It Is No Coincidence That the Small Nations of Eastern Europe Are More Pro-Israel than the Large, Decadent Nations of the West
The Plan Shifts Away from State-Dispatched Clerics Toward Locally Trained Personnel While Simultaneously Expanding the Diyanet’s Vast Global Network
The Lebanese Government Will Not Risk Pushing Hezbollah Into Using Violence Against It by Trying to Disarm It
Interviews with Locals amid the Fighting Between Israel and Hezbollah
Ashamed of India’s Pre-Islamic Identity, Diplomats and Journalists Took Positions Favoring Iran to Prove Their Secular Credentials
Rather than Pursuing Large-Scale Infrastructure, States Increasingly Rely on Flexible Arrangements Built Around Existing Systems
The Problem Trump Will Face in Isolating Iran and Preventing Trade in Fuel and Weapons Will Not Be in the Persian Gulf, but Rather the Caspian Sea
Renowned Scholar Warns of ‘Impotence’ of Belgian Secret Services
Even When the Vulnerability of Personnel Is Not the Problem, Basing in the Middle East and Turkey Gives Host Countries a de Facto Veto over Missions
The Trump Administration’s Optimism About a ‘New Regime’ in Tehran Might Be a Rushed Judgment
Judicial Leniency and Political Priorities Collide in Istanbul Attack
Pontiff’s Homage at Martyrs Memorial Sparks Controversy over Ethnic Cleansing of Catholic Pieds-Noirs
Barzani’s Language of Refusal No Longer Carries the Coercive Weight It Once Did in Baghdad, or Even in Kurdistan
The Axis Exploits Divisions Among Western Allies, Tests Nonproliferation Norms, and Enjoys Quiet Tolerance from China and Russia
That “No-Go Zones” Exist in Europe Is by Now an Open Secret; The Number Grows Daily
Spotlight on War with Iran
A ceasefire is in effect, somewhat. Negotiations are starting soon in Pakistan about a full deal. There seem to be many obstacles to fulfilling the announced goals of the United States as the Iranians are circulating an entirely different plan.
The Strait of Hormuz was opened and then closed. Israel hit Hezbollah very hard the day after the ceasefire was announced. The future is very uncertain but the bombing has stopped and the talks will begin. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
The Strait of Hormuz was opened and then closed. Israel hit Hezbollah very hard the day after the ceasefire was announced. The future is very uncertain but the bombing has stopped and the talks will begin. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
As unrest spreads across Iran, the regime and the opposition both face narrowing choices.
Tehran Appears to Be Moving Toward Conditional Access, While Retaining the Ability to Disrupt Maritime Traffic
The Abrupt Announcement of a Two-Week Ceasefire in the War Between the U.S., Israel, and Iran Resolves None of the Issues Which Caused the Conflict
The Tactical Triumph and Strategic Uncertainty of Operation Epic Fury
While Legal Scholars Seek to Promote and Reinforce International Humanitarian Law, Their Subjectivity and Political Agendas Now Undermine It
The Iranian News Media Have Not Fully Reported the Reverberation of the War on the Iranian Economy
Spotlight on the Middle East
The entire region is affected by the conflict with Iran, but there are many other vital issues being covered by MEF. Political change in Iraq, Corruption in Turkey, and Islamists exerting their influence online and politically.
India and the UAE are deepening ties and tough words from Israel’s Chief Rabbinate to the Pope. The war has caused many problems for security and commerce, but it has also created opportunities. These issues and more are getting the attention of Middle East Forum authors.
India and the UAE are deepening ties and tough words from Israel’s Chief Rabbinate to the Pope. The war has caused many problems for security and commerce, but it has also created opportunities. These issues and more are getting the attention of Middle East Forum authors.
