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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EconSource: ISIS Militants Breach Iraq Refinery Perimeter, Repelled

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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EconSource: ISIS Militants Breach Iraq Refinery Perimeter, Repelled

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

EconSource: ISIS Militants Breach Iraq Refinery Perimeter, Repelled

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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MENASource

Apr 13, 2015

EconSource: ISIS Militants Breach Iraq Refinery Perimeter, Repelled

By EconSource

Militants from the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) breached the security perimeter around Iraq’s largest refinery in Baiji early on Monday but were beaten back by security forces and coalition air strikes, according to local officials.

MENASource

Apr 10, 2015

The War on Egypt’s Human Rights Defenders

By Ragab Saad

In his annual report before the latest session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein criticized the flagrant human rights violations in Egypt, particularly the trials of dozens of political activists and human rights advocates.

North Africa

MENASource

Apr 10, 2015

EconSource: IFC Plans up to $2 Billion Investment in Egyptian Infrastructure, Power

By EconSource

The World Bank’s development arm plans to invest between $1.2 billion and $2 billion in Egypt over the next four years, including around the Suez Canal, its regional director said. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is looking at ports and logistics projects, according to Mouayed Makhlouf, the IFC’s director of Middle East and North Africa.

MENASource

Apr 10, 2015

Top News: UN Vote As Early As Friday on Yemen Arms Embargo

By MENASource

The UN Security Council could vote as early as Friday on a resolution to blacklist the son of Yemen’s former president and a Houthi leader and effectively impose an arms embargo on the rebels that rule most of the country, diplomats said.

MENASource

Apr 10, 2015

Top News: Egypt’s Prime Minister Denies Government Interference in Upcoming Elections

By EgyptSource

Prime Minister Ibrahim Mahlab has rejected claims the state is promoting candidates or groups ahead of the upcoming parliamentary election. “The government swore an oath not to talk about the election and has not asked anyone to nominate themselves nor backed anyone, this is a definitive decision,” he said in comments to state news agency MENA. 

MENASource

Apr 9, 2015

Top News: Iran Calls for Unity Government in Yemen

By MENASource

In the most direct US criticism yet of Tehran’s backing of the Houthi rebels, Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington would not accept foreign interference in Yemen.

MENASource

Apr 9, 2015

Top News: Cybercrime Draft Law Awaits Presidential Approval

By EgyptSource

Egypt’s government has approved a draft law tackling internet crime and submitted it to the presidency for final approval, Minister of Communication and Information Technology Khaled Negm said on Thursday. The minister said that the law addresses “crimes committed both against fellow citizens and against the state.” 

MENASource

Apr 9, 2015

EconSource: Oil Tankers Diverted From Yemen Amid Saudi Air Strikes

By EconSource

At least four oil and natural gas tankers that were headed to Yemen have been diverted as chaos mounts in the country following the launch of Saudi-led air strikes, according to industry sources and ship tracking data. Fighting has forced the country’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant to take one of its production plants […]

MENASource

Apr 9, 2015

Egypt and Yemen, Take Two

By MENASource

The escalation of the conflict in Yemen has mobilized the largest number of Arab forces in the past sixty years. Egypt represents a major partner in the Saudi-led Arab coalition that has conducted regular air strikes against rebel Houthi positions with the stated goal of returning ousted President Abdrabbo Mansour Hadi to power.

North Africa Yemen

MENASource

Apr 8, 2015

Egypt and Yemen 53 Years Later

By Yasmine Farouk

Fifty-three years after Gamal Abdel Nasser’s failed adventure in Yemen, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is rallying under that same banner of pan-Arabism, and Egypt is once again involved in Yemen’s domestic affairs. Unlike under Nasser, however, rather than trying to counter Saudi Arabia’s regional interests, Egypt is jumping on the bandwagon with the kingdom, […]

North Africa Saudi Arabia
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