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Middle East and North Africa

Special Collection on the Middle East

This complete work consists of several dozen essays spread out over 8 parts tackling the region’s conflicts and historical evolution, relating them to contemporary issues. Divided into distinct regions and critical issues, the Special Collection of the Middle East is your source to better understand this volatile region and to be prepared for what comes next.

Graphic Essay: Emerging Technologies

From the wheel to the internal combustion engine, new technologies have, for better or worse, fundamentally transformed our society. The emerging technologies listed have...

The Corridor Dividing Russia and Iran

The Ukraine war has brought Russia and Iran closer, but the full scope of their evolving relationship is more complicated. Until last year, Tehran...

Turkish-Egyptian Relations: A New Beginning

Egypt and Turkey appear ready to end a decade-long dispute. The erstwhile enemies have found common cause in economic duress, currency crises and a...

Implications of the War’s Spread to the West Bank

Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has yet to break Hamas, and now the security situation in the West Bank is rapidly deteriorating. The volatility...

Qatar’s Enigmatic Foreign Policy

When Qatar, a small country with a sparse population, gained independence in 1971 and applied for membership in the United Nations, there were doubts...

Morocco’s Peace Plan Moves Forward

Western Sahara, the disputed territory in North Africa, exists in a state of limbo. It has at times been part of Morocco, which still...

The Truth About Turkey’s ‘Pivot’ to China

Turkey is on a diplomatic offensive to justify a foreign policy that some believe is too friendly to too many. On Aug. 11, Turkish...

The New Arc of Crisis in Southern Eurasia

Strategic analysis usually entails an in-depth examination of a specific area or issue, but sometimes it is necessary to zoom out and take a...

Graphic Essay: The Fight Against Global Hunger

Last year, approximately 30 percent of the world’s population experienced moderate to severe food insecurity. This means some 2.3 billion people “compromised on the...

The Link Between Two Wars

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Over the past few days, two statements have come to redefine the Middle East – though they were issued not by Israel or Hamas...

Understanding Iranian Foreign Policy

Iranian foreign policy is famously difficult to comprehend. When Leonhart Rauwolf, a German physician and traveler, visited Persia in 1573, he described negotiating with...

Israeli Assassinations Create Major Conundrum for Iran

In the span of only a few hours, an Israeli airstrike in Beirut killed the military commander of Hezbollah and another in Tehran killed...

The Houthis and the Israel-Iran Conflict

Israeli warplanes needed just under three hours on July 21 to travel 1,800 kilometers (1,100 miles) to their targets in Yemen’s port city of...

Turkey’s Uphill Battle to a Rapprochement With Syria

Since the 1950s, Turkey has expressed interest in the domestic affairs of Syria more than any other Arab country, driven by a long shared...

Why Iran’s Establishment Let a Reformist Become President

For the first time in nearly a generation, Iran has elected a reformist who is not a cleric as president. But Masoud Pezeshkian’s victory...

Israel’s Graduated Escalation Against Hezbollah

Talk of war between Israel and Hezbollah has been making news since the latter began attacking the former in solidarity with Hamas. Israel has...

Latest Posts

The meltdown of autocratic regimes currently underway in the Arab world has led to the growth of ungoverned spaces. The resulting vacuum is being dominated by armed Islamist non-state actors – in particular Salafist-jihadist militias.

The three non-Arab powers – Turkey, Iran and Israel – are trying to manage the regional commotion according to their national interests.

It was during the Cold War era that a deep ideological chasm in the Middle East began to coagulate. The struggle between those who adopted European secularism and those who crafted an ideology based on religious tradition had its roots in late 19th century Ottoman Empire. Roughly 100 years later, this struggle had polarized the region.

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From our Forecast...

The Vienna nuclear talks will result in a settlement. The Israeli Air Force will not attack Iran’s nuclear sites.

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Daily Memo: Armenia Thwarts Alleged Coup, Shoigu Visits Tehran

Foiled plot. Armenian authorities arrested three people and are searching for four others for conspiring to overthrow the government, Armenia’s Investigative Committee announced. Five...

The Increase in Russian Military Forces

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Moscow’s announcement of a dramatic increase in the size of the Russian army by 180,000 new recruits appears to threaten a major increase in...

India’s Northeastern Borderlands at Risk

Between discontented citizens and disputed borders, India’s northeast has long posed challenges for the government in New Delhi. The area is cut off from...

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