Mick Mulroy — former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East, retired CIA officer and co-founder of the Lobo Institute — discusses why the United States needs to stay engaged in the Middle East, including  militarily, to prevent ISIS 2.0; the prospects for the US-Saudi partnership and the future of Yemen; and whether and how US partners could endorse a new Iran deal. Also: Andrew’s take on whether Sudan launched a sequel to the Arab Spring in December 2018.

• Sudan’s fragile transition boosted by turnaround in ties with US, Israel (al-monitor.com)
• An Open Letter to the Secretary of State on the Proposal to Designate the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization | Middle East Institute (mei.edu)
• Special Briefing: The Trump administration’s potential last-minute Middle East policy moves | Middle East Institute (mei.edu)
• Can the US force Iran out of Syria? Not likely, former officials say (al-monitor.com)