MENASource

Iraqi Kurdistan Needs a Referendum to Resolve its Political Crisis

By Nussaibah Younis

Iraqi Kurdistan is often hailed as a democratic, reliable, and effective partner for Western powers engaging with Iraq, but the political crisis that has overtaken the region this year has exposed just how fragile and problematic the Iraqi Kurdish political system really is.

Top News: Russia, US, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia Seek Solution to Syrian War in Vienna

By MENASource

US Secretary of State John Kerry opened talks in Vienna on Friday with his Russian, Saudi, and Turkish counterparts aimed at reviving a moribund effort to end Syria’s civil war.

Top News: Security Forces Arrest Senior Brotherhood Figure Hassan Malek

By EgyptSource

Egyptian security forces arrested Hassan Malek, a leader of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, security officials said.

EconSource: Islamic State Earning Up to $50 Million a Month in Oil Sales

By EconSource

The Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) is raking in up to $50 million a month from selling crude oil from fields under its control in Iraq and Syria, according to Iraqi intelligence and US officials.

Photo Essay: The Citizens Speak

By Jonathan Rashad

Final figures for Egypt’s parliamentary elections have been announced, with voter turnout reaching 26 percent in the first phase. With only four independent seats secured, voters will be expected to go to the polls once again to cast their votes for the remaining 222 seats in run-off elections. The vote also has yet to take […]

Top News: US Soldier Killed Freeing ISIS Prisoners in Iraq

A US soldier was killed on Thursday morning as American and Kurdish commandos raided an ISIS outpost near the northern Iraqi town of Hawija, freeing prisoners and capturing some of the militants, Iraqi and American officials said.

Top News: Official Parliamentary Elections Results Announced; AU, AL Announce Preliminary Findings

By EgyptSource

The Fi Hob Misr electoral list won the party-based list seats in the first stage of Egypt’s parliamentary elections, while only four candidates won individual seats, the head of the High Elections Committee (HEC), Ayman Abbas, announced Wednesday evening.

MENASource Podcast: Russia’s Intervention in Syria

By Aaron Stein and Faysal Itani

For the past three and a half weeks, the Russian Air Force and a handful of military advisers have been striking rebel held positions in Syria. The bulk of the airstrikes are concentrated along the M5 highway near the cities of Homs and Hama.

EconSource: Fitch says Stable Turkish Government Could Help Reforms, Growth

By EconSource

Fitch Ratings said in a statement on Thursday that the formation of a stable government following Turkey’s parliamentary election on November 1 could benefit the implementation of structural reforms.

Despite Concessions Nour Party Loses Out in Parliamentary Elections

By Abdelrahman Youssef

A new Egyptian parliamentary election cycle is underway. With it, Egypt’s Nour Party—the political arm of the Alexandria-based Salafist Call movement—is facing one of the most difficult tests it has encountered since the party’s founding in June 2011. Preliminary results indicate that the party is failing that test.