AN EXPLOSION in Lebanon's capital of Beirut on Tuesday, August 4, has left several dead and thousands injured, the country's health minister confirmed. Where is Beirut and is there a civil war?

Lebanon is too big to fail, but the vision of many of its vested players is too small for the country to succeed. ( Knox Thames served in a special envoy role on religious minorities during the ...

The above map from Morgan Stanley illustrates why Iraq is crucial to the Middle East amid flaring sectarian tensions. Iran is 91% Shia, Iraq is 66% Shia, Syria is 16% Shia, and Lebanon is 30% Shia.

Our survey respondents were about 10 percent more likely to select a co-ethnic, or a candidate from the same religious community, which is the strongest predictor of support for candidates.

Cultural expansions, including of religions, frequently leave genetic traces of differentiation and in-migration. These expansions may be driven by complex doctrinal differentiation, together with ...