PHILADELPHIA – September 5, 2025 – The Fall 2025 issue of Middle East Quarterly brings timely, accessible analysis on post-Assad Syria, Iranian intelligence operations in Scandinavia, the Houthi challenge to freedom of navigation, and the ideological strategy of Hizb ut-Tahrir—plus incisive book reviews relevant to today’s debates.
Syria’s Druze under duress. In “The Syrian Druze: Between the Hammer of Integration and the Anvil of Separation,” Israeli scholar Yusri Hazran maps the perilous position of Syria’s roughly 700,000 Druze after Assad’s fall. He warns that “never before in modern Syrian history have minorities … faced a dual challenge,” and details attacks that intensified in 2025 as state authority unraveled and jihadist militias advanced. The piece examines autonomy debates, regime minority dynamics, and what minority protection would require from Damascus.
Iran’s security services in Sweden. In “A Growing Security Threat: Iranian Intelligence Operations in Scandinavia (Part Two: Sweden),” Arvin Khoshnood, Magnus Norell, and Ardavan M. Khoshnood document the Islamic Republic’s “long history of extraterritorial repression” in Sweden—covering surveillance, intimidation, influence campaigns, cyber operations, and plots targeting dissidents, Jewish communities, and Israeli assets. Both Norell and Arvin Khoshnood describe being personally targeted by sophisticated phishing and intrusion attempts.
Neutralizing the Houthis. In “Neutralizing the Houthi Threat: A Strategic Blueprint for the Red Sea and Beyond,” Eric Navarro—MEF’s Director of Military & Strategy Programs and a U.S. Marine Corps Reserve lieutenant colonel—argues that defeating the Houthis requires a “comprehensive, integrated strategy” synchronized across military, financial, diplomatic, and information lines of effort. He underscores why the Red Sea is vital—“nearly 15 percent of global trade” passes the Bab el Mandeb—and lays out a phased plan to secure navigation and blunt Iranian leverage.
Hizb ut Tahrir’s ideological insurgency. In “Hizb ut-Tahrir: Political Doctrine, Global Reach, and Challenge to the International Order,” Arun Anand explains how HT, while eschewing overt violence, advances a long-term revolutionary strategy rooted in ideological subversion, social mobilization, and eventual political capture—posing a distinct challenge from jihadist groups whose threats are more visible and kinetic.
Reviews worth reading. The issue’s reviews sharpen current conversations: Daniel Pipes on Rime Allaf’s It Started in Damascus; Patrick Clawson on Mustafa Yavaş’s White Collar Blues; Martin Sherman on Salman Abu Sitta’s Mapping My Return; and Alex Selsky on Victoria Coates’s Battle for the Jewish State—alongside additional brief reviews.
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