Stay Updated

The latest pieces from MENASource:


MENASource

Sep 19, 2025

How Israel’s strike on Doha is forcing a Gulf security reckoning

By
Giorgio Cafiero

The Gulf monarchies have displayed strong unity at a time when rethinking twenty-first-century Gulf security is no longer optional.

Israel
Middle East


MENASource

Sep 19, 2025

Snapback sanctions threaten to further derail Iran nuclear deal hopes

By
Rob Macaire

Now would be the best time for the West to negotiate a deal with Iran—but snapback sanctions threaten a derailing into further confrontation.

Economic Sanctions
Iran


MENASource

Sep 18, 2025

Libya’s stalled transition: When domestic spoilers meet foreign interests

By
Luis Aleman and Karim Mezran

Libya’s stalled transition has not happened by chance; it has been deliberately engineered into paralysis by both domestic spoilers and foreign powers.

Libya
Middle East

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

In the News

Apr 4, 2019

El-Gamal Joins TRT World to Discuss Whether It is Safe for Syrian Refugees to Return Home

By Jasmine El- Gamal

Watch the full discussion here

Syria

IranSource

Apr 4, 2019

Which biblical Iranian character are you?

By Thamar E. Gindin

Those of us who use social media as a means of procrastination are familiar with the “Which… Are You?” tests. These quizzes are obviously not exact.

Iran

IranSource

Apr 2, 2019

Sanctions propel Iran in the global race for terminator-like AI

By Mahmoud Pargoo

While US-reimposed sanctions have severely damaged the Iranian economy, one sector is still thriving: emerging technologies. The latest success story is the Artificial Intelligence-powered navigation app BALAD which hit a record 1.2 million downloads within a few days of its launch in March.

Iran

In the News

Apr 2, 2019

Slavin in The Interpreter: A Year After US Withdrawal From the Nuclear Deal, Iran Digs In

By Barbara Slavin

Read the full article here

Iran

In the News

Apr 1, 2019

Lipner in Haaretz: Sick of Dogmatic, Trump-loving pro-Israel Partisans? You Should Join AIPAC
Israel Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Apr 1, 2019

Wald Joins Bloomberg to Discuss Saudi Royal Family Demands and Its Risks For Investors

By Ellen Wald

Listen to the full discussion here

Saudi Arabia

SyriaSource

Apr 1, 2019

The potential loss of refugee status for Palestinian-Syrians in Afrin

By Musaab Balchi

A new documentation system in the Turkish-administrated region in northern Aleppo designed for security and administrative purposes seems to ignore the legal status of local residents; many of which are internally displaced peoples (IDP)s that are Syrian or Palestinian. The system raises concerns from displaced Palestinian refugees about their internationally recognized legal refugee status and their ability to preserve their Palestinian identity within the larger Syrian population.

Syria

IranSource

Apr 1, 2019

Iran-North Korea relationship reflects failed US policies

By Mintaro Oba

Before he was Iran’s Supreme Leader, then-President Ayatollah Ali Khamenei visited North Korea in 1989—a trip that included a ride on the Pyongyang subway and a motorcade ride past throngs of cheering North Koreans. It was intended to send a strong message: North Korea and Iran, driven by mutual enmity toward the United States, were becoming close friends.

Iran Korea

IranSource

Mar 30, 2019

Iran’s Hurricane Katrina moment

By Borzou Daragahi

Iranian authorities barred international journalists from covering the disastrous floods that have stricken most of the country’s provinces and caused death and mayhem during the normally festive two-week Nowruz holidays that follow the Iranian new year.

Iran

IranSource

Mar 29, 2019

Nowruz floods in Iran anger many but reasons are complex

By Holly Dagres

The Iranian new year, Nowruz, is supposed to be a time of joy and celebration when Iranians visit family and go on vacation in other provinces. But for many this year, it was a time of sorrow and loss. Heavy rains, first welcomed in the drought-stricken country, turned into catastrophic floods. Twenty-eight of Iran’s thirty-one […]

Iran
Load More

Experts

Staff

Khalid Azim

Director, MENA Futures Lab

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Economy & Business Middle East

Fellow

Andrea Rigoni

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Transatlantic Security Initiative

Cybersecurity Digital Policy

Staff

Allison Minor

Director, N7 Research Institute

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Arabic Conflict

Millennium fellow

Aina Monfort

COO, Airbus Helicopters Spain

Millennium Leadership Program

Indo-Pacific North Africa

Fellow

Elizabeth Shortino

Nonresident Senior Fellow

GeoEconomics Center

Economy & Business Inclusive Growth

Fellow

Christopher Aw

Nonresident Senior Fellow, N7 Initiative

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Economy & Business Intelligence
Load More