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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When Sectarian Conflict Finds a Local Solution, Copts Lose

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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When Sectarian Conflict Finds a Local Solution, Copts Lose

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

When Sectarian Conflict Finds a Local Solution, Copts Lose

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

Jun 19, 2015

When Sectarian Conflict Finds a Local Solution, Copts Lose

By Jayson Casper

What is the value of a presidential visit to the papal cathedral for a seventy-year-old Copt driven from his village? What good are warm relations between Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Pope Tawadros if relations remain tense between Youssef Tawfiq and his Muslim neighbors?

North Africa

MENASource

Jun 19, 2015

EconSource: ISIS Imposes Fuel Blockade on Rebel-Held Northern Syria

By EconSource

The Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) is blocking oil sales to northern Syria, activists say, unleashing an economic weapon that could cause food shortages and hospital shutdowns. The blockade demonstrates how heavily dependent ISIS’s enemies are on the crude oil it produces.

MENASource

Jun 18, 2015

Top News: ISIS Expands into Yemen

By MENASource

At least thirty-one people were killed on Wednesday and dozens wounded in five simultaneous bombings claimed by the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) at Shia mosques and offices in Sana’a, medics and witnesses said.

MENASource

Jun 18, 2015

Top News: Foreign Ministry Defends Egypt’s Judiciary From Foreign Criticism Over Death Sentences

By EgyptSource

Egypt’s foreign affairs ministry on Wednesday said it rejected some countries “offending the Egyptian judiciary,” following mass death sentences on Tuesday against over 100 defendants including ousted President Mohamed Morsi.

MENASource

Jun 18, 2015

EconSource: Saudi Arabia to Discuss Broad Oil Cooperation Agreement with Russia

By EconSource

The oil ministers of Russia and Saudi Arabia plan to discuss a broad cooperation agreement today at an economic forum in St. Petersburg.

MENASource

Jun 17, 2015

Protecting Refugees in Protracted Emergencies in the Middle East

By Bill Frelick

Um Ghassan was eleven in 1948 when her family fled Haifa. They joined the Palestinian exodus to Jordan, and later moved to Syria. “They welcomed us like we were their relatives,” she said. Decades later, when fighting broke out in Syria in 2011, Um Ghassan initially stayed in her house. “I would never leave my […]

Iraq
Libya

MENASource

Jun 17, 2015

Fading Christianity in Syria and Iraq

By Knox Thames

The quagmires of Syria and Iraq have forced millions to flee, both internally displaced people and new refugees escaping across borders. The international community is failing to meet their needs, with UN agencies announcing cuts in food programs due to a lack of funds.

Iraq
Syria

MENASource

Jun 17, 2015

The NDP Building Demolition: Erasing a Memory or Moving On?

By Joel Gulhane

When looters on January 28, 2011 raided the National Democratic Party (NDP) headquarters, a symbol of decades of repression overseen by President and party leader Hosni Mubarak, one man carried out a couch, said Ahmed, a witness to the spectacle.

North Africa

MENASource

Jun 17, 2015

Top News: Rebels Launch Offensive in Southern Syria

By MENASource

An alliance of rebels in southern Syria announced a major offensive Wednesday to capture remaining positions held by the Syrian military in Quneitera province, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. A spokesman for the Southern Front said groups fighting in the operation had signed a pact, which did not include the Nusra Front, as the group […]

MENASource

Jun 17, 2015

Top News: Egypt’s Sisi Pardons 165 Detained Youth on Occasion of Ramadan

By EgyptSource

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has pardoned 165 prisoners, including minors, convicted of breaching the 2013 protest law, according to a presidential statement.

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