Iran Intended Its Strikes to Pressure the U.S.-Israeli Operation to Stop. For Now, That Narrative Has Collapsed
Ideologues Do Not Shed Their Ideology Easily and Will See Compromise as a Weakness to Exploit
Pakistan’s Strategic-Depth Doctrine Assumed Taliban Compliance, Yet Taliban Authorities Resisted Pakistani Pressure
Victory Comes Not Only with Bombs and Missiles, but by Winning Hearts and Minds
If the Strait of Hormuz Remains Blocked for Several More Weeks, Global Oil Prices Could Rise to $120–$150 per Barrel
Damascus’s Plan for Sweida Could Reshape Israel’s Northern Frontier
The Islamic Republic Has Spent Decades and Billions of Dollars on Proxy Groups in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen to Engage Enemies
That Indian Shi’a Hold Extraterritorial Loyalties Towards a Murderous Regime Defies Logic and Reason
Post-Islamic Republic Iran Will Need to Remove the Security Forces from Politics and the Economy
The Azerbaijani Exclave’s Geography Allows Iran to Demonstrate Military Reach While Minimizing the Risk of Direct Confrontation
Many Kurdish Political Movements View a U.S. Partnership as Aligned with the Goal of Democratic Governance, but It Has Risks
Iran Targeted the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait Within Hours, Pointing to a Pre-Planned Regional Operation
A Dispatch from a Sealed Room in Israel on the Necessary, Terrible Cost of Ending the Iranian Regime
The Case for Investing in Iranian Civil Society Alongside Military Replenishment
Another Massive Post-Liberal Adjustment in Which the U.S. Is Sidelining Systems That No Longer Function as They Should
Spotlight on Striking Iran
Operations Epic Fury and Roaring Lion by the United States and Israel have deal a massive blow to the Iranian regime’s leadership and military capabilities. The initial military action seems to have been a success.
Khamenei and many others were killed How did the attacks unfold, what are the results so far and what targets may be nest on the list. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
Khamenei and many others were killed How did the attacks unfold, what are the results so far and what targets may be nest on the list. MEF fellows and experts weigh in on all of this.
As unrest spreads across Iran, the regime and the opposition both face narrowing choices.
The Post–9/11 AUMF for Operations in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Beyond, Remains Operative
It Is Clear That the Islamic Republic’s Strategy Will Simply Be to Survive
Reports of Xi Jinping Authorizing the Transfer of ‘Carrier-Killer’ Missiles to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Created an Untenable ‘Ticking Clock’ for the Trump Administration
Khamenei’s Death Creates a Power Vacuum in Iran: Constitutional Succession May Stall, the IRGC Could Seize Control, and Opposition Leaders May Need Protection to Govern
Spotlight on Iran’s Future
The kinetic action is a start but what will be the result? Will the Islamic Republic fall? Will the people of Iran get to choose their own government?
The damage to the leadership was extensive, but can the opposition rise up to take control? How will the other countries who were attacked react to the Iranian strikes against them? The future of the region hangs in the balance.
The damage to the leadership was extensive, but can the opposition rise up to take control? How will the other countries who were attacked react to the Iranian strikes against them? The future of the region hangs in the balance.
The Regime May Still Hold the Center, but Holding the Center Is Not the Same as Maintaining State Capacity
Proxy Militias Whose Creation Predates the Islamic Republic Will Need a Concerted Effort to Combat
The Strikes Were a Military Success. Will They Be a Political One?
Those Who Have Endured the Regime’s Oppressive Policies Must Secure Recognition and the Right to Self-Determination
A New Regional Alignment Against Tehran Has Formed, While Iranian Missiles Were Still in Flight
Even If Tehran and Washington Were to Reach a New Nuclear Agreement, Such Participation Would Remain Unrealistic
Middle East Quarterly - Current Issue
Founded in 1994 by Daniel Pipes, MEQ is the Middle East Forum’s journal intended for both scholars and the educated public. Policymakers, opinion-makers, academics, and journalists write for and read the Quarterly, which is known for exclusive interviews, in-depth historical articles, and book reviews on subjects ranging from archaeology to politics and on countries from Morocco to Iran.
Spring 2026 Volume 33: Number 2
Spring 2026 Volume 33: Number 2
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As the Islamic Republic Cracks, the Iran Freedom Congress in London Races to Build the Framework Tehran Prayed Would Never Exist -
MEF Investigation Exposes How Nexus Project Operates as a ‘Laundromat’ for Anti-Zionist AntisemitismNew Israel Fund-Backed Initiative, Inserted into U.S. Policy, Created Systematic Loopholes to Shield Anti-Israel Actors from Accountability -
House Judiciary Committee cites MEF findings as Texas lawmakers move to investigate Islamist-linked institutions -
Lawmakers from Israel, U.S., Greece, and Cyprus Launch Caucus to Strengthen Ties and Contain Ankara
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Once the Regime Is Eliminated, Taking on 1.3 Million Members of the Iranian Regime’s Fighting Forces Is the Riskiest Part of the Endeavor -
Iran’s Regime Has Schemed to Expand the Islamic Revolution Since the Ayatollahs Seized Power in November 1979 -
The India of 1949 Was ‘Postcolonial, Post-British, Post-Partition, Post-Traumatic’ -
Savagery and Hostage-Taking Has Been Used to Reframe the Palestinian Arab-Israeli Conflict and Unleash a Torrent of Antisemitism
Middle East Forum Observer
Founded in 2024, the Observer provides rapid analysis on leading Middle East developments, from Marrakech to Mashhad and the Bab el-Mandeb to the Black Sea.
Launched in 2006, Islamist Watch is a project of the Middle East Forum. We work to combat the ideas and institutions of lawful Islamism in the United States and throughout the West. Arguing that “radical Islam is the problem, moderate Islam is the solution,” we seek to expose the Islamist organizations that currently dominate the debate, while identifying and promoting the work of moderate Muslims.
CAMPUS WATCH, a project of the Middle East Forum, reviews and critiques Middle East studies in North America with an aim to improving them. The project mainly addresses five problems: analytical failures, the mixing of politics with scholarship, intolerance of alternative views, apologetics, and the abuse of power over students. Campus Watch fully respects the freedom of speech of those it debates while insisting on its own freedom to comment on their words and deeds.
Gaza
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The ‘Popular Army,’ Led by One Ashraf Al-Mansi, Is Notable for Its Presence in the Northern Part of the Strip -
Antisemitic Textbooks Assert the Bible is Distorted and Paint ‘Paul the Jew’ As the Corruptor of Christianity -
For Decades, the International Community Remained Stubbornly Wedded to a ‘Top-Down’ Fantasy -
Reconstruction Talk That Races Ahead of Security Realities Risks Freezing Conflict Rather than Resolving It
Islam
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For Decades, the Israeli Security Establishment Operated Under a Self-Imposed Psychological Constraint Known Informally as the ‘Ramadan Veto’ -
Religious Labeling Does Not Change Destructive Capacity, but It Changes Perceived Authority -
State Centralization Transformed the Waqf Into a Regulatory Instrument That Retained the Name but Lost Its Substance -
How Islam Severed Itself from the Biblical World That Once Made Its Scripture Intelligible
Muslims in the US
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In a Highly Anticipated Move, the Trump Administration Designated Factions of the Global Muslim Brotherhood as Terrorist Organizations Last Month -
The West, in Its Universalist Hubris, Imports Incompatible Paradigms, Believing That Liberal Democracy Can Digest Everything, like an Omnivorous Leviathan -
And While We’re at it, Think Twice About Offering Him Another Post
