Betul Dogan Akkas | 02 July 2021
Will Qatar Return to a Mediator Role in the Yemen Conflict? Yemen has been devastated by a civil war ongoing since 2014. The atmosphere following the Arab uprisings led to drastic unrest in one [...]
Khaldoun El Charif | 31 May 2021 | AR
Reading the New Chapter of the Palestinian Struggle Originally scheduled for 22 May 2021, the 2021 elections for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) and the presidency of the Palestinian Authority (PA) were indefinitely postponed [...]
James Shires | 25 May 2021
Cyber insecurity is a multifaceted problem, and one further complicated by the political divides in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). This paper tackles two questions: first, what are the main sources of cyber insecurity in the region?
Ali Akbar Dareini | 11 May 2021
Israel’s dangerous shadow war with Iran Multiple acts of sabotage in 2020 and 2021 targeting Iran’s sensitive nuclear facilities and commercial vessels prompted Iran to blame Israel as the probable culprit. Whether Israel received [...]
Khaldoun El Charif | 05 May 2021
What Awaits Lebanon 100 Days after Biden’s Inauguration? The region is witnessing unusual diplomatic activity: Vienna talks between the United States and Iran serve as the headline. The “negotiation kit” is employed in parallel [...]
Alessandro Arduino | 04 May 2021 | TR
Following the tense US-China meeting in Alaska during the first high-level US-China talks of the Biden administration in March 2021,[i] Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi carried out a six-country swing through the Middle East.
Valentina Pegolo | 04 May 2021
Following the Arab Spring, Italy has tried to improve its geopolitical position in the Middle East. Its approach, however, has suffered from the lack of a grand strategy and overreliance on strategic partners
Jonathan Fenton-Harvey | 27 April 2021
Renewed attempts to reach a breakthrough over Ethiopia’s River Nile dam faltered on April 4, as Egyptian president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi reiterated his warnings of a conflict. Tensions are therefore extremely high over the ongoing construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
Mohammed Sinan Siyech | 22 April 2021 | AR | TR
The Islamic State has gradually ramped up its attacks in Syria and Iraq since the mid-2020. This brief examines the group’s recent activities in both nations to interrogate if the group is undergoing a phase of resurgence in the region. Accordingly, it maps out the different factors that are aiding the group and provides some policy implications for governments in the region
Mehmet Emin Cengiz | 19 April 2021
The intra-Kurdish unity talks between the PYD and the KNC seem to be at an impasse. The unity negotiations, which are undoubtedly the product of times of crisis in Kurdish politics in Syria, started in April 2020, and two rounds of negotiations have already passed. Nevertheless, face-to-face negotiations between the sides stalled months ago, and the third round of talks could not be initiated despite various attempts and US mediation. Moreover, many obstacles lie ahead of the success of the unity talks.
