Middle East Programs Commentary & Analysis

Our blogs feature thoughtful reflections and opinions on current events in the Middle East & North Africa.

Through our Middle East Programs, the Atlantic Council works with allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

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Meet our blogs

MENASource

MENASource follows movements across the region and provides news and analysis on current events, including a platform for Middle Eastern perspectives, among others, on major issues—economic, political, security, cultural—that are at stake in the post-Arab Spring era.  

IranSource

IranSource provides a holistic look at Iran’s internal dynamics, global and regional policies, and posture through unique analysis of current events and long-term, strategic issues related to Iran.

All commentary & analysis

IranSource

Sep 5, 2018

Europe Cannot Save the Iran Deal, But it Must Try

By Cornelius Adebahr

You would not know it from reading the news, but the Iran nuclear deal is still alive. The Europeans, however, are faced with an impossible task: to preserve an international agreement that cannot survive without Washington’s backing in the face of an aggressive US posture toward Tehran. In May, US President Donald J. Trump pulled […]

Iran

SyriaSource

Sep 4, 2018

Russia’s disinformation campaign has changed how we see Syria

By Mona Alami

Assad's future is looking brighter these days. He has regained control over much of Syria and is amassing loyalist forces in the north in preparation for the Idlib offensive, the last opposition Syrian stronghold.

Syria

IranSource

Sep 4, 2018

Iran Can Only Blame Its Woes on the Trump Administration for So Long

By Mohammed Alsulami

The Iranian regime has successfully navigated difficulties over the past four decades, such as domestic infighting after the 1979 revolution, the eight-year Iran-Iraq War, the ensuing economic difficulties, and the controversy over its nuclear program during the mid-2000s. Many analysts believe that these tests immunized the regime to threats. Recent months, however, have proved that […]

Iran

SyriaSource

Aug 31, 2018

Escalations and military build-up: what is happening in Idlib?

By Rachel Rossi and Aisha Han

Recent diplomatic escalations and a military build-up in Idlib province indicate a larger upcoming battle. The regime and Russia intend to recover the regime's sovereignty over Syria, and that has always included Idlib.

Syria

IranSource

Aug 31, 2018

Rage against the Elite: How Iran’s Nouveau Riche Profits from Sanctions

By Holly Dagres

“Iran suggested to me a massive Potemkin village, a facade with people at the top partying and people below struggling,” a cable from the US Embassy in Tehran read during the late 1970s. Not much has changed since the turban replaced the crown in 1979, except that now the party is behind closed doors and […]

Iran

SyriaSource

Aug 28, 2018

Death notices fortify barrier of fear in Syria

By Elizabeth Tsurkov

Over recent weeks, as the Syrian regime updated its civil registries across the country, hundreds of families discovered that their relatives died in detention. Tens of thousands of Syrians were arrested in the early years of the uprising and their families continued to hold on to hope that they were still alive.

Syria

SyriaSource

Aug 23, 2018

Chemical warnings and unintended consequences

By Frederic C. Hof

On August 21, 2018 the United States, France, and the United Kingdom issued a statement to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Assad regime’s deadly chemical attack on civilians in the rebel-held Ghouta suburb of Damascus. According to the three powers, “we will respond appropriately to any further use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, which has had such devastating humanitarian consequences for the Syria people.”

Syria

IranSource

Aug 23, 2018

Hackers Are Infecting Android Devices and Iranians Don’t Even Know It

By Amin Sabeti

Iran is no stranger to the global digital security community. This week, cybersecurity firm FireEye released a report about a network of Iranian accounts and groups on social media platforms attempting to manipulate users and also hack their accounts. Though big stories like this tend to focus on Iranian cyber attacks against Western government interests […]

Iran

IranSource

Aug 22, 2018

Declassified Documents Reveal Weakness of Unilateral Iran Sanctions

By Danielle Siegel

The Trump Administration’s May 2018 decision to pull the US out of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) made headlines with its promise of unprecedented sanctions against Iran. Strong rhetoric aside, President Trump’s stated policy outcomes are consistent with those of his predecessors: preventing Iran from advancing its nuclear and missile capabilities, discouraging […]

Iran

IranSource

Aug 21, 2018

Reflecting on the Iran-Iraq War, Thirty Years Later

By Lukman Faily

This August marks the thirtieth anniversary of the Iran-Iraq War ending. This tragic eight-year conflict was a transformable event for Tehran and Baghdad. There were over one million casualties on both sides, and the conflict effectively transformed the entire Middle East, too. The narrative of “futile war” comes to mind when one tries to look […]

Iran Iraq
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