'It is crucial that recognizing countries immediately follow up their commitments by taking concrete measures to help realize the rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and counter Israel’s illegal settlement policy,' writes Zizette Darkazally. www.chathamhouse.org/2025/09/inte...

🚨TODAY | Palestine is now recognised by the UK. What happens next? Sanam Vakil, Zizette Darkazally, Stephen Farrell and Yossi Mekelberg look at whether and how a functioning state can be brought into being. ⏲️13.00 BST Watch the livesteam at 13.00 BST ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/s...

'Recognition has been a consistent demand by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), and its diplomatic missions. Now that their demand has been realized, what should the Palestinians do?' Read the new analysis by Zizette Darkazally ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/09/inte...

'The solution to enhanced Gulf security lies within. It always has, and it’s based on defence integration, or at the very least much improved defence cooperation between the six countries of the GCC,' writes Bilal Y. Saab. Read the analysis ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/09/isra...

Arab states in the Middle East are concluding that Israel is now the biggest threat to stability in the region. Read Sanam Vakil's (@chmenap.bsky.social) analysis following Israel's airstrike against Hamas leaders in Qatar in @theguardian.com ⤵️

🚨 Join us on 1 Oct at the 2025 #IraqInitiative Conference! Only ONE WEEK left to register interest to attend in person at Chatham House. Registration closes on 10 September! Registration for virtual attendance will remain open. www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/r...

Political fragmentation & instability have harmed Libya’s ability to manage natural resources & mitigate the rising impacts of climate change. Empowering local government, CSOs & the private sector offers the most viable path forward, writes Malak Altaeb. kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/emp...

🚨 Upcoming event: In conversation with HE Dr Husam Zomlot, Head of the Palestinian Mission to the UK 📅 2 September 🕐 13.00 BST 📍 @chathamhouse.org & online Register now ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/o...

Surveying the political landscape today, Iraq’s upcoming legislative polls seem to offer little indication that civic forces will regain lost ground, writes @haydersh.bsky.social via @amwajmedia.bsky.social. amwaj.media/en/article/w...

In both Oman and Saudi Arabia, the key issue is the extent to which civic participation is actually shaping state policy, and the extent to which officials leading this process are accountable to the views of citizens, writes Sumaiya Al-Wahaibi. kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/sau...

'Ali Larijani's appointment as Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security and designation as the country's representative marks the return of a pragmatic conservative close to the leadership to a critical post,' says Sanam Vakil via @newsweek.com. www.newsweek.com/ali-larijani...

☀️ Explore the MENA Programme’s 2025 publications ⬇️ Part of the @chathamhouse.org and XCEPT Research project, these papers explore the evolving dynamics of transnational conflict ecosystems across the Middle East, North Africa, the Sahel, and parts of West and East Africa.🧵

Scarcity of water is not only a national crisis for Iraq, but a growing driver of internal tension. Read the new @chathamhouse.org Expert Comment by @haydersh.bsky.social ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/08/iraq...

📢 Article Series 'Evolving Turkey–Iran relations & implications for regional reordering' Our recent series of policy articles, part of a @chathamhouse.org MENAP & CATS Network project, examines Turkey–Iran relations, the dynamics that shape them & implications for regional reordering. 🧵

"We are exactly twenty years since the [Israeli] disengagement from Gaza, some among the settler movement never gave up on the dream to be back in Gaza." Yossi Mekelberg (@chmenap.bsky.social) on whether Israel will annex the Gaza Strip, via @aljazeera.com ⤵️

Without clear answers and genuine transparency, Syria's elections risk becoming another top-down exercise – reinforcing public cynicism rather than restoring trust, writes @haidhaid22.bsky.social via @thenationalnews.com. www.thenationalnews.com/opinion/comm...

'Given the volatility of external assistance, Yemen must now pivot decisively towards domestic resource mobilization. This is not simply a matter of fiscal prudence; it is also a political necessity,' write Farea Al-Muslimi and Mahmoud Shehrah. kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/mov...

