Aron Lund

@aronlund

I write mostly about Syria and the Middle East. In English: The Century Foundation, The New Humanitarian, SIPRI. På svenska: Expressen, UNT, Eskilstuna-Kuriren.

aron@aronlund.com
tcf.org/experts/aron-l…
Joined December 2011
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  1. Pinned Tweet
    Nov 18

    Now available for free download: "Hybrid Actors: Armed Groups and State Fragmentation in the Middle East," our brand new book about armed actors and governance in Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria. Buy a print copy: Or get the free PDF:

    2 replies 17 retweets 33 likes
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  2. Retweeted
    6 hours ago

    Please RT and share one of the most monstrous projects I have ever done: the structure of the Turkish-backed 'Syrian National Army'. If you were confused about different brigade numbers, divisions & corresponding factions, your questions are resolved here

    18 replies 112 retweets 193 likes
  3. Retweeted
    17 hours ago

    My new paper on the history of 's 'max pressure' campaign and why its a failure

    9 retweets 9 likes
  4. 7 hours ago

    Mr/Mrs Senior State Department Official dodges a bullet.

    1 reply 5 retweets 9 likes
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  5. 7 hours ago

    Mr/Mrs Senior State Department Official is back from the Middle East and warns both Turkey and Egypt that they'll be sanctioned if they try to buy Russian weapons—maybe not for stocking up on Kalashikovs, but certainly for combat jets or air defenses.

    1 reply 2 retweets 6 likes
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  6. 8 hours ago

    In a move that may reduce its effectiveness as a lobby group, the FDD has registered as a lobby group. by and

    1 reply 3 retweets 11 likes
  7. 9 hours ago

    On the Iranian protests, by .

    2 retweets 3 likes
  8. 9 hours ago

    Turkey plans to reopen the Akcakale–Tell Abiad border crossing as soon as possible.

    1 reply 1 retweet 3 likes
  9. 9 hours ago

    With military-backed elections just three weeks away, Algerian protesters serm to be trying to level up to daily marches instead of weekly—but it will take a lot more than "hundreds" to derail Gaid Salah's regime. :

    3 retweets 2 likes
  10. 11 hours ago

    According to , Iraqi Defense Minister Najah Shammari and family are under police investigation in Sweden for fraud. Reportedly registered as living in Stockholm, draw unemployment and disability checks. (NB: not officially confirmed by police.)

    13 retweets 45 likes
  11. Retweeted
    Nov 19

    At least 106 protesters have been killed in Iran, according to reports we have received. Verified video footage, eyewitness testimony & info gathered from activists outside Iran reveal a harrowing pattern of unlawful killings by Iranian security forces.

    25 replies 458 retweets 395 likes
  12. Retweeted
    Nov 19

    A Deadly Game of Chicken in Iraq and Lebanon via

    1 reply 9 retweets 17 likes
  13. 13 hours ago

    Detailed look at the back and forth over OPCW's investigation into the Douma 2018 incident, by .

    2 retweets 2 likes
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  14. 13 hours ago

    By involving itself with Turkey's "safe zone" plans in northeastern Syria, Russia may have bitten off more than it can chew, writes . via

    2 replies 7 retweets 11 likes
  15. 14 hours ago

    Assad decrees pay and pension hikes for Syrians, unfortunately in a currency that is losing value much faster than he can issue decrees.

    3 retweets 4 likes
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  16. 14 hours ago

    Netanyahu indicted: A-G to charge PM with bribery, fraud, breach of trust, by .

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  17. Retweeted
    20 hours ago

    .'s reports from Beirut's Hamra, paralyzed amid Lebanon's unfolding economic crisis:

    7 retweets 6 likes
  18. 16 hours ago

    Good points by : why is Algeria's crisis virtually unreported in EU despite deep interests, high stakes? My two eurocents: 1) invisible to media hive mind on Anglo Twitter 2) Iraq, Lebanon etc 3) no blood & frankly, protests no longer "news"

    1 retweet 2 likes
  19. 18 hours ago

    Costs for U.S. post-9/11 wars in the Middle East/Central Asia now total $6.4 trillion, according to a new paper by Neta Crawford. Includes wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, drones and special ops in places like Somalia and Yemen, veterans' care, etc.

    10 retweets 11 likes
  20. Retweeted
    Nov 20

    Baghdad has been in a near-constant state of upheaval for the past month. writes that the popular protest presents the greatest challenge to Iraq’s political system since 2003—and the country’s political elites are fighting back.

