Middle East Quarterly

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
The Palestinian right of return is primarily a political and ideological claim rather than a binding legal one supported by international law. In 1974, Yasser Arafat championed it at the U.N., declaring that Zionism is "colonialist", "imperialist," and "racist." The right of return continues to shape Palestinian politics and Western diplomacy, and remains a central factor in the persistence of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Middle East Quarterly
Palestinian Intransigence and the “Right of Return”
February 27, 2026
Middle East Quarterly
Trump’s Twenty-Point Plan and Hamas’s Rebirth
February 27, 2026
Map of Nubl and al-Zahra in northern Aleppo countryside (10 June 2018). The map shows the locations of the two Twelver Shiite towns, Nubl and al-Zahra, within territories held by Syrian government forces (blue), opposition forces (green), and Kurdish forces (yellow) during the Syrian civil war. Despite their isolation amid Sunni and Kurdish regions, both towns have largely avoided post-Assad violence and serve as case studies in localized stability and minority protection.
Middle East Quarterly
Eyewitness Report: Twelver Shiite Villages of Nubl and al-Zahra in the Aleppo Countryside in the Post-Assad Period
February 27, 2026
The June 2025 Israeli military campaign, backed by the U.S., significantly weakened Iran’s strategic capabilities and reshaped regional dynamics. Rather than accelerating formal Saudi-Israeli normalization, it produced a post-liberal Middle East in which Saudi Arabia treats Israel as a covert partner and constrained outsider while competing for regional primacy. (Shutterstock/Asset ID: 2096850640)
Middle East Quarterly
Inter-Arab Rivalry and Regional Hierarchy in the Post–Liberal Middle East
February 27, 2026
Middle East Quarterly
Book Reviews
February 27, 2026
Book Reviews
Winter 2026
Brief Reviews
Jihadist Governance and Statecraft
September 2, 2025
Brief Reviews
Sexuality in the Middle East and North Africa: Contemporary Issues and Challenges
September 2, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
The Syrian Druze: Between the Hammer of Integration and the Anvil of Separation
September 2, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
A Growing Security Threat: Iranian Intelligence Operations in Scandinavia (Part Two: Sweden)
September 2, 2025
Book Reviews
Two Palestinian Memoirs Recall the Good Old Days
September 2, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
Hizb ut-Tahrir: Political Doctrine, Global Reach, and Challenge to the International Order
September 2, 2025
Book Reviews
Islamesque: The Forgotten Craftsmen Who Built Europe’s Medieval Monuments
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Endurance: Speaking Kurdish in a Warped World
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Polluted Politics: The Development of an Israeli-Palestinian E-Waste Economy
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Jerusalem on Earth: Clamoring at Heaven’s Gate: Post-Six Day War Jerusalem
June 1, 2025
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Winter 2026
Book Reviews
Leaving Islam, Ex-Muslims, and Zemiology
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Heroes to Hostages: America and Iran, 1800-1988
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Handbook of Islamic Sects and Movements
June 1, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
A Growing Security Threat: Iranian Intelligence Operations in Scandinavia (Part One: Denmark and Norway)
June 1, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
Artificial Intelligence as a Pathway to Normalization Between Israel and Saudi Arabia: Post-Gaza War Prospects
June 1, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
Iran’s Use of Psychological Warfare Against Its Adversaries and Strategies for Deterrence
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
The Renegade (Il Rinnegato)
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza
June 1, 2025
Book Reviews
Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Destiny of the West
June 1, 2025
Middle East Quarterly
“Are You Alawite?”: A Call to Prevent Genocide in Syria
June 1, 2025
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More from MEF
A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer crew chief marshals a B-1 after returning from a CONUS-to-CONUS mission in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 4, 2026. The B-1B is a long-range, multi-role bomber that carries the largest payload of precision guided and unguided munitions in the Air Force inventory. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Middle East Forum Online
Where Do We Go from Here? The Strategic Endgame of Operation Epic Fury
What Level of Iranian Degradation Is Sufficient to Produce a Settlement That Does Not Simply Reconstitute the Threat Within a Generation?
April 3, 2026
 · 
Hussein Aboubakr Mansour
Europeans are masters of a well-practiced art of balance: denounce with emphasis whatever comes from Tel Aviv or Washington, and wrap Tehran in the reassuring mists of “dialogue" and “de-escalation." Donald Trump greets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, April 7, 2025.
Middle East Forum Online
Break the Stalemate—or Iran Wins
The Demonstration of U.S. and Israeli Military Superiority Has Not Yet Produced a Positive, Victorious Outcome from the Israeli and American Point of View
April 3, 2026
 · 
Jonathan Spyer
A new Turkish decree expands formal controls over military and dual-use goods transiting the country amid sustained Western pressure.
Middle East Forum Online
Turkey’s New Iran Export Controls Face an Old Problem: Enforcement
Legal Reforms Follow U.S. Pressure, but Sanctions Evasion Track Record Remains
April 3, 2026
 · 
Abdullah Bozkurt
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