MENASource

As the MENA region continues to be the epicenter of news headlines, the Atlantic Council’s MENASource is a hub for thought-provoking and hard-hitting analyses about the latest trends, ideas, and debates. This online publication provides fast reactions and in-depth commentary on breaking news and key regional topics by a diverse team of experts and contributors.

MENASource brings you up-close to a region at the epicenter of geo-political headlines. It is the Atlantic Council’s hub for in-depth commentary about breaking news, key topics, and trends from our team of experts on the Middle East and North Africa.

The views expressed in MENASource are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

Learn more about the Middle East

The Role of Decentralization in Combatting Extremist Influence in Iraq

MENASource
Jul 31, 2026

Why GCC integration matters more than ever

Gulf countries can’t build their knowledge economies of the future on their own.

Read More

The Role of Decentralization in Combatting Extremist Influence in Iraq

MENASource
Jul 13, 2026

Israel’s next government must prioritize the Abraham Accords

By
Amit Yarom and Itai Melchior

The fall election could open a narrow window for Israel to reset its regional strategy and create momentum to expand normalization.

Israel
Politics & Diplomacy

The Role of Decentralization in Combatting Extremist Influence in Iraq

MENASource
Aug 3, 2026

Can al-Zaidi separate the sects from the state in Iraq?

By
Munqith Dagher

The biggest challenge facing Iraq’s prime minister is how to curb the role of sectarian institutions in shaping Iraq’s state decisions.

Conflict
Iran

Stay Updated


Content

Future of Iraq Taskforce

Jun 6, 2017

The Role of Decentralization in Combatting Extremist Influence in Iraq

By Todd Diamond

Many governance experts see decentralization as a potential model to mitigate political and sectarian challenges in Syria, Libya, and Iraq and improve livelihoods in those countries by restoring basic services to local populations. But in countries with a long history of absolute control, central government officials frequently resist any reforms seen as weakening their influence, […]

Iraq

MENASource

Jun 5, 2017

How Will the Rift with Qatar Play Out?

By H.A. Hellyer

Early on Monday morning, a coordinated isolation of Qatar took place in the Gulf Cooperation Council region, and beyond. While it began with Bahrain severing ties, the power behind the moves was clearly Saudi Arabia, with strong Emirati backing. The isolation was rather complete: Riyadh, Manama, and Abu Dhabi requesting all Qatari nationals to depart […]

Saudi Arabia The Gulf

MENASource

May 30, 2017

Former Presidential Candidate Khaled Ali Referred to Trial Amid Wave of Arrests in Egypt

By Dalia Rabie

Lawyer and former presidential candidate, Khaled Ali, was sentenced to trial Wednesday in light of a complaint filed against him for public indecency. Ali was summoned for investigation and detained overnight on Tuesday amid a wave of arrests targeting members of political parties and groups over the past week.

North Africa

MENASource

May 30, 2017

Why the 2017 Iranian Election Matters

By Mariam Elatouabi

 The 2017 Iranian presidential election could be mainly summarized by the many images of Iranians lining up outside the polling stations and the overall enthusiasm and fervor sparked by the short yet dynamic campaign and re-election of the pragmatic Hassan Rouhani. Hassan Rouhani won a second term with fifty-seven percent of the votes, almost seven […]

Iran

MENASource

May 25, 2017

The Barak al-Shati Massacre Shows a Weakened UN-Supported Government and a Fractured Country

By Hani Shennib

On May 18, militias belonging to the Misratan Third Force and its affiliates launched an attack on the Libyan National Army (LNA) in Barak al-Shati, an airport base in the Libyan province of Fezzan, and killed 141 Libyan army personnel and civilians, according to LNA sources. Many were unarmed and were shot in the head […]

Libya

MENASource

May 23, 2017

Tactical Lessons from the Ejection of ISIS from Sirte

By Dr Alia Brahimi and Jason Pack

In December 2016, ISIS was ejected from Sirte by a coalition of forces allied to the UN-backed government. US airstrikes and special operations by western forces were integral to the campaign and, combined, provided the tipping point. This article proposes three tactical lessons from the campaign – which, of course, contain within them strategic implications. 

Libya

MENASource

May 18, 2017

Governing Egypt: Cohesion and Consolidation

By Dr. H.A. Hellyer

A little over a year ago, it was still possible to speak of the ‘regimen’ of Egyptian president Sisi’s ‘non-regime.’ Power was dispersed, disparate, and given to erratic bursts of energy, that had far more to do with localised and internal disputes, than to an overarching directive from a cohesive chief governor.

North Africa Political Reform

MENASource

May 17, 2017

The Future of the Islamic State: Less Territory, More Brutality

By Belal Alaa

The Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) is a radical organization with vast capacity for recruitment and cultural domination – yet lacks its own literature, even a zealous, superficial manifesto. That is not a mistake or an oversight: the organization simply doesn’t need one. Daesh did not need to sow the seeds for the cultural dominance […]

North Africa

MENASource

May 16, 2017

Strategic Lessons from the Ejection of ISIS from Sirte

By Dr Alia Brahimi and Jason Pack

Though accompanied by curiously little fanfare, the Obama administration’s most significant victory against the Islamic State (ISIS, ISIL, Daesh) came not in Iraq or Syria, but in Libya. After eight months of fighting, the coastal city of Sirte was ‘liberated’ in December 2016, by a coalition of forces allied to the UN-backed government in Tripoli.

Libya

MENASource

May 15, 2017

Turkey’s Post-Referendum Economy

By Merve Hande Akmehmet

Throughout the referendum campaign, President Erdogan and the Justice and Development Party (AKP) promised to move the economy back to the top of their agenda. This was easier said than done, as the field dynamics changed drastically from 2002. During the AKP’s first twelve years of governing, Turkey was a strong EU candidate, with better […]

Turkey
Load More