In so much of the analysis on Lebanon--be it on reconstruction or disarmament, we rarely get to hear the voices of those from South Lebanon. Deeply grateful to @timep.bsky.social Bassem Sabry Fellow Jad El Dilati for centering these perspectives in his latest analysis. Don't miss it.

February 11, 2011 Fifteen years.

As Syrian authorities begin work on a transitional justice law, one key question: "Who is a victim?" Already, the conversation has become politicized. Looking at lessons from Columbia, @mansouromari.bsky.social's piece for @timep.bsky.social offers a practical way forward timep.org/2026/02/10/v...

A deeply thoughtful read from A. Kayum Ahmed on the recent news involving MSF, HRW, and Palestine. He writes that institutions created out of the liberal world order "have never been engines of liberation. They measure injustice; they do not rupture it." mondoweiss.net/2026/02/libe...

All my solidarity and support for renowned Egyptian human rights defender Aida Seif El-Dawla who has been called in for questioning by the Dokki Prosecution for Case 809 of 2026 before the Supreme State Security Prosecution. The summons fails to detail what she is being accused of.

Eleven years ago today on February 10, 2015, three young Muslims--23 year old Deah Barakat, 21 year old Yusor Abu-Salha, and 19 year old Razan Abu-Salha--were shot to death in their home, in what came to be known as the Chapel Hill Shooting. Thinking of their loved ones today.

Are you an early or mid-career advocate keen on engaging in the MENA policy space? Applications for our 2026-2027 Nonresident Fellowships are now open! Apply by 2/27 and don't miss this opportunity to build the skills and tools you need to do this work: timep.org/2026/02/02/o...

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Stephen Miller right now.

The fact that more people in this country seem angrier about a Grammy award winning artist singing in Spanish during the Super Bowl than about the revelations associating some of the world's most powerful people to a convicted sex offender tells you everything you need to know.

Elite trolling level unlocked.

Lawfare is accepting applications for development manager. The role will focus on creating and implementing fundraising strategies, managing donor engagement activities, and providing support to bolster Lawfare’s fundraising capacity.

Ahead of the #SuperBowlLX today, here's a great listen from @vox.com on Bad Bunny and the significance of his music and his message for Puerto Rico and for this political moment at large open.spotify.com/episode/00oN...

Iran sentences Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi to 7 more years in prison www.latimes.com/world-nation...

Jeff Bezos did not have to gut the Washington Post. He chose to.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Post publisher Will Lewis says he's stepping down, days after the Post cut a third of its staff.

Violence with impunity. Kidnappings. Sexual abuse. Inhumane detention conditions. Destroyed families. Terrorized children. Racial profiling. Deportation without due process. The fight over ICE is not a marginal fight. It's a fight for the soul of the country we want to recreate.

Six in 10 Americans disapprove of the job ICE is doing. 65% feel that ICE has gone too far in enforcing immigration laws, a number that has gone up from 54% last June. (PBS News/NPR/Marist Poll).

Breaking MS NOW: The Department of Homeland Security *unsuccessfully* sought to expedite deportation proceedings against the family of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, according to a local school official. At an asylum hearing Friday, the family was granted a continuance. www.ms.now/news/dhs-rep...

AIPAC also knows this. That’s why none of their political ads discuss their actual issue at all and why they use vaguely named Super PACs so people don’t connect them with their own stated political mission and intent.

place themselves at odds with our responsibility to represent the electorate and the views of the majority of Americans, who find the genocide in Gaza an appalling affront to American values and do not want to see US taxpayer funded weapons used to perpetuate it.

They are a right-wing organization that undermines democracy. They have zero tolerance for any diversity of thought from their line, and pressure elected officials to increasingly-

I hope Dems begin to see that moderate or progressive, AIPAC is not our friend. They endorse January 6th insurrectionists. Yet if you so much as suggest the US uphold its own Leahy laws, no matter your record, they will work against you.

Today, Egyptian judge Mohamed Nagy Shehata died. In his life, he sentenced hundreds of Egyptians in highly politicized cases often rife with severe due process violations. He became notorious for handing down mass death sentences and was known as the "death penalty judge."

The @washingtonpost.com's international employees are not eligible for protection under the Guild and are in many cases being laid off with less favorable terms and face logistical challenges and security risks. If you can, consider donating to support them www.gofundme.com/f/support-fo...

