“Learning the lessons recounted in this book will inform whether U.S. foreign policy succeeds or fails in the future."

—Leon E. Panetta, former Director CIA, Secretary of Defense

“This book is a must-read for those wanting to understand the complexities involved in Middle East conflicts and the reasons why our policies have failed.”

—General Anthony Zinni, USMC (retired), former commander in chief of CENTCOM, and former US special envoy to Israel and the Palestinian Authority

“Daniel E. Zoughbie tracks the tensions in foreign policy—the incidentals of urgent personalities and the fundamentals of enduring national interest—between the shallow and the deep. Most importantly, he underscores the need for wisdom and reflection when interfering in the affairs of other nations. I wish I had read his book years ago.”

—Sir Mark Allen CMG, former head of MI6 Counter-Terrorism and honorary fellow at St. Antony’s College, Oxford

“I strongly encourage you to read this thoroughly researched study from Daniel E. Zoughbie.”

—Admiral Bobby R. Inman, US Navy (retired), former director of the National Security Agency, and former deputy director of the CIA

“An engrossing account of how the blunders, indecisiveness, and exalted hubris of 12 presidents from Truman through Trump’s first term have transformed the Middle East into a destabilizing force…A stimulating, well-researched examination.”

—Kirkus, starred review

"Zoughbie meticulously maps the White House's changing approaches toward Israel and the Palestinian territories. In the process, he finds a pattern of mistakes that future administrations would do well to avoid." -Zach Cohen, National Journal

"Zoughbie clearly and concisely records Bush's missteps and his pervasive double standards." —Publishers Weekly

"Convincing and insightful." —Journal of Peace Research

"Particularly useful . . . highly relevant"—Middle East Journal

"Rigorously researched and very informative . . . Highly recommended."—Choice

"Zoughbie argues that the policy of the George W. Bush administration toward the Israeli–Palestinian conflict was chiefly characterised by damaging indecision. He claims that this irresolute approach, aimed at satisfying both moderate realists and conservative hardliners at home, merely intensified the conflict rather than helping to resolve it."—Survival

"Though George W. Bush claims to have been a decisive president, in this revealing book, Daniel Zoughbie shows that in practice Bush was dangerously indecisive when it came to the all-important Middle East peace process. For anyone concerned about the causes of war and the prospects for peace between the Israelis and Palestinians, Indecision Points is an essential read."

—Fawaz A. Gerges, Professor of the International Relations of the Middle East, London School of Economics, and author of The New Middle East: Protest and Revolution in the Arab World

"Daniel Zoughbie's book is essential reading for those who want to understand the policies of the George W. Bush administration toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Drawing on rich interviews with participants, Zoughbie provides a detailed history that reveals much about key internal debates, the disagreements of leading officials, and the beliefs that guided U.S. policies. This book offers deep insight into how the Bush foreign policy machine operated, insights that will be of interest far beyond the Levant."

—Jeremy Pressman, Professor of Political Science, University of Connecticut, and author of Warring Friends: Alliance Restraint in International Politics

"For anyone wishing to understand the reasons for America's disastrous failures in the Middle East in the post 9/11 era, this book will be a very good place to start. Daniel Zoughbie offers a fascinating account of the part played by the Bush administration in the diplomacy surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He begins by illuminating the underlying philosophical assumptions that shaped America's broader engagement with the Middle East. His compelling argument is that George W. Bush never decided between the moralist and the realist positions and, as a result, his policy was incoherent and ineffective. It is a story with no end of a lesson. The book should therefore be required reading for the makers of American policy toward this endlessly complex and troubled region."

—Avi Shlaim, Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford, and author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World

"Aptly titled, Indecision Points reveals not only the indecisiveness behind the Bush administration's foreign policy in the Middle East but also its unproductive and even damaging effects on the peace process today. Drawing on compelling interviews, research, analysis, and his own deep knowledge of the issues, Daniel Zoughbie offers his readers an understanding as to why America and the international community at large cannot afford to turn their backs on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict—or even worse, be indecisive about it."

—James D. Wolfensohn, Former President of the World Bank and Special Envoy for Gaza Disengagement

Zoughbie, D.E., "Interpreting George W. Bush's Foreign Policy" in Mark Bevir et al, Interpreting Global Security (Routledge, 2014).  

