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Shahmahmood Miakhel is the Country Director in Afghanistan for the US Institute of Peace (USIP). Prior to that he was a Governance Advisor for the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), and, from 2003–2005, a Deputy Minister of the Interior in the Government of Afghanistan. In 1994–1995 he worked for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in South and Southeast Afghanistan helping to establish District Rehabilitation Shuras (DRS). He also worked as a reporter for the Pashto service of the Voice of America from 1985–1990.
The Biden administration has largely relied on airstrikes to prevent the Houthis from causing further harm to international maritime trade in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. But as we have seen already, this approach is unlikely to work against an armed group that has survived years of such one-off attacks from above. To effectively degrade the military capacity of the Houthis, a comprehensive and fully-resourced interdiction regime at sea is needed to target their supply lines and deny them the use of various forms of Iranian assistance.
On this week’s episode, MEI Iran Program Director Alex Vatanka, MEI Non-resident Scholar Andrew Scott Cooper, and MEI Editor-In-Chief Alistair Taylor discuss the Iranian Revolution of 1979. A seminal event in the history of the modern Middle East, the revolution transformed Iran and its impact continues to reverberate across the region today, nearly five decades on.
Few events in our lifetime are as shrouded in myth and conspiracy as the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Forty-five years later, however, we now have a much clearer picture of the dramatic events that played out on the streets of Tehran before a worldwide television audience.
Suspending UNRWA funding is collective punishment for Palestinians
The decision by the United States and other donor countries to suspend financial assistance to UNRWA will have far-reaching and likely devastating consequences for the civilian populations that rely on its services, particularly in the Gaza Strip. Donor countries must realize that the consequences will hinder the humanitarian response to the Israeli war on Gaza, incurring a heavy cost in human lives.
US response to Tower 22 attack in Jordan: Less intense, more restrained than anticipated
On the evening of Saturday, Feb. 3, local time, US warplanes bombed facilities used by Iranian forces and Iran-backed militias in Syria and Iraq, in retaliation for the death of 3 US service members in a Jan. 28 drone attack on Tower 22, a US military base in northeastern Jordan on the Syrian border. The airstrikes primarily targeted locations in eastern Syria and western Iraq.
The Middle East Institute (MEI) mourns the loss of Dr. Richard A. Debs, a distinguished member of our International Advisory Council (IAC), who passed away January 28, 2024.
The implications of Red Sea instability on the global LNG market
Well over 30 attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea have been reported since mid-November 2023, although none have targeted crude oil or liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers to date. But that is not to say that global energy flows through this critical maritime chokepoint are invulnerable; any harm that came to hydrocarbon carriers traveling into or out of the Red Sea via the Bab el-Mandeb would have far-reaching consequences for international markets.
Azerbaijan and COP29: An opportunity or a challenge?
Azerbaijan will host COP29 at the end of this year. Being selected to host the most important international climate event is a major achievement for the South Caucasus country, though the spotlight it brings will come with its own challenges due to Azerbaijan’s poor human rights record and worsening relations with the West.
Innovations in Climate Resilience: Water and Energy for Food (WE4F) in MENA
Innovations in Climate Resilience is an event series hosted by the Middle East Institute's Climate and Water Program. This fireside chat series showcases different practical applications that address climate change vulnerability in the MENA region.
What to expect as Pakistan goes to the polls for a long-awaited national election
Though delayed by several months, Pakistan is now on the verge of a national election on Feb. 8 that will replace an elected government ousted in April 2022 by an opposition-cum-military alliance.
Women and climate change in MENA: Turning adversity into opportunity
The MENA region is both a climate change hotspot and one of the world’s most gender unequal regions. As a result of gender inequality, women face disproportionate risks from climate change, but there are ways to transform these threats and turn them into opportunities.
