Hirak Jyoti Das is a Senior Research Associate at Vivekananda International Foundation and a doctoral candidate in Centre for West Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. His doctoral research is titled, "Israel's Security Predicaments since the fall of Hosni Mubarak regime in Egypt". His research interests are India's relations with Persian Gulf states, Domestic and foreign policies of Qatar and Kuwait, Israel's security and arms policy, Israel's domestic politics, Post-Arab Spring domestic and foreign policy of Egypt and the role of Islamic movements i.e. Hezbollah, Hamas and Islamic Movement in Israel.

Contributions 
Hezbollah in the North Israel currently in midst of ground operation in Gaza Strip is simultaneously engaged in limited war across the Blue Line on its northern frontier with Hezbollah. The near daily exchange of fire that began since Israel Defense Forces (IDF)’s assaul...

Uncertain Winds: Trends in West Asia in 2024 Israel-Hamas Conflict On 7 October, Hamas’ military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades backed by Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s (PIJ) Al-Quds Brigades executed a multi-domain ‘shock and awe campaign’, ‘Operation Al Aqsa Flood’ i...

The Fate of the Palestinian Authority Post-Hamas Attack The 7 October attack by Hamas’ military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades backed by Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s (PIJ) Al-Quds Brigades has boosted the support for armed resistance path among Palestinians, frustrated with the Palestinian Auth...

Election in Türkiye: Test for Recep Tayyip Erdogan Türkiye’s presidential and parliamentary election was held on 14 May 2023 in the backdrop of deep economic crisis and fallout of the devastating earthquake in February 2023. The outcome of the election could shape Türkiye’s role in the North At...

West Asia and North Africa Review 2022 Responses to the Russia-Ukraine War The ongoing Russia-Ukraine war drew mixed responses among the West Asian and North African states based on their national interests and strategic objectives. Most states in the region do not necessarily ...

VIF Papers 
Sudan’s Fate: Revolution, Coup and Civil War Sudan since the last few decades has witnessed civil wars, terrorism, mass killings, state tyranny, street protests, partition and coups. The April 2019 protest that toppled the autocratic rule of General Omar Al-Bashir opened the path towards democr...

Understanding Politics in Iraq post-October 2021 Elections Iraq’s post-2003 political system is facing political and economic dysfunction mired by widespread corruption, economic inequalities and lack of improvement in living standards. The unstable political situation is further accentuated by the influen...

Battleground Idlib: Russia and Turkey’s Interests amidst the COVID-19 crisis The civil war in Syria similar to the continuing conflicts in Yemen and Libya has its roots in the 2011 Arab spring protests. The protracted conflict between President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces and a fragmented opposition has been diffused by Russia...

Interests and Contests of Houthi and Al-Hirak Movements in Yemen crisis … there is apparently a tacit understanding between the UAE and Saudi Arabia over the STC-Hadi government conflict … the recent attempts in September 2019 to bring STC and the Hadi government to the negotiating table reflect Saudi attempts to rea...

Book Published / Book Reviews 
In The Name of the Nation: India and Its Northeast by Sanjib Baruah, Stanford University Press: Stanford, 2020, 297 pp, ISBN: 9781503610705 In the Name of the Nation: India and its North East, authored by Sanjib Baruah interrogates the interaction of North East India with the territorial conceptions of the post colonial nation-state and state sovereignty. The North Eastern Region consist...

VIF Briefs 
Understanding Israel as Jewish Democratic State Israel since its formation in 1948 continues to remain as one of the few democratic states in West Asian region. The state of Israel officially calls itself as a Jewish democratic state. The research seeks to explore the stated dual objectives i.e. J...

Quagmire in Lebanon: Between Domestic Mismanagement and External Interference Lebanon in the current decade has witnessed pressing economic instability, political turmoil, large scale protests, and clashes with security officials, fires and explosion exposing the gross mismanagement and the incapacity of the present political ...

The Role of Qatar and UAE in the Libyan Civil War Introduction The foreign policy approach of the Persian Gulf States is motivated by specific threats to regional stability. The strategic goals of these states have continuously evolved since the 2011 Arab Spring based on shifts in threat...

Event Reports 
Book Discussion on “The Arab Spring That Was and Wasn’t” The Vivekananda International Foundation organized a book discussion on 18 November on book titled, “The Arab Spring That Was and Wasn’t” authored by Amb. K P Fabian and published by Macmillan Education in June 2022. The discussion was attended...

West Asia Experts Group Meeting The West Asia Experts Group Meeting was held on 6 October 2022 by the Vivekananda International Foundation, the discussion was focused on "Morocco’s Foreign Policy and India-Morocco Relations". The key speaker for the session was Mr. Mohamed Maliki...

West Asia Experts Group Meeting The West Asia Experts Group Meeting was held on 8 July 2022 by the Vivekananda International Foundation, the discussion was focused on "The Geopolitical Impact of the War in Ukraine on the Middle East". The key speaker for the session was Giorgio Fra...

Interaction with Mr. Dammu Ravi on ‘Prospects of I2U2 Summit’ The Vivekananda International Foundation organised a discussion on "Prospects for I2U2 summit" on 25 July 2022. The key speaker in the discussion was Mr. Dammu Ravi, Secretary (Economic Relations), Ministry of External Affairs. The members attending ...

Interaction with Ambassador of Algeria to India The Vivekananda International Foundation organised a discussion on "Algeria’s Foreign Policy in West Asian and North African region and India-Algeria relations" on 7 June 2022. Dr. Arvind Gupta, Director, VIF delivered his opening remarks and brie...

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