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.

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The Future of EU-Turkey Relations

MENASource
Mar 26, 2026

As Iran attacks, the US should provide air defense for Iraqi Kurdistan

Washington faces a choice: Continue to defer to Baghdad’s procedural objections while Iran conducts unimpeded strikes on Kurdish territory or acknowledge the strategic reality and take decisive action.

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The Future of EU-Turkey Relations

MENASource
Mar 17, 2026

A crisis in Egypt could be a warning sign for the global economy 

By
Khalid Azim

Market watchers should keep an eye on Egypt as an oil shock could cause financial turmoil.

Economy & Business
International Financial Institutions

The Future of EU-Turkey Relations

MENASource
Mar 11, 2026

Three lessons from Libya for the war in Iran

By
Frank Talbot

Any outside power using force to attain a political outcome must define the end state it seeks, align coalition partners around a shared strategy, and establish credible escalation controls.

Conflict
Iran

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Content

MENASource

Dec 19, 2016

The Future of EU-Turkey Relations

By Tancrède Fulconis and Aaron Stein

Turkish-European relations have declined considerably in recent years, with little progress made on the accession of Turkey to the European Union (EU) since formal negotiations began in 2005. Turkey’s actions following the failed July coup attempt and the rise of right-wing nationalist populism in the west further damaged any prospects of improving relations. The matter […]

European Union France

MENASource

Dec 12, 2016

Tunisia’s 2017 Budget: The Rocky Way Ahead

By Karim Mezran and Elissa Miller

On December 10, following weeks of negotiations, Tunisia’s parliament approved a $14 billion budget for 2017. The budget includes a number of provisions aimed at cutting the country’s deficit in line with the economic reform plan of Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, who was appointed in August of this year. However, the controversy surrounding the budget […]

North Africa

MENASource

Dec 12, 2016

Copts Bear Brunt of a Shift in Terror Strategy in Egypt

By Mokhtar Awad

On December 11 at approximately 10 AM, Cairo time, a bomb ripped through the St. Paul and St. Peter Church in the Cairo district of Abassiya, killing 25 and injuring over 50 worshipers. Eyewitnesses described to local media a harrowing scene of devastation Cairo’s citizens haven’t felt in a long time. The explosion, which reportedly […]

North Africa

MENASource

Dec 7, 2016

Understanding the Dangers of Egypt’s NGO Law

By Khaled Dawoud

Mohamed Zarie, the director of Egypt’s program at the Cairo Institute for Human Rights, doesn’t mince words when talking about Egypt’s new NGO law. He describes it as a death blow and a declaration of war. The law, which was approved in a record two weeks by the House of Representatives, imposes severe restrictions and […]

North Africa

MENASource

Dec 5, 2016

A Shift on Policy Towards Libya?

By Karim Mezran

As the situation in Libya increasingly declines, and in the aftermath of the election of Donald Trump at President of the United States, Libya experts are considering new ideas for US policy in Libya. One idea is for the international community to abandon its effort to create a Libyan unity government in line with the […]

Libya

MENASource

Nov 30, 2016

Iraqis Sheltering in Mosul Create Fresh Hurdles for Aid Agencies

By Campbell MacDiarmid

Abu Mohamed stood outside his shrapnel-scarred gate in the eastern Zahra district of Mosul and pointed to where a mortar round had exploded the day before, killing two of his neighbors.

Iraq

MENASource

Nov 29, 2016

Every Street Corner is the Front Line in Mosul

By Mustafa Habib, NIQASH

Wisam al-Zubaidi is a member of one of Iraq’s elite counter-terrorism troops. But right now he isn’t fighting, he is in a Baghdad hospital nursing a bullet wound in his foot. At a battle east of Mosul, he and his battalion were ambushed by the extremist group known as the Islamic State, which Iraqi forces […]

Iraq

MENASource

Nov 22, 2016

The Sequencing of Peace in Yemen

By Nabeel Khoury

In a last ditch effort by the Obama administration to salvage Yemen’s peace talks as the war grinds on, US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Oman twice this month, personally meeting with Houthi representative Mohammed Abdussalam. In a statement released after his second visit, Kerry welcomed a 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen, but not all parties appeared to […]

Yemen

MENASource

Nov 18, 2016

ISIS in Sirte: From Caliphate to Insurgency

By Marco Arnaboldi

With the Libyan city of Sirte almost completely liberated from the Islamic State, the group appears to be adapting rather than collapsing. Despite a significant decline in interactions with outsiders, recent statements by ISIS leaders and the tactics used in its fight in Sirte point to how it might deal with the aftermath. In its […]

Libya

MENASource

Nov 16, 2016

Factbox: On the IMF Loan to Iraq

By Sali Mahdy

In late September, the Iraqi parliament voted to dismiss Finance Minister Hoshyar Zebari over corruption allegations. Zebari had led Iraq’s efforts to secure aid to manage its economic crisis, and most recently, successfully negotiated an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan for Iraq. A day after the vote, the IMF reaffirmed its commitment to work with […]

Iraq
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