⏺️ Webinar recording: Will the Iraq-Kuwait dispute undermine the future of Gulf integration? @renadmansour.bsky.social, Bader Al-Saif, Farhad Alaaldin Luigi Di Maio & Lahib Higel discuss renewed Iraq–Kuwait tensions in this #IraqInitiative webinar. www.facebook.com/share/v/1EjZ...

"Macron's decision is about pressure. This is about building international support for a credible pathway to statehood." Sanam Vakil (@chmenap.bsky.social) on French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to recognise a Palestinian state, via @cnn.com.

🚨 Register your interest now for the 2025 #IraqInitiative Conference! Join us on 1 October @chathamhouse.org & online to explore how Iraq can secure more lasting stability and economic resilience in an era of regional and global uncertainty. www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/r...

📢 NEW article from the series ‘Evolving Turkey–Iran relations and implications for regional reordering’ Natalie Sabanadze (@chrussiaeurasia.bsky.social) discusses how Russia, Turkey and Iran are reshaping the South Caucasus 🧵 kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...

⏺️ Webinar recording | Iran-Israel war: The impact on Israel Eran Etzion, Nimrod Novik, Dahlia Scheindlin & Ksenia Svetlova discuss domestic political, social & security dynamics in Israel following the June Iran-Israel war. Watch below ⤵️ www.facebook.com/CHMENAProg/v...

'It is unclear whether an unarmed Hezbollah could compete effectively in free elections, within Lebanon’s complex political system,' says Bilal Y Saab via Arab News. www.arabnews.com/node/2608934...

"This will lead to a reimagination of Turkish citizenship, the idea of the Turkish nation and Turkey's geopolitical identity." @galipdalay.bsky.social (@chmenap.bsky.social) on the disarmament of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and what it means for 🇹🇷, via @aljazeera.com

📢 NEW WEBINAR | Iran-Israel war: The impact on Israel Eran Etzion, Nimrod Novik, Dahlia Scheindlin & Ksenia Svetlova discuss domestic political, social & security dynamics in Israel following the June Iran-Israel war. 📅 21 July ⏰ 14.00 BST 📍 Zoom Register ⤵️ www.chathamhouse.org/events/all/r...

Summits create expectations. But a meeting between President Donald Trump and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu – the third since Trump’s return to the White House – yielded very little, writes Yossi Mekelberg. Read the new expert comment ⬇️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/07/not-...

🎥 Event recording: 'Iran-Israel war: The impact on Iran' Maziar Bahari, Danny Citrinowicz, Suzanne Maloney, Naghmeh Sohrabi and Sanam Vakil discuss internal political, social and security dynamics in Iran. Watch in full ⤵️ fb.watch/AKggWH4nsk/

"With the war in Iran [Netanyahu] is in the best position to go and ask the people whether they want him for a seventh government." Yossi Mekelberg (@chmenap.bsky.social) on whether Benjamin Netanyahu will call elections in Israel, via @aljazeera.com.

The Lebanese government must stop shirking its responsibilities and push Hezbollah to disarm – taking advantage of the historic momentum in the region, writes Associate Fellow Bilal Y Saab. Read the analysis⤵️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/07/leba...

'While Iranians demonstrated unity against the unprecedented Israeli and U.S. strikes, the war raised urgent questions about the regime’s survival and Iran’s evolution.' Read the new article 'Where Iran Goes From Here' by Sanam Vakil, via Time. time.com/7297634/iran...

'This moment of fragile calm is unlikely to endure. Iraq is on the brink of being drawn into what appears to be a transformative upheaval in the regional order,' writes @renadmansour.bsky.social. Read the new analysis ⤵️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/06/iraq...

Iran-backed groups 'are in varying degrees looking to survive but also focusing on how to reconstitute themselves & keep the local power they have intact,' says @renadmansour.bsky.social via @csmonitor.bsky.social. www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle...

Khamenei could revert to his strategy of seeking to escalate to de-escalate. They are more boxed in than they have ever been and they need to find an off-ramp, says Sanam Vakil via @financialtimes.com. www.ft.com/content/cc87...

