Middle East Forum

10/27/2025

The United States appears ready to embrace Syria’s new regime—yet Israel’s Druze community and Syria’s Alawite minority watch in terror.

In the latest analysis, Jonathan Spyer shows how Washington’s drive to lift sanctions and stabilize Damascus may come at a deadly cost.

By backing a government already linked to multiple sectarian massacres, particularly in western Syria, the U.S. risks undermining its own moral ground and boosting a regime that treats minorities as collateral.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-online/u-s-backs-syrias-new-regime-but-risks-ignoring-sectarian-violence

U.S. Special Envoy Calls for Lifting Syria Sanctions, but Concerns Grow over Ongoing Sectarian Violence and the Treatment of Minority Communities Under Al Sharaa

10/27/2025

A van ride home turned massacre: three members of the Druze minority in Idlib were gunned down by unidentified attackers.

In his analysis, Aymenn Al-Tamimi demonstrates that this incident is not an isolated crime—it reveals how Druze communities remain vulnerable under jihadist rule in Syria’s “de-escalation” zones.

The deeper question: if minorities are being targeted quietly, what kind of peace is really emerging?

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-online/on-the-recent-attack-against-druze-in-idlib

There Is a Broader Problem of Anti-Druze Sentiment, Espoused by Islamic State and Others, That Considers Druze to Be Legitimate Targets for Kidnapping and Killing

10/27/2025

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, boldly declared that “our atomic bomb is our ability to say no to the great powers.”

In his latest analysis, Mardo Soghom explains how Tehran’s posture of defiance is not just rhetorical—it’s strategy.

Tightened sanctions, regional weakness, and diplomatic isolation appear to push Iran toward embracing defiance as its core strength. The message to Washington is clear: the regime rejects subordination and views negotiation as optional.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/tehran-touts-defiance-as-a-weapon-as-it-rejects-u-s-demands

Iran’s Foreign Minister Accused the United States of a Quest for Dominance, Even as Some Insiders in Tehran Have Urged Moderation

10/27/2025

India’s diplomatic gamble in Kabul may be the most significant shift in South Asia this decade.

Abhinav Pandya argues that by deepening ties with the Taliban, New Delhi is positioning itself to isolate Pakistan and reshape the regional power dynamic.

Pakistan, long the beneficiary of Afghan dependency, now faces a new era of strategic exclusion.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/can-india-consolidate-its-taliban-breakthrough-to-permanently-isolate-pakistan

The Recent Saudi-Pakistan Defense Pact Has Strengthened Pakistan’s Diplomatic and Military Stature in the Middle East

10/27/2025

Pakistan launched airstrikes in Kabul to reassert control—but those bombs ended up being admission of its collapse.

In her piece, Anna Mahjar-Barducci traces how Pakistan’s once-taken-for-granted influence in Afghanistan is evaporating: from strategic depth to diplomatic isolation, from regional edge to reactive brinkmanship.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/kabul-airstrikes-reflect-pakistans-decline-in-the-new-regional-order

The Strikes Coincided with the Afghanistan Foreign Minister’s First Official Visit to India and New Delhi’s Decision to Reopen Its Embassy in Kabul

10/27/2025

Washington and Jerusalem are too focused on Gaza’s chaos and not enough on shaping the region’s future.

As Eric Navarro writes, victory requires balance: covert pressure on Hamas, and overt diplomacy that strengthens Arab partnerships and blunts Iranian and Chinese influence.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/the-united-states-and-israel-must-resist-the-temptation-to-micromanage-gaza

The Real Opportunity Lies in Engaging Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, and Other Arab and Muslim Nations Open to Reconciliation with Israel and the West

10/24/2025

Hamtramck, Michigan mayor Amer Ghalib, a figure long criticized for antisemitic social-media posts and praise of Saddam Hussein, appeared before the Senate seeking confirmation as U.S. ambassador to Kuwait.

As Dexter Van Zile reports, senators from both parties rejected Ghalib’s attempt to rebrand himself as a “bridge-builder,” citing a pattern of extremist rhetoric and dishonesty about his medical credentials.

“Your long-standing public positions are directly contrary to President Trump’s,” Sen. Ted Cruz told him.

Ghalib’s hearing ended in bipartisan disbelief — a cautionary moment for America’s diplomatic vetting process.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/fwi/fwi-opinion-interview/mister-ghalib-goes-to-washington-to-rebrand-himself-senators-dont-buy-it

Nominee for Ambassador’s Post in Kuwait Backtracks on Abraham Accords, Won’t Acknowledge Israel’s Legitimacy, Loathe to Admit Error on Saddam Hussein

10/24/2025

In a NEWSMAX interview, Col. Eric Navarro explains what an actual disarmament plan for Hamas could look like — one built around Gaza’s own anti-Hamas clans, who make up nearly 70 percent of the population.

Navarro argues that empowering these local networks, which have quietly helped past Israeli operations, is the only realistic way to eliminate Hamas’s control without endless reinvasion.

It’s a plan rooted in ground-truth realities — not diplomatic wish-casting.

Read more:

https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/eric-navarro-hamas-israel/2025/10/19/id/1230975/

Hamas has "no incentive to disarm," so the U.S. and Israel must work quietly to eliminate the group while maintaining the ceasefire framework, Lt. Col. Eric Navarro, the director of Military and Strategy Programs at the Middle East Forum, told Newsmax on Sunday.

10/24/2025

What would it look like to disarm Hamas? Colonel Eric Navarro outlines leveraging anti-Hamas clans, who make up 70% of the population. He highlights past instances of support and the need to eliminate Hamas's rule.

10/24/2025

On this week’s post, Babak Taghvaee exposes how France’s expansionist fighter-jet export policies are quietly undermining the defense posture of U.S. and European allies.

From Rafales sold to Qatar being used to train Turkish pilots, to potential Chinese knowledge gains via the UAE deal—when France prioritizes industrial reach over end-use control, the cost is borne by others.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-observer/frances-jet-fighter-sales-are-endangering-allies

French Permissiveness Strengthens States and Proxies Hostile to the West, and for Some the Effects Are Immediate

10/24/2025

In Raymond Ibrahim's latest, Egypt’s government is shown to be doing more than “religious reform.”

It’s embedding a Sunni-Muslim worldview into youth education, museums, and civic identity—actively sidelining the ancient legacy of its Coptic Christian minority.

The outcome? Coptic Christians in Egypt face deeper structural exclusion as symbolic gestures mask real marginalization.

Read more:

https://www.meforum.org/mef-online/what-egypts-coordinated-islamization-program-means-for-coptic-christians

The State Is Embedding a Particular Religious Worldview—a Distinctly Islamic One, Aligned with Government Priorities—Into the Everyday Life of Egyptians

10/23/2025

On this week’s episode of Israel Insider with Ashley Perry, Gaza’s post-ceasefire landscape is shifting fast.

Hamas is quietly reasserting control while Israel’s leaders spar in the Knesset ahead of new elections. Ashley breaks down the power plays behind Gaza’s reconstruction, the disarmament dilemma, and the political fault lines shaping Israel’s future.

Read more:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL8uJA4Jqis

In this conversation, Ashley Perry discusses the current situation in Gaza, focusing on Hamas's reassertion of control following a ceasefire, the role of the...