Middle East

Middle East

Stretching from the Western Mediterranean to the Indian Ocean, the Middle East continues to be a region struggling with violent conflict, political repression, and poor development. Numerous pro-democracy protest movements, a burgeoning youth population, and efforts to reform governments and lessen economic dependence on oil, however, are causes for optimism. The United States and the international community must remain engaged with the region to provide support for these positive moves and to address the many remaining challenges.

Explore

Stay Updated


The latest pieces from MENASource:


MENASource

Nov 5, 2026

Washington should broaden its Shia outreach in Iraq. Muqtada al-Sadr is a case study.

By
Alfadhel Ahmad

Conversations with several Sadrists reveal a movement preparing to fill a leadership vacuum in Iraq—and engage with the US.


Elections

Iraq


MENASource

Oct 30, 2026

Libya’s maritime deal with Turkey may be the key to reunification

By
Mohamed Eljarh

The deal, and the rise of Saddam Haftar, represent a new approach to Libya’s divided domestic politics and foreign relations.


Libya

Maritime Security


MENASource

Oct 28, 2026

The Board of Peace for Gaza is not a commercial enterprise. It should stop acting like one.

By
Miroslav M. Zafirov

The Board of Peace is missing the infrastructure, funding, and security guarantees it needs to make progress on its mission.


Conflict

Israel

READ More from MENASOURCE

Through our Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, 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.

Learn more

Content

MENASource

May 2, 2013

Iraq’s Dangerous Relapse Needs US Attention

By Ramzy Mardini

The month of April marked the tenth anniversary of the fall of Baghdad, the third provincial election of the post-Saddam era—the country’s first without the presence of US troops—and seven years since a relatively unknown Nouri al-Maliki emerged as the prime minister of Iraq. Nevertheless, after a period of relatively low violence and another election […]

Iraq United States and Canada
Obama.JPG

MENASource

May 1, 2013

Syria: The Chemical Weapons Red Line

By Frederic C. Hof

The real significance of Syria’s likely crossing of US President Barack Obama’s chemical weapons red line may be that it will focus the administration’s attention on here-and-now Syria policy options as it has not been focused heretofore. As the president said in his April 30 press conference, regime culpability in using chemical weapons would force […]

Syria

New Atlanticist

Apr 30, 2013

Time For Some American Shock and Awe in Syria

By Sarwar Kashmeri

United States’ intelligence agencies and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are still not certain the Syrian government of President Assad has used chemical weapons against its opposition. Nothing has yet emerged from France, Germany or Britain to unequivocally confirm this charge either. But the clamor among the hawkish segment of Washington lawmakers to get the […]

Security & Defense Syria

MENASource

Apr 30, 2013

Eroding Civil Liberties in Kuwait

By Mary Ann Tetreault

The sentencing of popular Kuwaiti opposition leader Musallem al-Barrak on April 15 for insulting the amir, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is part of a pattern of deteriorating civil liberties in Kuwait. Although the roots of the current conflict can be traced back to a 2006 social movement whose aim was to change the election […]

International Organizations Politics & Diplomacy

New Atlanticist

Apr 29, 2013

Obama Should Remember Rwanda as He Weighs Action in Syria

By Anne-Marie Slaughter

The Rwanda genocide began in April 1994; within a few weeks, nongovernmental organizations there were estimating that 100,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus had been massacred. Yet two months later, Reuters correspondent Alan Elsner and State Department spokeswoman Christine Shelly had an infamous exchange: Elsner: “How would you describe the events taking place in Rwanda?” Shelly: […]

Syria United States and Canada

Event Recap

Apr 26, 2013

Roundtable on Egypt’s Changing Political Scene

The Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East hosted a roundtable discussion with former MP Dr. Amr Hamzawy and Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies Director Mr. Bahey el Din Hassan on the emerging politics and the unsettling human rights environment in Egypt.

North Africa

MENASource

Apr 25, 2013

Syria and Geneva: No Precondition, but a Certain Result

By Frederic C. Hof

US President Barack Obama’s Syria-related objective remains one of negotiated political transition consistent with what the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council (P5) decided in Geneva in June 2012. It is important, therefore, to understand what was actually agreed.

Syria

MENASource

Apr 24, 2013

Tunisia: Turning Around Finally

By Mohsin Khan and Svetlana Milbert

The announcement on April 19 by Managing Director Christine Lagarde of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), that the Tunisian government and the IMF had reached agreement on a two-year Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) amounting to $1.78 billion could well prove to be a watershed in Tunisia’s economic recovery. What the announcement means precisely is that the […]

North Africa

MENASource

Apr 23, 2013

Reform of Energy Subsidies in the Arab Countries

By Svetlana Milbert

Energy subsidies have been an integral part of domestic pricing policies in most Arab countries for decades, but are increasingly unsustainable because of their economic, social, and environmental impact. Out of twenty Middle East and North African (MENA) countries, twelve have energy subsidies amounting to at least 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). A […]

Energy & Environment Middle East

MENASource

Apr 22, 2013

Syria: Defending the Indefensible

By Frederic C. Hof

Recent testimony by US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey illustrated quite nicely one outcome of a troubled interagency national security system: US senators seemed to be more perplexed about American policy toward Syria after the hearing than they were before.

Syria United States and Canada
Load More

Experts

Staff

Landon Derentz

Vice President, Energy and Infrastructure

Global Energy Center

Energy & Environment Europe & Eurasia

Fellow

Haydee Dijkstal

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Africa Corruption

Millennium fellow

Mark Donig

Head of US, Blue Laurel Advisors

Global Leadership Center

Entrepreneurship Middle East

Fellow

Katie Donohoe

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Africa Central Asia

Fellow

Kimberly Donovan

Former Director, Economic Statecraft Initiative

Economic Statecraft Initiative GeoEconomics Center

Digital Currencies Economy & Business

Fellow

Lama El Hatow

Nonresident Fellow

empowerME Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Africa Climate Change & Climate Action
Load More

Events

Online Event Wed, November 18, 2026 • 11:00 am ET

The future of Iraq-Syria relations
Iraq Politics & Diplomacy Syria