severe sanctions on Iran—pushing Tehran into the China-led, BRICS-aligned economic sphere. Veena Ali-Khan in a new Century roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Many Iraqis believe Trump’s administration cannot be worse than Biden’s. War with Iran could test that assumption. @sajadjiyad.bsky.social in a new @Century roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Trump’s policies toward Islamic movements and the Israeli war on Palestine could lead those who voted for him in states like Michigan to change their minds. @3yyash.bsky.social in a new Century roundtable: tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Under the Trump administration, the best case scenario for US–Turkey relations is corruption and authoritarian solidarity instead of a clash of civilizations. tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca… @nicholasdanfort.bsky.social in a new Century roundtable
A picture of president-elect Trump, at a rally, pointing in one direction while an image of him in the background points in the opposite.
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Trump has promised peace for Lebanon, but his badly designed negotiations might just eat away even more at Lebanon’s sovereignty. @simagh.bsky.social in a @CenturyIntl roundtable on the dangers of Trump II for Lebanon tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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Order from Ashes @orderfromashes.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
Trump might entice Israel to wind down its war—but the price will be a promise that Palestine is never actually free. Dahlia Scheindlin on Trump’s new, bigger blank check for Israel in a new @CenturyIntl roundtable tcf.org/content/report/how-trump-ca…
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