'The record of regime change is not great, to say the least. You want to experiment with chaos? Well, good luck.' Associate Fellow Yossi Mekelberg addresses recent discussions about potential outcomes for the Israel - Iran war, via ABC News. abcnews.go.com/Internationa...

'As the US considers whether or not to join Israeli strikes on Iran, a new balance of power is emerging in the Middle East – and it is tilting heavily in favour of Israel.' Read the new Expert Comment by @thomasjuneau.bsky.social ⤵️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/06/iran...

'Many of Iran's allied militias question if this is the time for resistance or whether it’s the time to keep your head down and try to stay out of this conflict,' says @renadmansour.bsky.social via @wsj.com. www.wsj.com/world/middle...

Washington is at risk of letting Israel drive the agenda in the Middle East, with potentially disastrous consequences. A course correction is urgently needed, writes Bilal Y Saab. www.chathamhouse.org/2025/06/trum...

'There is still a narrow window to avoid an all-out war. But with Washington having seemingly cooled to diplomacy, it is up to countries in the region to stop the conflict,' writes MENA Programme Director Sanam Vakil in @foreignaffairs.com. www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/last-...

After the Oct 20 Kurdistan Parliament election, I wrote for @chmenap.bsky.social that government formation would be "exceedingly difficult." It's more than 240 days since the election and officially going slower than last time. In the 2018-19 cycle, that's when a KR President was picked.

'The initial results of the strikes reveal a paradox: Israel’s strategic position is strengthening – even as fundamental questions emerge about the sustainability of its independent military approach,' writes Ksenia Svetlova. Read the analysis ⤵️ www.chathamhouse.org/2025/06/stri...

Starting now 🔽

This is an 'extraordinarily dangerous [moment]. This is a war...this isn't about tit for tat strikes. This will have long-term impact on the region.' Sanam Vakil on the Israel-Iran confrontation and possible consequences for the US via @cbsnews.com.web.brid.gy www.cbsnews.com/video/americ...

The MENA Programme was delighted to host Dr Majed Al Ansari @chathamhouse.org earlier this week for a discussion on Qatar’s foreign policy priorities, role as a regional mediator, and relationships with neighbouring and international actors.

🚨Event underway | ‘Navigating protracted conflicts in a multi-aligned world’ with @chmenap.bsky.social 📺Watch the livestream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=zy3j... This half-day event unpacks key findings from the @chathamhouse.org XCEPT research initiative. #CHAfrica #CHEvents

🚨 PUBLICATION ALERT 🚨 A new report, the culmination of 5 years of the @chathamhouse.org and XCEPT research initiative, examines why peacebuilding often fails to address the chaotic realities of modern conflicts. 🧵 www.chathamhouse.org/2025/06/why-...

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa's 'greatest challenge is charting a path forward that all Syrians want to be part of, and doing so quickly enough without being reckless,' says Neil Quilliam via @france24.com. www.france24.com/en/live-news...

'Israel appears to be planning to expand its operations to take military control of the whole Gaza Strip. Recognition of Palestine by France, the UK and others may be the last hope for a route to peace,' writes Zizette Darkazally. www.chathamhouse.org/2025/05/gaza...

The Kurdish issue has fundamentally shaped the character and threat perception of the Turkish state and influenced Turkey's domestic & foreign policy more than any other issue. A lasting peace would have wide-ranging implications, writes @galipdalay.bsky.social www.chathamhouse.org/2025/05/diss...

📢 NEW article from the series ‘Evolving Turkey–Iran relations and implications for regional reordering’ @wrodgers2.bsky.social explores the role of Kurdish populations in Iran-Turkey ties, and how the two countries manage relations with Kurdish groups domestically and regionally. 1/5

Egypt has made strides in harmonizing its financial & regulatory frameworks to achieve 2 key objectives simultaneously: promoting a greener economy & executing an ambitious development strategy. However, tremendous challenges lie ahead, writes Ahmed Aboudouh. kalam.chathamhouse.org/articles/how...