    41 retweets 50 likes
  21. 18 hours ago

    The Abdullah Azzam Brigades in Bilad al-Sham—an old, discreet but well-credentialed Salafi-jihadi outfit, which was sidelined after 2011—dissolves. Less clear if this also applies to AAB branches outside "Bilad al-Sham," however defined, or whether any such branches still exist.

    6 retweets 7 likes
  22. 19 hours ago

    "The leadership has no clue at all. It is like being in the Palace of Versailles on May 4, 1789." On the Iran leaks and Iraq protests, by .

    1 reply 3 retweets 9 likes
  23. Nov 20

    Israel still has no government. Idea of Gantz heading minority cabinet backed by Liberman and Arab lawmakers fell apart when Netanyahu out-racisted Liberman, who reclaimed his title by declaring Arabs a "fifth column." Toward third election? :

    1 reply 1 retweet 1 like
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  24. Nov 20

    More unusualness from Syria: Tartous Governor Safwan Abu Saada tells the press he just razed six luxury chalets to the ground over minor regulatory violations—owned by top businessmen and their families, incl. Samer Foz and Khodr Ali Taher.

    1 reply 11 retweets 14 likes
  25. Nov 20

    Under pressure from the Lebanese banking crisis and domestic woes—war, corruption, and sanctions—the Syrian pound is in freefall, prices rise, and the Central Bank "has effectively stopped funding almost all import transactions," writes .

    1 reply 3 retweets 5 likes
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  26. Nov 20

    . on the new Algerian hydrocarbons law, and the new Sonatrach CEO.

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  27. Nov 20

    Interview on the Islamic State's ability to recover with Lt. Gen. Saad al-Allaq, Iraq's head of military intelligence, by and .

    1 retweet 1 like
  28. Nov 20

    Free book download here: Or if you're a proper reader, buy a print copy here:

    1 retweet 2 likes
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  29. Nov 20

    Book launch! , , , and spoke about our research into Middle Eastern "hybrid actors" at yesterday, introduced by :

    1 reply 3 retweets 2 likes
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  30. Retweeted
    Nov 19

    My latest with “I’m not returning because I think the situation in Syria is good. But you don’t enter into a difficult situation unless the one you’re currently in is even worse.” 

    2 retweets 4 likes
  31. Retweeted
    Nov 20

    Wide gap opens up between Damascus/Aleppo market rate for pound (quoted at 740:$ today) and Idlib (715:$), presumably because regime areas are more heavily dependent on $ supply from . Arbitrage opp for profiteers on both sides of conflict lines?

    1 reply 2 retweets 2 likes
  32. Nov 20

    By defending the prevailing order in Lebanon, Hezbollah harms its relationship with once fiercely loyal supporters. and :

    3 retweets 5 likes
  33. Nov 19

    Partnership with Kurds against ISIS still strong, says US coalition general - by . via

    1 reply
  34. Nov 19

    Turkey: the United States and Russia haven't done what they promised in Syria, we may have to intervene again. Russia: nope.

    3 retweets 4 likes
  35. Nov 19

    The United States built the Iraqi government 15 years ago and rescued it 5 years ago, but now—with vague but grand ambitions, a half-empty embassy, and protests raging in the streets—American influence has sunk to its lowest point yet. :

    9 retweets 14 likes
  36. Retweeted
    Nov 19

    Russia has secured the oil

    Syrian🇸🇾 olive oil deliveries have begun to 🇷🇺. The first batch of olive oil from was delivered on Monday to to be later sold in other Russian regions. …
    10 replies 180 retweets 493 likes
  37. Retweeted
    Nov 18

    🇪🇬The military’s takeover in 2013 transformed its role in the national economy, turning it into an autonomous actor that can reshape markets and influence government policy setting & investment strategies. Read my latest report:

    6 replies 118 retweets 219 likes
  38. Nov 18

    What is a "hybrid actor" and why does that matter to the protests in Iraq? Read , , and on how to think about Iraq's militias and their role in Iranian power-projection, drawing on our new book, "Hybrid Actors."

    1 reply 4 retweets 7 likes
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  39. Nov 18

    United States: New rule, Arabs can't legally own things. by

    1 reply 2 retweets 2 likes
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  40. Nov 18

    Co-authored by , , , , , and myself, the book looks at how strong armed groups can carve out permanent space in weak states, institutionalizing their power without reaching—or even seeking—statehood.

    1 reply 2 retweets 7 likes
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