
Annelle Sheline is a research fellow in the Middle East program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft and a former U.S. State Department official who resigned in protest over the Biden administrationās support for Israelās war in Gaza. In this conversation with Current Affairs editor in chief Nathan J. Robinson, she discusses why she chose to resign while other senior officialsāincluding former USAID administrator Samantha Powerāremained in their positions. Sheline also examines how U.S. policy and unconditional support for Israel helped lead to the current war with Iran, the devastating human toll of the conflict, and why the erosion of international law could have dangerous consequences for the future of global order.