Iraqis have just gone to the polls in a pivotal parliamentary election that could redefine the country’s political trajectory. What do the results tell us about the state of Iraqi democracy? What happens next? And is there still space for meaningful …
Read in PDF Last updated on November 13, 2025 Introduction The Abraham Accords are a series of bilateral agreements brokered by the United States whose core original intent has been to normalize relations between Israel and several Arab countries. The …
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's November 2025 visit to the United States is his first in more than seven years, and during the past few years Saudi Arabia has assumed an increasingly prominent role in regional and global affairs. In this …
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj are joined by MEI Senior Fellow Charles Lister to unpack the historic November 10 meeting between US President Donald Trump and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in the Oval …
On October 31, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution centering Morocco’s autonomy plan as the basis for resolving the Western Sahara conflict. Of Rabat’s recent diplomatic victories on the issue, this is the most significant. It follows a …
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj are joined by MEI Senior Fellow Gönül Tol to discuss democratic backsliding in Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The conversation explores how Erdoğan’s crackdown …
The government shutdown in the United States became the longest in the country’s history this week, the product of a corrosive political and media culture that hinders America from meeting its full potential. At the same time, election results last night …
For years, Israeli populist politicians have chipped away at the country’s democratic guardrails. But the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023 accelerated Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s drive to consolidate power. The kind of societal pushback that once …
In this episode of Taking the Edge Off the Middle East, host Brian Katulis is joined by Mara Rudman, MEI Distinguished Diplomatic Fellow and veteran of the Obama and Clinton administrations. Together, they discuss political process, peacemaking, and the …
Ali Akbar Nateq-Nouri has been part of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s furniture for nearly half a century: government minister, speaker of parliament, presidential contender, advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and fixture of the country’s conservative …
On September 2, 2025, four days after Israeli airstrikes killed Ahmed al-Rahawi and 12 other Houthi cabinet members in Yemen, the chief of mission for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) met with Houthi Foreign Ministry official Ismail al- …
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj are joined by MEI Senior Fellow Intissar Fakir to discuss Morocco’s recent “GenZ 212” protest movement, which gripped multiple cities around the country for weeks. What prompted …
Enjoy the MEI Art Gallery's latest exhibition Arab Pop Art: Between East and West at this week's Art Walk Dupont First Friday Open House from 6:00 - 8:00 PM. The evening program includes an art talk at 6:30 pm featuring participating artist Marwan …
On October 18, forces from the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS carried out a joint operation with the Syrian government against the Islamic State in the city of al-Dumayr, located in the Damascus countryside. The operation, which began at 2 am, resulted in …
President Donald Trump continued to rewrite the playbook of US foreign policy this summer and early fall, with mixed results on the global stage but producing some important openings for progress in the Middle East due to a negotiated Gaza cease-fire and …
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj speak with MEI Senior Fellow Brian Katulis about US policy in the Middle East under Donald Trump’s second administration. Nine months into Trump 2.0, how much has really changed …
Brian Katulis speaks with Dr. Marvin Weinbaum—senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and former Department of State analyst—about his remarkable career spanning …
For much of the past eighty years, the United States has seen itself — and often acted — as a global champion of democracy. Through the power of example, and through its diplomacy, security alliances, and aid programs, Washington has sought to strengthen …
But the disconnect between how President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi articulated their long-term visions at their “peace summit” underscores that the longstanding question of Palestinian statehood will not be ignored.El-Sisi …
The below article is part of the series "Seizing Lebanon's Moment," a joint initiative with the Italian Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI). The contributors to this series — who comprise top scholars, policymakers, and …
