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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Asking the Right Questions about ISIS: Between Politics and Ideology

MENASource
Jan 14, 2026

Voices from Iran: As rejection of government reaches all-time high, Iranians also wary of foreign intervention

If Trump is serious about peace, stability, and a lasting legacy, the path forward does not run through air strikes or transactional deals with a failing theocracy.

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Asking the Right Questions about ISIS: Between Politics and Ideology

MENASource
Jan 28, 2026

Trump’s National Security Strategy doesn’t downgrade the Middle East, it redefines it

By
Kristian Alexander

Trump’s strategy is a sophisticated refinement of “America First.” For the Gulf, the implications are significant, but manageable.

Middle East
National Security

Asking the Right Questions about ISIS: Between Politics and Ideology

MENASource
Jan 13, 2026

Eight questions (and expert answers) on the SDF’s withdrawal from Syria’s Aleppo

By
Atlantic Council experts

Our experts unpack why violence erupted, what it means for Kurdish safety and integration in Syria, and how Washington is engaging.

Civil Society
Conflict

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Content

MENASource

Dec 11, 2015

Asking the Right Questions about ISIS: Between Politics and Ideology

By H.A. Hellyer

The discussion around whether or not the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) is Islamic began as soon as the group entered onto the world stage. It throws up a number of queries for policy makers in the United States, Europe, and the Arab world, and the policy prescriptions will differ depending on how we answer […]

MENASource

Dec 11, 2015

Top News: Congress to Review Arms Shipments to Saudi Arabia

By MENASource

The US Senate is using new oversight powers for the first time to track American weapons sales to Saudi Arabia. The move signals growing unease on Capitol Hill with the Saudi-led war effort against Houthi rebels in Yemen, a conflict the United Nations says has killed more than 5,700 and forced another 2.3 million from […]

MENASource

Dec 11, 2015

Turkey Deepens Its Presence in Nineveh

By Aaron Stein

Turkey has deployed some 150 troops to train a militia under the control of Osama and Atheel Nujaifi, two close Turkish allies in Iraq. Nineveh’s former governor, Atheel al-Nujaifi, authorized Ankara to deploy trainers near the town of Bashiqa in March, ostensibly to train a hold force to take control of Mosul once the city […]

Iraq Turkey

MENASource

Dec 11, 2015

EconSource: Syria Government Scrapes Barrel Amid Economic Woes

By EconSource

More than four years into a grinding civil war, the Syrian government is seeking to boost its revenues with everything from taxes on shawarma sandwiches to telephone lines.

MENASource

Dec 11, 2015

Top News: Civil Society Organizations Document 625 Torture Cases From January to November

By EgyptSource

Fourteen Egyptian rights organizations, among them the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), the Association for the Freedom of Thought and Expression (AFTE), and the Arab Network for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) issued a statement on the occasion of international human rights day condemning Egyptian security forces for committing grave, and often deadly, human rights […]

MENASource

Dec 10, 2015

Top News: ISIS Retakes Key City in Homs Province From Syrian Forces

By MENASource

Syrian activists say the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) has retaken a strategically important town in the central province of Homs from government forces.

MENASource

Dec 10, 2015

Top News: Egypt Frees Israeli Held For Spying in Prisoner Swap

By EgyptSource

Egypt has freed an Israeli-Arab held in its jails for 15 years on espionage charges in exchange for the release of two Egyptians held in Israel, Egyptian and Israeli officials said on Thursday.

MENASource

Dec 10, 2015

EconSource: Fitch Issues Negative Outlook for GCC Banks

By EconSource

The prospects of an extended decline in oil prices and higher US interest rates are putting fresh strain on debt markets in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries Fitch ratings agency said, issuing negative 2016 outlooks for GCC banks.

MENASource

Dec 9, 2015

Top News: Russia Flies 82 Sorties, Hits 204 Targets in Syria; US Says Only 30 Percent of Russia Air Strikes Target ISIS

By MENASource

According to the Russian defense ministry, Russia’s air force flew eighty-two sorties against 204 targets in Syria in the last 24 hours. The strikes hit targets in Syria’s Aleppo, Idlib, Latakia, Hama and Homs provinces, the ministry said, according to the news agency.

MENASource

Dec 9, 2015

Top News: Egyptian Anti-Corruption Activist Sentenced to Four Years in Bribery Case

By EgyptSource

A Giza misdemeanor court sentenced on Thursday prominent anti-corruption activist and former independent MP Hamdi al-Fakharany to four years in prison and an EGP 100,000 fine on charges of blackmail.

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