Iraq’s Crisis Is a Problem of Not Only Armed Factions but Also the Political Order That Preserved and Protected Them
Group that Affirmed Hamas’s October 7 Attack Defends Terrorists in India
Experts Warn of Radicalization Persisting at ‘Precariously High Levels’
Vatican Maintains Formal Ties with Top Iranian University Despite Theocratic Regime’s Massacre of Thousands
The Emirates Remains a Stabilizing Actor with Strong Ties to Israel, the United States, and Other Key Regional Players
Explosive Claims Point to Coordinated Pressure Campaign Targeting Wealthy Individuals
Middle East Quarterly - Current Issue
Founded in 1994 by Daniel Pipes, MEQ is the Middle East Forum’s journal intended for both scholars and the educated public. Policymakers, opinion-makers, academics, and journalists write for and read the Quarterly, which is known for exclusive interviews, in-depth historical articles, and book reviews on subjects ranging from archaeology to politics and on countries from Morocco to Iran.
Spring 2026 Volume 33: Number 2
Spring 2026 Volume 33: Number 2
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Comprehensive Analysis Examines U.S. Military Buildup, Opposition Leadership, and the Case for American Action Following Regime’s Massacres -
A Federal Judge Has Dismissed All Claims Brought by the South Florida Muslim Federation Against the Middle East Forum and Its Allies for the Second Time -
Qatar’s Tentacles Reach Deep into the University to Destroy the Foundations Upon Which It Was Founded -
The Doctrine Would Guarantee Organizational Destruction for any Terror Group That Takes an Israeli Hostage
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The Question Facing the Mullahs Is This: Would Trump Use Air Power to Bomb Iran and Bring About Regime Change If Negotiations Collapse -
Iran’s Regime Has Schemed to Expand the Islamic Revolution Since the Ayatollahs Seized Power in November 1979 -
The India of 1949 Was ‘Postcolonial, Post-British, Post-Partition, Post-Traumatic’ -
Savagery and Hostage-Taking Has Been Used to Reframe the Palestinian Arab-Israeli Conflict and Unleash a Torrent of Antisemitism
Middle East Forum Observer
Founded in 2024, the Observer provides rapid analysis on leading Middle East developments, from Marrakech to Mashhad and the Bab el-Mandeb to the Black Sea.
Launched in 2006, Islamist Watch is a project of the Middle East Forum. We work to combat the ideas and institutions of lawful Islamism in the United States and throughout the West. Arguing that “radical Islam is the problem, moderate Islam is the solution,” we seek to expose the Islamist organizations that currently dominate the debate, while identifying and promoting the work of moderate Muslims.
CAMPUS WATCH, a project of the Middle East Forum, reviews and critiques Middle East studies in North America with an aim to improving them. The project mainly addresses five problems: analytical failures, the mixing of politics with scholarship, intolerance of alternative views, apologetics, and the abuse of power over students. Campus Watch fully respects the freedom of speech of those it debates while insisting on its own freedom to comment on their words and deeds.
Gaza
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For Nearly Eight Decades, the International Community Has Coddled a Unique and Dangerous Fiction: The Perpetual Palestinian Arab Refugee -
A Rare Account From a Gaza Faction Opposing Hamas Rule -
International Forces Historically Fail When They Lack Clear Enforcement Authority -
Framed as Neutral Governance, Gaza’s New Technocratic Committee Masks Hamas’s Ongoing Military Rule
Islam
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He Is Not an Islamist, but He Is a Muslim Tribalist Who Believes the White Race Has Exploited Middle Eastern Muslims -
European Court Ruling Will Set Precedent on Muslim Nation Vying for European Union Membership -
Pakistani Leaders and Clerics Present the Country’s Nuclear Program as an Issue of National and Islamic Pride -
When Morocco Dominates the Religious Scene, Moderation Follows. When Turkey or Iran Does, Terrorism Is Often the Result.
Muslims in the US
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The Fact That the Left Is in a Red-Green Alliance with Islamists Has Obviated the Need for Muslim Leaders to Moderate -
Husham Al-Husainy Was Headed to D.C. Until His Past Caught up with Him -
Leader of Islamic Center Behind Project Has Promoted Hostility Toward Jews, Gays -
Some of America’s Most Controversial Extremist Organizations Are Backing Mamdani, Starting with the Islamic Circle of North America
