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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Top News: United States Accuses Syria of Backing ISIS’s Aleppo Advance

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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Top News: United States Accuses Syria of Backing ISIS’s Aleppo Advance

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

Top News: United States Accuses Syria of Backing ISIS’s Aleppo Advance

MENASource
Jan 12, 2026

The Venezuela-Iran connection and what Maduro’s capture means for Tehran, explained 

By
Joze Pelayo, Kirsten Fontenrose, Ellie Sennett 

Our experts break down Iran’s ties to Venezuela and the impact Maduro’s capture could have on Tehran’s interests in and outside of its own borders. 

Iran
Oil and Gas

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Content

MENASource

Jun 2, 2015

Top News: United States Accuses Syria of Backing ISIS’s Aleppo Advance

By MENASource

The United States has accused the Syrian military of carrying out airstrikes to help the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) fighters advance around Aleppo. ISIS pushed back rival insurgents north of Aleppo on Sunday near the Turkish border, threatening their supply route to the city.

MENASource

Jun 2, 2015

Top News: Egypt Court Postpones Decision on Morsi Death Sentence Ruling

By EgyptSource

An Egyptian court postponed on Tuesday issuing a final ruling over a death sentence recommendation for former Islamist President Mohamed Morsi and other top Muslim Brotherhood leaders in a case related to a 2011 mass jail break.

MENASource

Jun 2, 2015

EconSource: IMF Lifts Outlook for Saudi GDP, Sees Bigger Budget Gap this Year

By EconSource

Saudi Arabia’s economy will keep expanding this year, showing little effect from the oil price drop, but growth will slow in 2016 as lower oil revenues hit state spending, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said after talks with Saudi officials.

MENASource

Jun 2, 2015

Religious Kurds Key to Turkish Electoral Outcomes

By Aaron Stein

Just days before Turkish citizens head to the poll for the June 7 national election, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and Turkey’s fourth largest party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) are competing for the hearts and minds of religiously minded Kurds.

Turkey

MENASource

Jun 1, 2015

Top News: Iraqi Forces Edge Towards Ramadi

By MENASource

Iraqi forces retook an area west of Ramadi on Saturday as they pressed their operation aimed at sealing off ISIS by severing their supply lines.

MENASource

Jun 1, 2015

Top News: Hunger-striking Prisoner Mohamed Soltan Gives Up Egyptian Citizenship, is Deported to US

By EgyptSource

Egyptian authorities freed an Egyptian American on Saturday who was sentenced to life in prison and had been on hunger strike for over a year, forcing him to renounce his Egyptian citizenship as a precondition of his release.

MENASource

Jun 1, 2015

EconSource: Oil Halts Advance as Saudis Pump at Record Before OPEC Meeting

By EconSource

Oil halted a two-day advance as Saudi Arabia maintained record crude output in May before the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meets this week to discuss its production policy.

MENASource

May 29, 2015

Top News: Saudi Arabia Suicide Bomb Attack Kills Four in Dammam

By MENASource

A suicide attack on Friday occurred near al-Anoud mosque in the eastern city of Dammam, where many Shia live.

MENASource

May 29, 2015

EconSource: Libya on Verge of Economic Collapse, UN Envoy Warns

By EconSource

The United Nation’s Special Envoy to Libya Bernardino Leon said Thursday that Libya is on the verge of economic collapse as rival factions haggle over a political settlement.

MENASource

May 29, 2015

Top News: Police Officer Acquitted of Charge of Torturing 2011 Suspect to Death

By EgyptSource

An Egyptian court on Thursday acquitted a state security officer who had been convicted of torturing to death an Islamist detainee, state media said. Mohamed Abdel Rahman al-Shemi had been sentenced to fifteen years in prison for torturing and killing Salafist detainee, Sayed Bilal.

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