Policy Currents | The newsletter for policy people
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** Oct. 10, 2023
Israel-Hamas War: Insights from RAND Research

On Saturday, Hamas, the militant Islamist group that governs Gaza, launched a sweeping attack on Israel. The surprise assault and the days of fighting that followed have left hundreds of Israelis and Palestinians dead.

Now, Hamas is holding an estimated 150 people hostage. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned of a "long and difficult war" ahead. And yesterday, Israel's defense minister ordered a "complete siege" of Gaza.

A 2017 RAND study offers important context for this conflict. The authors provide an overview of the cycle of violence that has long plagued the region, which has recently been defined by periods of intense fighting followed by relative lulls. They also examine Israel's approach to deterring Hamas over the years, focusing on 2009 to 2014.

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Is the Kaiser Strike a Signal of More Health Care Labor Unrest to Come?

More than 75,000 health care workers at Kaiser Permanente went on strike last week. In 2020, RAND's Shira Fischer led a study that examined the challenges facing America's entry-level health care workers. The key issues--high turnover, poor working conditions, low pay and benefits, and few training opportunities--are all cited by workers on the picket lines today. It's relatively rare for the U.S. medical workforce to go on strike, but that may be changing. "Striking might be the only leverage they have," Fischer says.

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What If Russia Crossed the Nuclear Threshold in Ukraine?

Russian President Vladimir Putin has staked everything on his invasion of Ukraine, and he is unlikely to accept defeat without exhausting the significant resources at his disposal. With momentum seemingly on the side of Ukraine, and Russian desperation growing, there are concerns that Moscow could resort to nuclear escalation to turn the tide of the war. A new RAND report uses game theory to consider this hypothetical scenario--and inform how U.S. decisionmakers might respond.

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** RAND Recommends
- In an AP fact-checking story, RAND's Elina Treyger commented on a photo that Russia falsely claimed showed Ukrainian soldiers surrendering en masse this month: "The suggestions that [Ukraine] is about to surrender seem pretty ludicrous."
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- RAND's Rafiq Dossani weighed in on India-Canada tensions in the South China Morning Post.
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- Artificial intelligence won't create a population of people who can't think for themselves, RAND's Christopher Doss told Education Week. "There's a lot of promise in what AI can do to facilitate teaching [and critical thinking]."
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** Events
Keeping Up with the Joneses: How Can DoD Address Its Technical Talent Shortage?
Monday, October 16 (Washington, D.C., and Online)
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Pardee RAND Admissions Webinar: M.Phil. Overview
Wednesday, October 18, 2023 (Online)
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Policy Lab: What Determines National Competitive Advantage?
Wednesday, October 25, 2023 (Online)
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** About RAND
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis.

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