Research & Commentary Results

Policymakers in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East are rightly focused on where the current crisis in Gaza is headed. The humanitarian disaster hovering over the region since Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel has resulted in countless lives lost and now threatens regional and global security. Among many of the issues occupying policymakers is the concern that new fronts in the war will open, potentially involving the West Bank, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and even Iran.

Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.

Oct. 7 sounded the death knell of the Abraham Accords. Yet the end to the initial conceit of the Abraham Accords does not mean an end to the essential role that the Abraham Accords partners can play in helping broker an Israeli-Palestinian agreement.

Much has been written about the European Union’s confused and cacophonic response to the heinous Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack that has plunged the Middle East into one of the most violent crises the region has known since World War II. While the condemnation of Hamas’ atrocities was unanimous, not much else was.

The ongoing Palestinian-Israeli crisis is further intensified in the information space by the failure of the leading tech giants, including Meta, to combat online disinformation, incitement to violence, and hate speech proliferating on their platforms, most egregiously against Palestinians.

Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.

In the aftermath of the horrific Hamas terror attack on Oct. 7, and amid the ongoing war in Gaza, the scope and intensity of the current crackdown by the Israeli government and law enforcement on Palestinian citizens of Israel and the suppression of pro-Palestinian speech are unprecedented.

The deadly and unprecedented Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7 came as a surprise not only to Israel but also to its neighbors. A strong Israeli retaliation came next, causing much damage to Palestinians in Gaza and putting Israel’s relations in the broader Middle East to the test. Nearly a month into the fighting, it is possible to initially assess the resilience of Israel’s regional ties in light of the Israel-Hamas war.

Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.

As the fighting in Gaza continues to rage, Iran’s influence with Hamas, hitherto limited, could expand further, extending beyond the Middle East. Tehran is looking to contain Israel not just in the region but in Africa and Latin America as well. Although there are ideological differences between these two members of the so-called “Axis of Resistance,” the Israel-Hamas war may bring them closer together and strengthen their partnership.

In the midst of the current war, there is still no concrete plan for what the future of Gaza could look like. Yet preparations for a viable and lasting post-war order should start before it could be too late.

Hamas’ violent and unexpected Oct. 7 attack on Israel has shaken a fragile regional order in the Middle East. Ankara and Tehran are worried that a stronger U.S. presence in the Middle East is detrimental to their regional interests. The war in Gaza might help close the ranks between Turkey and Iran, yet there are serious limitations to a sustainable alliance between the two countries.

As the Israel-Hamas war enters its fourth week, the Kingdom of Jordan finds itself on the frontline of the conflict and King Abdullah II a central figure in the regional and global diplomatic efforts to contain it. The Hashemite Kingdom braces for a broader conflict and multiple spillover effects, having little leverage and few policy options.

Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.

The only long-term way of building security and stability, and reducing violence for Palestinians and Israelis alike, is to create hope and establish a political pathway for both sides