Jonathan Spyer

Director of Research & MEQ Editor

Jonathan Spyer oversees the Forum’s content and is editor of the Middle East Quarterly. Mr. Spyer, a journalist, reports for Janes Intelligence Review, writes a column for the Jerusalem Post, and is a contributor to the Wall Street Journal and The Australian. He frequently reports from Syria and Iraq. He has a B.A. from the London School of Economics, an M.A. from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, and a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics. He is the author of two books: The Transforming Fire: The Rise of the Israel-Islamist Conflict (2010) and Days of the Fall: A Reporter’s Journey in the Syria and Iraq Wars (2017).

Articles by this Author
With Its Islamist Empire in Ruins and Legitimacy Gone, the Iranian Regime Turns Its Full Coercive Power Inward Against Its Own People
The Failed Southern Transitional Council Offensive Exposes Gulf Divisions in Yemen
The Available Choices in Lebanon Are That Hezbollah Will Be Permitted to Gradually Re-Arm, or That Israel Will Prevent It from Doing So
From the Israeli and Jewish Point of View, the Emergence of This State of Affairs Isn’t So Bad
Failed Military Integration And Competing Visions For Syria Fuel Renewed Tensions
Despite Hamas’s Expectation of a Mass Uprising, a Mix of Deterrence, Politics, and Fatigue Kept Violence Contained
With the Loss of Syria, Iraq Has Taken on Added Importance to Tehran
Another Round of High-Intensity Combat at Some Stage Remains a Probability
The Essential Question Facing Gaza—the Continued Existence or the Removal of an Armed and Hostile Islamist Sovereignty in the Area—Remains Unresolved
A Significant Difference Between the Position of Israel and That of Its Chief Ally, the United States, on the Way Forward Is Emerging
The Various Components of the Iran-Led Axis of Resistance, and the Tehran Regime Itself, Remain Stronger than Their Domestic Opponents
The Path to Implementing the 20-Point Peace Plan Remains Strewn with Obstacles
Iran and Its Allies Are on the Ropes, but the Sunni Alliance Led by Turkey and Qatar Is Ascendant
U.S. Special Envoy Calls for Lifting Syria Sanctions, but Concerns Grow over Ongoing Sectarian Violence and the Treatment of Minority Communities Under Al Sharaa
At Its Height, in the 15-Month Period Between April 2024 and July 2025, This Was a Region-Wide, State-to-State Conflict
Loud Chanting of ‘From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Free’ and Other Slogans Advocating the Destruction of Israel Were a Constant Accompaniment to the Events at the Square
From an Israeli Point of View, the Plan Appears to Offer Much That Israel Has Sought in Its Prosecution of the War, Though Not Without Cost
Doha Seeks to Leverage Its Support for Enemies of the West Into Greater Influence and Improved Relations with the West Itself
Israel’s Capacity, Once Roused, for the Application of Hard Power Has Been Amply Demonstrated