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
Iran’s 10-Point Plan Reads like the Type of Settlement a Victor Would Impose on a Vanquished Foe
Harvard Seems Unserious About Changing Its Moribund, Antisemitic Culture
As Iranian-Backed Proxies Stretch Israeli Forces Across Multiple Fronts, Jerusalem Has Lost Its Most Reliable Defender in Brussels
U.S. Desperation to Stabilize the Global Economy and the Ceasefire Increased Iran’s Stockpile of Will
Conspiracy Theorists Ignore the Facts and Blame Jewish Tourists Rather than Drought or Funding Shortfalls to Fight Fires
An Emerging Militant Alternative to Hamas Speaks Out on War, Governance, and Peace.
A Buffer Zone Is Not a Strategy; It Is a Geography
Direct U.S.-Brokered Talks Between Israeli and Lebanese Representatives Are Set to Take Place in Washington This Week
Spotlight on War with Iran
The ceasefire still technically exists but negotiations seem stalled if not dead in the water. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz got its first bump as two US-flagged vessels transited on May 3, 2026. President Trump says more will follow.
But Iran has fired on several other civilian tankers and it does not appear likely the war will end without some reignition of hostilities. The blockade has taken a heavy toll on Iran’s economy. The lack of oil revenue paired with the dwindling storage space for oil they pump seems the most potent leverage for any deal. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
But Iran has fired on several other civilian tankers and it does not appear likely the war will end without some reignition of hostilities. The blockade has taken a heavy toll on Iran’s economy. The lack of oil revenue paired with the dwindling storage space for oil they pump seems the most potent leverage for any deal. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
As unrest spreads across Iran, the regime and the opposition both face narrowing choices.
The Strait’s Closure Disrupts the Flow of More than 20 Percent of the World’s Oil and Gas Supplies
The Choice Facing the U.S. Is to Intensify and Escalate the Pressure, or to Accept a Face-Saving Deal Likely to Leave the Regime’s Regional Project Intact
Iran’s Energy Weakness Could Become Its Strategic Breaking Point
The Lebanese Government Will Not Risk Pushing Hezbollah Into Using Violence Against It by Trying to Disarm It
Spotlight on Oil and Energy
The kinetic action has mostly stopped but the maneuvering for power, which means energy, in the region has gotten even more heated. The oil and natural gas from the Middle East constitutes 25% of the world’s energy supply.
The UAE has left OPEC and may be in a position to increase that percentage and also ease the current supply shortage. The Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al Mandeb Strait have historically been chokepoints. But pipelines are making threats to those less powerful. These issues and more are getting the attention of Middle East Forum authors.
The UAE has left OPEC and may be in a position to increase that percentage and also ease the current supply shortage. The Strait of Hormuz and the Bab al Mandeb Strait have historically been chokepoints. But pipelines are making threats to those less powerful. These issues and more are getting the attention of Middle East Forum authors.
Bitter About Being Caught off Guard by the U.S. Attack on Iran and the End of Its Mediator Role, Oman Now Chooses Iran’s Side
The Most Significant Implication May Be What It Reveals About the Broader Collapse of the Gulf Hedging Architecture
Iranian Authorities Continue to Project Defiance but the Economy Appears to Have Limited Remaining Resilience
The Pipeline Would Cost Billions of Dollars, Take Years to Build, and Would Cross Multiple Jurisdictions, Not All of Them Reliable
The Decision Sends a Signal That National Priorities Now Outweigh Collective Discipline
Recovery Will Not Be Simply a Return to the Old Model, Now That Gulf States Are Diversifying Their Energy and Economies
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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DHS: ‘We Take the Results of the MEF Report Very Seriously’ -
Moroccan Journalist Interrogated over Israeli Passport Stamps, Held 32 Hours without Food or Water in Calculated Act of Authoritarian Harassment -
The Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding Is Ground Zero for Operatives from Qatar, Turkey, and Malaysia
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IMEC Can Also Contain China’s Ambition to Expand More Into the Mediterranean -
It Is in America’s Interest to Engage in Helping Stabilize Syria and the Greater Region -
The Islamist Group Is Currently Threatening Regional Security by Claiming They Can Now Reach Greece -
Because of a Lack of Natural Resources, Suwayda, Where the Majority of Syrian Druze Live, Is the Most Impoverished Region in the Country
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.
Antisemitism
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Australia Is the Canary in the Coal Mine, but the Real Explosion May Soon Come in Ireland, Norway, and Turkey -
If Investigation Confirms Iranian Involvement in the Bondi Massacre, Canberra Must Sever Diplomatic Relations with Tehran -
Canberra Once Aligned with the United States on Middle East Issues, Including Israel, but Prime Minister Albanese Has Hewn a Different Path -
Where Are the U.N. Officials Who Argue They Cannot Be Part of an Organization That Increasingly Fuels Blood Libel and One of the World’s Oldest Hatreds?
Gaza
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A Disinformation Campaign Reveals the Somali Government’s Fear of Strategic Irrelevance -
Algiers Turns Humanitarian Branding Into A Soft-Power Weapon After Defeat At The U.N. -
The Real Test Of Gaza’s “Day After” Will Be Whether Hamas Faces Any Meaningful Compulsion -
Washington’s Push for an International Force in Gaza Risks Importing the Same Coalition Failures That Empowered the Taliban and Hezbollah
Muslims in the US
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The Executive Order’s Central Thrust Is to Restore, Repair, and Expand National Security Vetting Across Every Agency That Might Touch Immigration -
Pro-Hamas, Anti-jewish College Demonstrators Here on Visas Are on Notice That Their U.S. Welcome Is Over, Even with Expected Lawsuits -
Abdullah Ezzeldin Taha Mohamed Hassan Allegedly Plotted to Bomb Israeli Consulate in NYC -
How Might the Incoming Second Administration of Donald Trump Reduce the Threat of Attacks with Millions of Foreign Strangers Already Inside the U.S.?
