About
The Middle East Forum Observer

The Middle East Forum Observer was founded in 2024 and provides rapid analysis on leading Middle East developments, from Marrakech to Mashhad and the Bab el-Mandeb to the Black Sea.

More than just an outlet for opinion and opeds, the Observer explores topics in greater depth than American newspapers or opinion essays, often drawing upon primary language research or technical expertise on topics like shipping, aircraft leasing, or counter-terrorism finance. Policymakers and intelligence analysts not only in the United States and Europe, but also across the Middle East regularly read Observer articles. Newspapers and policy journals from Israel to Iran excerpt and debate the Observer’s takes.

As with the Middle East Quarterly, Middle East Forum Observer is open access. All content is available without charge. The Middle East Forum Observer allows reposts of its articles as an integral whole with a citation that includes author, date, title, publication and original URL.

More from MEF
A hoped-for coalition between Islamists and leftists in the United Kingdom has broken apart over a debate over sexual morality.
FWI News
U.K. Islamo-Leftist Coalition Fractures Over Muslim Sexual Morality
Critics Ridicule Unstable Alliance of Socialists and Islamists in Britain’s New Political Party
December 5, 2025
 · 
Jules Gomes
Wadi Hadramawt in southeast Yemen.
Middle East Forum Observer
What Does Fighting in Hadhramawt Mean for Yemen?
The Hadramawt Tribes Alliance Has Also Fractured Following the Scheduled Election for Leadership
December 5, 2025
 · 
Fernando Carvajal
A circulated photo of Hasan al-Sa‘adi, who was killed during a fight with Israeli forces during their raid of the Syrian town of Bayt Jann on November 28, 2025. According to Al Jazeera, he had joined the new government’s internal security forces.
Middle East Forum Online
The Israeli Raid on Bayt Jann: Interview with a Local
Israeli Forces Conducted the Raid on the Basis of Dismantling an ‘Islamic Group’ and/or Hamas Cell That Was Plotting to Attack Israel
December 4, 2025
 · 
Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi
Muslims praying outside the Paris Great Mosque on Aid El-Fitr festival France.
FWI News
As France’s Muslim Population Grows, So Does its Support for Islamism
Muslim Groups Suing Researchers for Documenting Growing Radicalism
December 4, 2025
 · 
Jules Gomes
Russia has modified the Iranian-made Shahed suicide drone with a compact turbojet engine.
Middle East Forum Observer
Russia’s Upgraded Shahed Drones Reshape the Threat Facing Israel and Ukraine
The Question Is Whether Russia Will Share the Technology with Iran, Having Avoided Providing Tehran with Modern Combat Aircraft in the Past
December 4, 2025
 · 
Mardo Soghom
Air pollution at sunset casts a pink glow around Tehran, Iran, the most polluted city in the world.
Middle East Forum Observer
Iran’s Escalating Air Pollution Crisis
Tehran Is the Most Polluted City in the World, and Iran Is the World’s Sixth-Largest Emitter of Greenhouse Gases from Fossil Fuels
December 4, 2025
 · 
Dalga Khatinoglu
MK Ohad Tal (Religious Zionism), co-chair of the Knesset Eastern Mediterranean Cooperation Caucus, warned the Knesset today that Turkey under Erdoğan is “rapidly and powerfully becoming a threat that, in the not-so-distant future, could be much greater even than the Iranian threat.”
Press Releases
Israeli Knesset Debates Turkish Threat in Historic Cross-Party Session
Years of Middle East Forum Warnings Validated as Israel’s Parliament Takes Action
December 3, 2025
Saudi Arabia has for years been considered the holy grail of the Abraham Accords alliance, its importance in the region and the world far outweighing the countries that have normalized with Israel under the pact thus far. Above, Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman.
Middle East Forum Online
As Trump and Saudi Prince Heat up Ties, Israel Normalization Left Out in the Cold
Mohammed bin Salman Came to Washington to Try to Reassert the Oil-Rich Kingdom’s Position in a Region That’s Been Leaving It Behind
December 3, 2025
 · 
Lazar Berman
The Democratic Revolutionary Awakening Council (DRAC) was founded in 2008; its role was officially inaugurated in 2013. DRAC became opposed to the Sudanese government in 2017.
Middle East Forum Online
The War in Sudan: Interview with a Pro-Rapid Support Forces Faction
An Interview with a Representative of the Democratic Revolutionary Awakening Council
December 3, 2025
 · 
Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi
Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi at a March 2023 session of the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium.
Middle East Forum Observer
Has Reza Pahlavi Become the Opposition to Iran’s Opposition?
Exposure of the Regime’s Cyber Activities and Efforts to Co-Opt Monarchists Raise Questions About Who Is Co-Opting Whom
December 3, 2025
 · 
Alireza Nader