The Barack Obama administration's involvement in the Middle East was greatly varied between the region's various countries. Some nations, such as Libya and Syria, were the subject of offensive action at the hands of the Obama administration, while nations such as Bahrain and Saudi Arabia received arms deliveries. Notable achievements of the administration include inhibiting the Iranian nuclear program, while his handling of certain situations, such as the Syrian civil war, were highly criticized.

History

Background On March 19, 2009, Obama continued his outreach to the Muslim world, releasing a New Year's video message to the people and government of Iran. In April 2009, Obama gave a speech in Ankara, Turkey, which was well received by many Arab governments. On June 4, 2009, Obama delivered a speech at Cairo University in Egypt calling for "A New Beginning" in relations between the Islamic world and the United States and promoting Middle East peace.

Afghanistan

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Michael Mullen all argued for further troops, and Obama dispatched additional soldiers after a lengthy review process.

On February 17, 2009, Obama announced that the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan would be bolstered by 17,000 new troops by the summer. The announcement followed the recommendation of several experts including Defense Secretary Robert Gates that additional troops be deployed to the strife-torn South Asian country. The Obama Department of Justice submitted a court filing that there would be no immediate change from Bush-era policy to deny detainees at Bagram Air Force Base access to U.S. courts in order to appeal their detention.

The U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan, that were begun by President George W. Bush, increased substantially since an expansion of the attacks was authorized by President Barack Obama in 2009. Drones have resulted in civilian casualties, and intentionally targeted rescuers, funerals, and one U.S. citizen. UN reports have described the U.S. drone wars as extrajudicial killing and summary executions.Nebehay, Stephanie, "U.N. Investigator Decries U.S. Use Of Killer Drones", Reuters, 19 June 2012 (wire service report) Though the drone strikes killed high-ranking terrorists, they were also criticized for resulting in civilian casualties. A 2013 Pew research poll showed that the strikes were broadly unpopular in Pakistan, and some former members of the Obama administration have criticized the strikes for causing a backlash against the United States. However, based on 147 interviews conducted in 2015, professor Aqil Shah argued that the strikes were popular in North Waziristan, the area in which most of the strikes take place, and that little blowback occurred. In 2009, the UN special investigator on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions called the United States' reliance on drones "increasingly common" and "deeply troubling", and called on the U.S. to justify its use of targeted assassinations rather than attempting to capture al Qaeda or Taliban suspects. In 2013, Obama appointed John Brennan as the new CIA Director and announced a new policy that required CIA operatives to determine with a "near-certainty" that no civilians would be hurt in a drone strike. The number of drone strikes fell substantially after the announcement of the new policy.

In August 2009, Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan TTP was killed in a drone strike, which was one of the early successes of the Obama administration

General Stanley A. McChrystal, argued in September and October 2009 that success in Afghanistan "demands a substantial expansion of the American presence," "up to 40,000 more troops." Some foreign policy analysts and political commentators criticized the General for making public statements about political matters while others supported the proposed increase in the number of troops deployed to Afghanistan.

In a speech on 1 December 2009 that Obama delivered at United States Military Academy at West Point (also known as USMA, West Point) and announcing a long-awaited strategy, Obama said another 30,000 American troops would be deployed quickly in Afghanistan,"Obama’s Address on the War in Afghanistan ""Remarks by the President in Address to the Nation on the Way Forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan" while Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the US Congress that "curbing the Taliban" was "essential for regional security". In a speech to the Senate Armed Services Committee he stressed that the US goal in Afghanistan and Pakistan was "to defeat the al-Qaeda network – and to do that, the Taliban must be pushed back". Taliban-ruled areas could in short order become again sanctuaries for al-Qaeda and militant groups fighting in Pakistan.

Obama identified several objectives in Afghanistan and Pakistan: (1) disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al-Qaeda; (2) deny al-Qaeda a safe haven; (3) reverse the Taliban's momentum and deny it the ability to overthrow the Afghan government; and (4) strengthen the capacity of the Afghan security forces and government to better protect and serve population centers.

To accomplish this, he ordered the deployment of the additional 30,000 troops to the region, which would bring the U.S. total to almost 100,000 troops. This deployment would be staged over the following six months, with the full additional complement intended to be in-country by summer 2010. He expressed his confidence that some of 42 coalition allies would also increase their contributions. NATO Secretary-General Rasmussen stated that he expected NATO allies to contribute at least an additional 5,000 troops in 2010. The Taliban reacted to the announcement by saying they would step up their fight in Afghanistan. A Taliban commander told the BBC that if more US troops came, more would die.Taliban vow to fight US troop surge in Afghanistan

The number of American soldiers in Afghanistan would peak at 100,000 in 2010. David Petraeus replaced McChrystal in June 2010, after McChrystal's staff criticized White House personnel in a magazine article.

