Middle East Forum

What is Saudi Agenda for 'Emergence Summits' on Iran?

Saudi Arabia sent invites to Arab leaders for emergency summits that are supposed to convene in Mecca on May 30. First announced on May 18, the invites arrived through the Arab League to member states and Gulf leaders. Kuwait...

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Military Options for Targeting Iran without 'Boots on the Ground'

Originally published under the title "Former Intelligence Officer: Here Is How the U.S. Could Confront Iran." The US has many options to confront the Iranian regime and its proxies in the Middle East, according to former US Army...

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Turkey Keeps Talking About Building an S-500 System with Russia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey had finalized its S-400 deal with Russia and would not turn back from acquiring the advanced system. In comments made Saturday, the Turkish leader also hinted at producing...

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Painting of Muslim Men Sexually Enslaving White Women Triggers Outrage

Originally published under the title "Outrage over Germany's AfD Party Using Painting of Muslim Men Enslaving White Women in Ad Campaign." To highlight the apparent threat male Muslim migrants pose to women in Germany, a...

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Spotlight: Israel after the Election

Israel’s recent election was the first in decades where no major political party campaigned substantially on policy toward the Palestinians, signifying the emergence of an unprecedented public consensus on core security issues.

Though Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud triumphed narrowly, the losses by Naftali Bennett’s New Right and Moshe Feiglin’s Zehut gave him what Micah Levinson calls a “best-of-all-possible-worlds victory,” which enables him to form a coalition exclusively of parties “without a stake in [his] political demise.” This combination of public consensus and a stable governing coalition could pave the way for bolder decision-making by the soon-to-be-five-time premier.

For more on the implications of Israel’s landmark election, see the selections at right by Middle East Forum staff and fellows.

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The Elections and Hope for an Israel Victory

by Daniel Seaman (Apr 27, 2019)

Israel's Election Results Show Broad Consensus on Diplomacy and Defense

by Seth Frantzman (Apr 16, 2019)

Winner in Israel Turns Out To Be New Voting Law

by Michel Gurfinkiel (Apr 14, 2019)

Netanyahu's Best of All Possible Worlds Victory

by Micah Levinson (Apr 12, 2019)

President Trump's "Deal of the Century," Israel and Middle East Peace

by EJ Kimball (Apr 2, 2019)

Israelis Want Victory

by Daniel Pipes (Jul 11, 2017)

The Middle East Forum, a Philadelphia-based think tank, founded in 1994 by Daniel Pipes, promotes American interests in the Middle East and protects Western values from Middle Eastern threats.

In the Middle East, we focus on ways to defeat radical Islam; work for Palestinian acceptance of Israel; develop strategies to contain Iran; and deal with advancing anarchy. Domestically, the Forum emphasizes the danger of lawful Islamism; protects the freedoms of anti-Islamist authors, and activists; and works to improve Middle East studies.

It achieves its goals in three main ways:

Operationally, exerting direct influence through its projects (detailed below), each addressing a specific problem.
Intellectually, providing context, information, insights, and policy recommendations through the Middle East Quarterly, conference calls, staff and fellows writings, lectures, and media appearances — clearing a path to victory over opponents.
Philanthropically, distributing about $2 million annually in separately earmarked funds through our Education Fund, to about 75 groups and individuals working to promote the Forum's goals