Stay Updated

The latest pieces from MENASource:


MENASource

Sep 23, 2025

A geography of protest: Inside the rise of Iran’s minority factor

By
Mohammed A. Salih

From the death of Mahsa Jina Amini to the Twelve Day War, the ethnic question has emerged as a significant dimension of Iran’s politics.

Civil Society
Iran


MENASource

Sep 23, 2025

Iran’s minorities and policy complexity: A look at two communities

By
David Sklar

Iran plays a significant role in Middle Eastern geopolitics. Policymakers should develop a sober, accurate mapping of its population.

Civil Society
Iran


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

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 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

In the News

Mar 29, 2019

Lipner quoted in The Washington Post on Kushner’s Middle East peace plan
Israel Politics & Diplomacy

IranSource

Mar 28, 2019

Environmental challenges plague Iran and the rest of the Middle East

By Masoud Mostajabi

In the wake of record floods in Iran that have killed more than two dozen people, new attention has focused on the environmental challenges facing the Middle East. The issues facing the region are complex and reflect a number of factors, according to experts who spoke on March 27 at the Atlantic Council. Among them are climate change, water scarcity, mismanagement, […]

Iran

MENASource

Mar 28, 2019

The folly of the Trump administration’s proclamations on Israel

By Frederic C. Hof

ently the White House and the Department of State released statements: one proclaiming American recognition of Israel’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights; and the other commemorating the fortieth anniversary of the Israel-Egypt treaty of peace. Each, in its own way, revealed serious leadership dysfunction.

Israel Syria

In the News

Mar 26, 2019

Lipner quoted in USA Today on Trump-Netanyahu relationship

By Shalom Lipner

Israel Politics & Diplomacy

In the News

Mar 26, 2019

Lipner quoted in The Washington Post on Trump-Netanyahu collusion
Israel Politics & Diplomacy
Load More

Experts

Staff

Sarah Zaaimi

Deputy Director, Communications

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Arabic Crisis Management

Fellow

Matthew Zais

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Arms Control Energy & Environment