The Atlantic Council launched an initiative in July 2014 to assess the strategic implications of the rise of non-state actors, with particular emphasis in the Middle East, and transnational security implications for the United States, its allies, partners, and adversaries.

This page is the home of the Atlantic Council’s work on this initiative, specifically the Middle East and the eroding power of the state in light of an insurgent threat from the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and beyond.

The initiative draws on expertise from the Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center for International Security, the Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, the South Asia Center, and the Eurasia Center.