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    • Blue Wave, Regional Ripples: Turkey and Lebanon React to the Midterms
  • Podcast

    • Blue Wave, Regional Ripples: Turkey and Lebanon React to the Midterms

    The November 3 US midterms handed Democrats control of both chambers of Congress, a result many abroad read as a rebuke of President Donald Trump’s policies. How does the “blue wave” resonate among electorates and governments in Turkey and Lebanon, two key American partners in the Middle East? Ankara is weighing an early vote that could let President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan run again while his chief rival stands trial. Beirut, its elections postponed by war, is trying to restore state authority, including over Hizballah’s weapons. MEI Senior Fellows Gönül Tol and Fadi Nicholas Nassar join host Alistair Taylor to discuss how both countries read the results, how issues like corruption struck a chord in each, and what Ankara and Beirut expect from a Democratic Congress.

    November 12, 2026

    Alistair Taylor, Matthew Czekaj

    Syria’s SDF Integration: Progress, Obstacles, and Security Risks
  • Analysis

    • Syria’s SDF Integration: Progress, Obstacles, and Security Risks

    On October 9, protesters in the northeastern city of Hasakah raised the Syrian flag and called for the extension of state authority, roughly six weeks after the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced their dissolution as an independent force. The protesters, who came from Ghwayran, al-Nashwa, al-Aziziyah, and the surrounding countryside, carried photographs of detainees. Alongside a stronger state presence, they demanded a say in how it would be exercised, from who is appointed to run local government to who is recruited into the security services.

    November 12, 2026

    Samer al-Ahmed

    The Human Story Behind Gaza: Jaser AbuMousa on the Costs of Survival for Palestinians
  • Podcast

    • The Human Story Behind Gaza: Jaser AbuMousa on the Costs of Survival for Palestinians

    Brian sits down with MEI Senior Fellow Jaser AbuMousa to assess the situation on the ground in Gaza three years after October 7 and a year into the ceasefire. Drawing on his own personal experience, Jaser explores the toll that the war and continued destruction have taken on Gaza’s residents, the implications of the recent Israeli and US elections, and the difficult path forward.

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    The victory of Israel’s extreme right: Implications for citizens’ rights and Israeli-US relations
    Photo by Eyad Tawil/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • The victory of Israel’s extreme right: Implications for citizens’ rights and Israeli-US relations

    Since winning the Israeli elections on Nov. 1, Benjamin Netanyahu leads a bloc that is ideologically homogeneous in ways never before seen, with a majority of religious nationalists and ultra-Orthodox parties set to enter government and likely to work cohesively for the next four years, unlike in the past.

    November 11, 2022

    Carol Daniel Kasbari

    Frozen Syria? Assessing the state of play and opportunities for engagement
    Photo by BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • Frozen Syria? Assessing the state of play and opportunities for engagement

    Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine has given rise to speculation that it might fully withdraw from Syria, creating a power vacuum that could ignite new fighting. Yet these fears are likely misplaced and a deeper examination of the current state of Syria reveals unique opportunities for engagement from the international community.

    November 10, 2022

    Gregory Waters

    In Turkish-Russian relations, the Ukraine grain deal is not the point
    The image is courtesy of the author.
  • Analysis

    • In Turkish-Russian relations, the Ukraine grain deal is not the point

    The Ukraine grain export deal, which Turkey helped mediate over the summer, was saved last week to much fanfare; but the central unaddressed issue remains lifting Russia’s illegal blockade of Ukrainian ports, so Ukraine can freely trade with the world.

    November 9, 2022

    Yörük Işık

    As liquidity problems worsen, Turkey turns to capital controls and informal FX flows
    Photo by Tunahan Turhan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • As liquidity problems worsen, Turkey turns to capital controls and informal FX flows

    The Turkish economy’s foreign exchange liquidity problem is getting worse. The current account balance has been in the red this year with a monthly deficit of around $5 billion. The government has so far managed to avoid a repeat of the December 2021 currency shock by restricting capital mobility, further tightening regulations in October 2022.

    November 7, 2022

    M. Murat Kubilay

    Israel’s election produces a clear winner — and a lurch further to the right
    Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • Israel’s election produces a clear winner — and a lurch further to the right

    On Nov. 1, Israel’s democracy was shaken, perhaps as never before. It is not so much that former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been returned to power, but that if he does become prime minister again, as seems overwhelmingly likely, it will undoubtedly be with crucial support provided by the “Religious Zionism” party, which includes “Jewish Power,” the vehicle of the veteran neo-Kahanist Itamar Ben-Gvir.

    November 3, 2022

    Paul Scham

    Tehran lashes out at Israelis’ support for Iranian protest movement
    Photo by Saeed Qaq/NurPhoto via Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • Tehran lashes out at Israelis’ support for Iranian protest movement

    The Iranian regime is pointing the finger at Israel and the U.S. for allegedly orchestrating the nationwide protests. But while the U.S. and Israel both might have an interest in shaping and aiding the protest movement once it began, this large-scale mobilization of the Iranian public is a result of the regime’s own policies.

    The Arab Peace Initiative returns. Will it supplant the Abraham Accords?
    Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images
  • Analysis

    • The Arab Peace Initiative returns. Will it supplant the Abraham Accords?

    Although the Abraham Accords have been the main focus of Arab-Israeli peace-making since they were signed, the Arab Peace Initiative (API), introduced by the late Saudi King Abdullah 20 years ago, remains relevant and may be the better reflection of a path forward for Middle East peace

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