Scenes outside of the Washington Post headquarters right now:

If you're in town today, drop by anytime between 5:45 and 8:45 pm to escape the cold and spend some time with some good people (@timep.bsky.social and friends included!) Let us know you're coming with a quick RSVP and bring your friends: www.eventbrite.com/e/mena-socia...

Can’t think of any reason why you would need reporters covering the Middle East, Ukraine and China right now.

I'd love to know how the @washingtonpost.com thinks it can prioritize national security coverage without ground-up reporting from the MENA region (and other regions).

Solidarity with all of the talented journalists and media workers losing their jobs at the @washingtonpost.com today. As someone who leads a MENA policy organization, I cannot do my work without the nuanced and in-depth coverage of the region that foreign correspondents deliver.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Post says one-third of its staff across all departments, not just the newsroom, is being laid off.

WaPo laying off entire Middle East team

New: Washington Post Executive Editor Matt Murray and HR Chief Wayne Connell tell employees to stay home for a zoom webinar ahead of “significant actions across the company.” Widely expected layoffs are scheduled to begin today.

The decision of HRW's new leadership to pull a report on the right of return for Palestinian refugees after it had been signed off on (including by legal) and prepped for publication raises serious questions that beg answering. HRW's response thus far has been inadequate.

"On November 8, 2025, I crossed into Syria for the first time in 14 years with my one-year-old, Raya. This is a dream I never thought would happen for myself, let alone my daughter." If you read one thing this week, let it be this beautiful piece on return by Basma Alloush for @timep.bsky.social.

Two HRW employees that make up the entirety of the organization's Israel and Palestine program are stepping down after the leadership blocked a report that deems Israel’s denial of Palestinian refugees the right of return a "crime against humanity." www.theguardian.com/world/2026/f...

HUGE. A victory for more than a quarter million Haitians with Temporary Protected Status. A significant majority of them entered the United States legally and have never been out of status since. Even the Trump admin isn't saying Haiti is a safe country for them to go back to.

A group of US citizens, immigration nonprofits, and legal orgs have filed a lawsuit challenging Trump's visa ban which suspended the approval of visas for people from 75 countries and which attempts to “eviscerate decades of settled immigration law.” www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/n...

Tomorrow, February 3, there's a @helsinkicomm.bsky.social hearing, titled "Securing Syria’s Transformation by Diminishing Russia’s Influence," to examine "the legacy of Russia’s support for Assad and the feasibility of evicting Russia from Syria." More here: www.csce.gov/hearings/sec...

🚨 🚨🚨 It's a super exciting day at @timep.bsky.social today, where we've just launched our call for nonresident fellowship applications! Don't miss the chance to become a part of this unique program to develop the skills and tools you need to tackle the MENA region's top policy challenges.

Bad Bunny condemns ICE during his #GRAMMYs speech for Best Música Urbana Album: “Before I say thanks to god, I’m going to say, ICE out. We’re not savages, we’re not animals, we are humans and we are Americans.”

Fourteen years ago today in Egypt, on February 1, 2012, 74 soccer fans, many of whom had been members of the Ultras Ahlawy, never came home after they were killed in what came to be known as the Port Said Stadium Massacre. #JFT74

A note from our editors:

BREAKING: The two federal immigration agents who fired on Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti are identified in government records as Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez.

There's quite a lot of coverage on the role of the UAE in the war in Sudan, but much less coverage on other foreign actors. New @nytimes.com coverage uncovers the role of a secret Egyptian airbase and Baykar drones exported from Turkey in the fight www.nytimes.com/2026/02/01/w...

Thank you to everyone who demanded freedom for Liam. We won’t stop until all children and families are home.

To all the Minnesotans who are making their voices heard and protesting peacefully: The world is watching, and when change comes, it will be because of you.

A district court judge has released a list of 96 court orders, which he describes as almost certainly an undercount, that ICE had violated in 74 different cases in a single district. ICE is systematically shredding the rule of law with impunity: reason.com/2026/01/29/f...

Yesterday, five-year-old Liam and his dad Adrian were released from Dilley detention center. I picked them up last night and escorted them back to Minnesota this morning. Liam is now home. With his hat and his backpack.

Judge Biery signed the order with a photo of Liam and two bible verses: The first is "But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven." The second is simply "Jesus wept." Astonishing thing for a judge to do.