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 new location-transparency requirement on X has revealed fake accounts relating to the Gaza war.
Middle East Forum Observer
X’s Transparency Rules Expose a Synthetic Gaza Disinformation Network
Accounts Falsely Presented Themselves as Civilians in Gaza, Posting Emotive Casualty Claims and Siege Narratives
December 17, 2025
 · 
David E. Firester
A proposed U.K. definition of “anti-Muslim hostility,” intended to replace “Islamophobia,” has alarmed free-speech advocates who warn it risks functioning as a de facto blasphemy standard—chilling lawful criticism of Islam and Islamism while empowering police and public institutions to silence dissent.
FWI News
Islamophobiacs at It Again in U.K.
New Definition ‘Worse than Feared,’ MP Warns
December 16, 2025
 · 
Jules Gomes
Nelson, a former mill town once defined by looms, pubs, and labor militancy, Nelson has emerged as a recurring source of jihadist violence in the United Kingdom.
FWI Opinion & Interview
Nelson, A Hotbed of Jihadism in Northwest England
U.K. Officials Need to Confront Extremism in Former Mill Town
December 16, 2025
 · 
Potkin Azarmehr
MEF in the Media
Syria Tests U.S. Deterrence and Regional Security | Eric Navarro on Newsmax
December 16, 2025
A butcher stop in Shiraz, Iran. Prices have pushed meat and dairy products off the table for many Iranians.
Middle East Forum Observer
Iran’s Currency Collapse Accelerates as Inflation Surges
Food Prices Increased by 55 to 165 Percent over the past Year, and Prices of Several Medicines Have Doubled in Recent Weeks
December 16, 2025
 · 
Dalga Khatinoglu
The Chapel of the Ascension now known as the Zawiyat al-Adawiya mosque in Jerusalem.
Press Releases
Middle East Forum Launches Dhimmitude Institute
New Research Initiative Honors Pioneering Scholars Bat Ye’or and David Littman While Addressing Modern-Day Religious Oppression
December 16, 2025
Billboard of Iran-backed militia members on billboard, including the late Qasem Suleimani. Mosul, Iraq October 30, 2024.
Middle East Forum Online
Iran-Backed Militias Reassert Power in Iraq, Proving the Islamic Axis Is Still Standing
With the Loss of Syria, Iraq Has Taken on Added Importance to Tehran
December 15, 2025
 · 
Jonathan Spyer
Middle East Forum Online
Hanukkah Terror Attack
Islamists in Australia Slaughter Jews on Bondi Beach
December 15, 2025
 · 
Jim Hanson
The United States has had troops on the ground in Syria for over a decade, with a mission of fighting the Islamic State.
Middle East Forum Observer
The Palmyra Attack Reveals the Limits of U.S.-Syria Military Partnership
Now Is the Time for the U.S. to Increase Its Engagement in Integration Talks Between the Syrian Government and Kurdish-Led Syrian Democratic Forces
December 15, 2025
 · 
Sirwan Kajjo
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa appears in military uniform during a ceremony marking the first anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime, on December 8, 2025.
Middle East Forum Observer
Syria’s New Military Is a Future Threat
The Military Lacks Discipline and Is Being Indoctrinated in Ways That Antagonize Critics of Al-Sharaa’s Government
December 15, 2025
 · 
Sirwan Kajjo