Jonathan Spyer

Director of Research & MEQ Editor

Jonathan Spyer oversees the Forum’s content and is editor of the Middle East Quarterly. Mr. Spyer, a journalist, reports for Janes Intelligence Review, writes a column for the Jerusalem Post, and is a contributor to the Wall Street Journal and The Australian. He frequently reports from Syria and Iraq. He has a B.A. from the London School of Economics, an M.A. from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, and a Ph.D. from the London School of Economics. He is the author of two books: The Transforming Fire: The Rise of the Israel-Islamist Conflict (2010) and Days of the Fall: A Reporter’s Journey in the Syria and Iraq Wars (2017).

Articles by this Author
As Syria Faces a Power Vacuum, ISIS Regroups and Expands Its Reach.
With Iran’s Proxies Weakened and Its Air Defenses Damaged, the Time Is Ripe for Israel to Act Against Tehran’s Nuclear Program.
It Has Been Clear from the Start That the Implementation of the First Phase of the Deal Does Not Indicate an Ending of the War, or a Failure of Israel’s War Aims
The Question Now Facing Israel Is This: Will the War in Gaza Recommence?
The HTS Government Doesn’t Have Formal Control over All Syrian Land
Syrian Kurdish Leader Ilham Ahmed Says Israel Must Be Part of the Solution for Middle East Security
While Arab and Muslim States Profess Loyalty to the Palestinian Cause, This Rarely—If Ever—Extends to Measures to Help the Plight of Actual, Living Palestinians
Inside Damascus, You Can Feel the Stark Absence of the State
The Old Dictatorship Was Gone. But Was a New, Islamist Regime in the Process of Being Formed?
Inside Syria’s Ancient Capital, a Lone Jewish Guardian Watches over Abandoned Properties While Islamist Rulers Patrol the Rubble of Historic Synagogues
Hamas Now Stands to Rebuild Its Rule over Gaza, and to Reconstitute Its Hold on the Strip
Last Year’s Sequence of Events Has Substantially Shifted the Strategic Balance of the Region
The Rescue Last Year of Israeli Hostages Noa Argamani, Shlomi Ziv, Almog Meir Jan, and Andrei Kozlov Began Israel’s Ascendant Trajectory
Behind the Lines - Ankara Appears Set on a Two-Sided Strategy to Unify Syria Under the Rule of Its Sunni Islamist Client
The Fact That This Regime Was a Monstrous One, Engaged in the Mass Slaughter of Syrian Civilians, Was Known to Both Policymakers and Publics in the West
Few in Syria Take Seriously the Moderate Image Currently Being Presented by HTS Leader Abu Mohammed Al-Julani
In the Period Between 2017 and 2024 Al-Jolani and His Movement Were the de Facto Rulers of Idleb Province
Iran and Its Proxy Network Have Been Revealed to Be Paper Tigers. More Defeats Will Surely Follow This One
In 1970, Hafez Assad, Bashar’s Father, Launched a Coup to Topple His Former Ally and Proclaimed Himself President. His Family Ruled Syria Until This Week.