Prof. Eyal Zisser

Prof. Eyal Zisser is the head of the Department of Middle Eastern and African History and a senior research fellow at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University. His books include Syria: Domestic Political Stress and Globalization (2002), Assad's Legacy: Syria in Transition (2000), and Lebanon: The Challenge of Independence (2000).

Publications by Prof. Eyal Zisser

The Syrian Uprising: Implications for Israel

August 9, 2011

In Syria, the story is the emergence of social groups from the periphery and their struggle to gain access to power and take over the center. The emergence of the Baath party and the Assad dynasty in the 1960s involved a coalition of peripheral forces led by the Alawites, but many others joined who came from the periphery. Now, because of socioeconomic reasons, the periphery has turned against the regime.  Read More »

Is Syria an Ally or Adversary of Radical Sunni Movements?

December 3, 2007

We should be very realistic about what we can get from Syria. Syria is not about to become a close ally of the United States and part of what we call the moderate camp in the region.  Read More »

Syrian Foreign Policy Under Bashar al-Assad

August 29, 2004

Hafez al-Assad was a master in using terrorist organizations to promote Syrian interests and achieve political gains that he couldn’t otherwise accomplish. By using terror and local agents, Syria gained control over Lebanon and forced both Israel and America to leave. Yet there has been no Syrian involvement in operations inside Western countries since 1986.  Read More »