Resolving the Detainee Crisis


The Middle East Institute (MEI), in partnership with the International Center for the Study of Radicalization (ICSR) at King’s College London, is spearheading a high-level initiative aimed at resolving a major security and humanitarian crisis that resulted from the territorial defeat of ISIS in Syria in 2019. Since then, the U.S. and local Syrian partners have been holding more than 9,000 ISIS fighters in 26 makeshift prisons and 45,000 associated family members in secured camps – all representing more than 55 different nationalities.

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Syria Strategy Project


The Middle East Institute, The Atlantic Council, and European Institute of Peace collaborate with subject matter experts and policymakers in the US, Europe, and the Middle East to develop a holistic strategy to sustainably forge a pathway to resolving Syria’s crisis.

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#SyrianVoices


The Voices of Syria project is an undertaking by the Middle East Institute, in partnership with Syrian civil society, to better inform the general public and to guide policymakers toward a more holistic view of the situation in Syria by leveraging the voices of the unheard and their hopes and aspirations. In this series of short videos, Syrians reflect on issues of reconciliation and justice, and the plight of Syria’s women and children after years of war.

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About the Director

Charles Lister

Lister is the author of “The Syrian Jihad: Al-Qaeda, the Islamic State and the Evolution of an Insurgency” (Oxford University Press, 2016). His research focuses on terrorism and insurgency across the Levant. As a senior consultant to the Syria Track II Dialogue Initiative, he managed nearly three years of intensive face-to-face engagement with the leaderships of over 100 Syrian armed opposition groups.

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Advisory Council


The Syria Program’s Advisory Council is a body of venerable individuals committed to supporting the program’s mission to provide insightful and grounded research and analysis on all things Syria, in order to better inform a wide range of audiences and to help sustain a more meaningful and impactful policy discussion.

Lubna al-Kanawati

Rime Allaf

Ryan Crocker

Michel Duclos

Ibrahim Hamidi

Fred Hof

Mariam Jalabi

Beth Jones

Rafif Jouejati

Hind Kabawat

Dima Moussa

Wejdan Nassif

Ayman Abdel Nour

Anne Patterson

Zaher Sahloul

Wael Sawah

 

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Program Experts


Follow us on Twitter


Follow MEI's Syria Program and its affiliated scholars on Twitter for the latest updates and analysis on Syria and the broader region.

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