It Is Troubling That Some Possible Candidates for Peace Treaties with Israel Are Parties to Human Rights Treaties That Call for Elimination of Zionism
The Lebanese Government Appears to Want to Commence a Negotiating Process with Hezbollah, Seeking to Convince It to Give up Its Arms Voluntarily
Its Remit Is the Preservation of the Regime and the Advancement of the Revolutionary Islamist Ideas Under Which It Seized Power
Kurdish Politics Has Failed to Transcend Violence and Parties Cannot Safeguard Their Leaders and Families Without Militias
The Houthis, Known for Ideological Rigidity and Resilience, Will Not Yield Under Conventional Bombing or Sanctions
India Has a Strong Defense and Strategic Partnership with Israel, Based on Trust, Respect, and Understanding of Each Other’s Concerns
The War Shut Down the Country for Nearly Two Weeks, and Widespread State-Imposed Internet Restrictions Disrupted Online Businesses
Seyed Hossein Mousavian Used His Princeton Shingle to Make Iran’s Nuclear Program Socially and Politically Correct for Americans
Turkey’s Airspace Action Against Israel, and Its Support for Hamas, Should Compel President Trump to Act Immediately in Response
The Very Fact That the IDF Has to Keep Returning to Areas in Which It Has Already Operated Underlines How Complex the Challenge Is
Why Are So Many in the West Quick to Highlight Israeli Airstrikes but Slow to Highlight Hamas Repression of Palestinians?
Muqtada Al-Sadr Has Cultivated an Image as an Iraqi Nationalist, but Many Doubt the Sincerity of His Political Evolution
Conference in Detroit Elevates Convicted Terrorists and Extremist Leaders, with U.S. Politicians Lending Legitimacy to a Platform That Glorifies Violence and Undermines American Values
The Iranian Rial Collapsed as the Process of Triggering the United Nations ‘Snapback’ Mechanism Began with the E3
Spotlight on War with Iran
The Iranian Navy and Air Force are effectively non-existent. The new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen since the start of the war. Basij checkpoints are being attacked by drones.
But the Islamic Republic is far from finished. The Strait of Hormuz has seen tankers attacked and oil flow is critical. What is the path to an end that is worth the dangers? MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
But the Islamic Republic is far from finished. The Strait of Hormuz has seen tankers attacked and oil flow is critical. What is the path to an end that is worth the dangers? MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
As unrest spreads across Iran, the regime and the opposition both face narrowing choices.
Iran’s Kurdish Armed Groups Remain Too Fragmented, Cautious and Constrained to Shape the War’s Outcome.
Sustained Strikes and the Removal of Senior Islamic Republic Figures Raise Questions About the Regime’s Durability
An Operational Concept for Reopening the Strait of Hormuz Without a Ground Campaign
Classical Strategy and the Path from Air Campaign to Iranian Liberation
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. New alliances are growing in the Eastern Mediterranean, Syrian in-fighting cools down and let’s not forget North Africa.
The turmoil makes predictions perilous, but it also presents opportunities for change. Will the conflict with Iran create the conditions for broader peace and prosperity?
The turmoil makes predictions perilous, but it also presents opportunities for change. Will the conflict with Iran create the conditions for broader peace and prosperity?
Cairo’s Regional Security No Longer Depends on Gulf Symbolism but on Eastern Mediterranean Energy Alignment
Behind Official Merger Language, Kobani Still Operates Under Kurdish Security Control
Iran’s Proxy Strategy Has Expanded Beyond the Levant and Now Threatens North Africa’s Strategic Balance
The Sánchez Regime Has Made Hostility to Jerusalem Its Policy and Israel Should Impose Consequences
When Turkish Networks Move Money, Weapons, People and Narcotics Across Borders, They Export Not Only Violence but Also the Institutional Weaknesses and Culture of Impunity
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
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.