On June 22, 2011, President Obama addressed the nation from the White House in the East room where he stated "we will be able to remove 10,000 of our troops from Afghanistan by the end of this year, and we will bring home a total of 33,000 troops by next summer, fully recovering the surge I announced at West Point. After this initial reduction, our troops will continue coming home at a steady pace as Afghan security forces move into the lead. Our mission will change from combat to support. By 2014, this process of transition will be complete, and the Afghan people will be responsible for their own security".

In 2012, the U.S. and Afghanistan signed a strategic partnership agreement in which the U.S. agreed to hand over major combat operation to Afghan forces. That same year, the Obama administration designated Afghanistan as a major non-NATO ally.

In February 2013, Obama said the U.S. military would reduce the troop level in Afghanistan from 68,000 to 34,000 U.S. troops by February 2014.

In 2014, Obama announced that most troops would leave Afghanistan by late 2016, with a small force remaining at the US embassy. In September 2014, Ashraf Ghani succeeded Hamid Karzai as the President of Afghanistan after the U.S. helped negotiate a power-sharing agreement between Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah.

On January 1, 2015, the U.S. military ended Operation Enduring Freedom and began Resolute Support Mission, in which the U.S. shifted to more of a training role, although some combat operations continued.

In January 2015, United States Forces began conducting drone strikes in Afghanistan under the direction of the administration of the United States President Barack Obama against Taliban militants, Pakistani Taliban (TTP) militants, ISIL branch in Afghanistan militants and Al-Qaeda militants.

In October 2015, Obama announced that U.S. soldiers would remain in Afghanistan indefinitely in order support the Afghan government in the civil war against the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and ISIL. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Martin Dempsey framed the decision to keep soldiers in Afghanistan as part of a long-term counter-terrorism operation stretching across Central Asia. Obama left office with roughly 8,400 U.S. soldiers remaining in Afghanistan.

On October 7, 2015, Obama apologized for the Kunduz hospital airstrike.

Bahrain

Some in the media questioned Obama's decision to welcome Bahrain in Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa in June 2011 because of the fierce crackdown on protesters in the country. The collaboration of Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf states with Bahrains royalty, had carried out mass repression since the middle of March. This included detaining, beating and torture of thousands. In June 2013, Obama urged meaningful reform in Bahrain. Bahraini officials rejected Obama's claims about sectarianism between Sunnis and Shias. Nevertheless, the Obama administration resumed providing arms and maintenance to the regime during its crackdown on pro-democracy groups, including ammunition, combat vehicle parts, communications equipment, Blackhawk helicopters, and an unidentified missile system. Accordingly, the administration's larger policy on dealing with the "Arab Spring" is to continue propping up longtime client regimes while fostering "regime alteration."

Gaza

On February 2, 2009, President Obama signed a memorandum "directing more than $20 million for 'urgent refugee and migration needs" in Gaza." The 2008–2009 Israeli-Gaza Conflict last from December 27, 2008, to January 18, 2009, when unilateral cease-fires were issued by both the Israeli government and Hamas. This cease-fire was shortly lived and sporadic fighting and attacks would continue to occur into the Obama administration. Israel completed its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip on January 21, 2009, one day after Obama was sworn in as President. $900 million was pledged from Hillary Clinton to help the rebuilding process in Gaza.

On June 4, 2009, in a speech addressing Muslims in Cairo, Egypt, President Obama said, "Palestinians must abandon violence. Resistance through violence and killing is wrong and does not succeed." He cited the civil rights movement, the Indonesian Revolution of 1998, and the negotiations to end apartheid in South Africa as historical examples of successful nonviolent uprisings to end social, racial, and political injustice and added, apparently in reference to several infamous terrorist attacks by Palestinian organizations, "It is a sign of neither courage nor power to shoot rockets at sleeping children, or to blow up old women on a bus. That is not how moral authority is claimed; that is how it is surrendered." Reacting to the speech, Hamas senior adviser Ahmed Yousef expressed wary approval, telling the Qatari news network Al Jazeera, "The things he said about Islam and the Palestinian suffering and their right to have a state is great. It is a landmark and a breakthrough speech. But when it comes to legitimacy of the Israeli right to exist [there are issues]. He knows the Palestinians have to have their own state before recognizing another." "[A]ll we can say is that there is a difference in the statements [from those of former U.S. President George W. Bush], and the statements of today did not include a mechanism that can translate his wishes and views into actions," said Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum.

Iran