Zoughbie, D.E. and Makarechi, L.M., "Develop Community Ownership" in Nina Vasan and Jennifer Przybylo, Do Good Well: Your Guide to Leadership, Action, and Social Innovation (Jossey-Bass, 2013).  

Zoughbie DE, Huddleston D, Ding EL (2025) Behavioral dynamics of social propagation for weight loss: Evidence from a randomized controlled trial in a low-income Appalachian community. PLOS Complex Syst 2(9): e0000068. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcsy.0000068 - coming soon

Zoughbie DE, Ding EL, Ng TLJ (2025) “Follow-the-Leader” domino weight loss effects in low-income Middle Eastern refugee communities: Disentangling macro average peer versus micro leader-driven effects in a randomized trial. PLOS Complex Syst 2(7): e0000052. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcsy.0000052

Zoughbie DE, Huddleston D, Ding EL (2025) Social induction dynamics of the causal social R0 on clinical weight loss: Randomized trial evidence of social propagation from Amman, Jordan. PLOS Complex Syst 2(2): e0000031. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcsy.0000031

Zoughbie DE, Yun K. Complex interrelationships among respiratory diseases and chronic multimorbidity: a longitudinal network analysis and implications for future viral respiratory pandemic preparedness. Front Epidemiol. 2025 Jul 11;5:1577333. doi: 10.3389/fepid.2025.1577333. PMID: 40718620; PMCID: PMC12289556.

Ding EL, Watson KT, Makarechi L, James Ng TL, Huddleston D, Bui N, Tsai LL, Zoughbie DE. Social Induction via a Social Behavioral Intervention on Changes in Metabolic Risk Factors: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Rural Appalachia, United States. Mayo Clin Proc. 2024 Jul;99(7):1058-1077. doi: 10.1016/j.mayocp.2023.11.023. PMID: 38960495.

Zoughbie DE, Huddleston D, Ding EL. Game theory and weight loss: Harmonic evidence from randomized controlled trials in Appalachia, KY and Jordan. PLOS Glob Public Health. 2025 Feb 7;5(2):e0004100. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0004100. PMID: 39919098; PMCID: PMC11805351.

Bjerregaard AA, Zoughbie DE, Hansen JV, Granström C, Strøm M, Halldórsson ÞI, et al. (2024) An SMS chatbot digital educational program to increase healthy eating behaviors in adolescence: A multifactorial randomized controlled trial among 7,890 participants in the Danish National Birth Cohort. PLoS Med 21(6): e1004383. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1004383

Ding EL, Feigl AB, Watson KT, Ng TLJ, Makerechi L, Bui N, et al. (2024) Social network enhanced behavioral interventions for diabetes and obesity: A 3 arm randomized trial with 2 years follow-up in Jordan. PLOS Glob Public Health 4(3): e0001514. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.0001514

Zoughbie DE, Huddleston D, Watson K, Ding EL. HIV Social-network intervention more effective in older populations in Kenya. BMC Public Health. 2024 Nov 9;24(1):3098. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-20315-0. PMID: 39516844; PMCID: PMC11549832.

Zoughbie DE, Ng TLJ, Thompson JY, Watson KT, Farraj R, Ding EL (2022) Ramadan fasting and weight change trajectories: Time-varying association of weight during and after Ramadan in low-income and refugee populations. PLOS Glob Public Health 2(10): e0000371. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pgph.00003

Zoughbie DE, Rushakoff JA, Watson KT, Bui N, Ireifij A, Farraj RS, Ding EL. A social-network behavioral health program on sustained long-term body weight and glycemic outcomes: 2-year follow-up of a 4-month Microclinic Health Program in Jordan. Prev Med Rep. 2018 Dec 13;13:160-165. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2018.12.002. PMID: 30596007; PMCID: PMC6307340.

Rushakoff JA, Zoughbie DE, Bui N, DeVito K, Makarechi L, Kubo H. Evaluation of Healthy2Go: A country store transformation project to improve the food environment and consumer choices in Appalachian Kentucky. Prev Med Rep. 2017 Jul 1;7:187-192. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2017.06.009.