The renegotiation of state-religious relations between political regimes and religious institutions.  Facing an increasingly fluid and violent religious sphere beginning in 2013, governments throughout the MENA region strengthened their control over official Islamic institutions. This nationalization of Islam, although not Read More …

This book presentation is realised within the framework of the Regional Security Initiative at the Middle East Directions Programme. Divided between elected and non-elected institutions, the bifurcated power structure in Iran has caused continual competition among the elites, fundamentally impacting Read More …

  Overconfident: How Economic and Health Fault Lines Left the Middle East and North Africa Ill-Prepared to Face COVID The World Bank and the European University Institute (EUI) are pleased to share the findings from this latest report, followed by Read More …

The Syrian energy sector has been radically affected by more than ten years of conflict. A major transformation of energy policies has occurred in the last decade that has further impaired the state’s governance system and infrastructure. The destruction and Read More …

  How can Libya’s economic future be envisioned now that a unified government has been formed but while some of the main drivers of conflict remain? What economic priorities need to be addressed to ensure sustainable peace and development in Read More …

On 28 June 2021, the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) will hold a joint webinar with the Middle East Directions Programme on A Gradual Approach Towards a New Security System in the Persian Gulf. Andrey Kortunov, Director General, Russian International Read More …

  The roundtable is on knowledge formation on threat and prevention in the preventing violent extremism (PVE) agenda. It addresses the question of how such knowledge travels between the places where PVE interventions are designed and the places where they Read More …

The aim of the roundtable is to open up a discussion on public policy-making in contexts of political unrest and transition more generally. Policy recommendations for the Libyan authorities and international actors will also be made based on research findings. Read More …

    The webinar will attempt to identify what cards Damascus will play the day after the elections.   Syria’s presidential election day, 26 May 2021, is a symbolic milestone in the country’s decade-old conflict. The result of the election Read More …

Iran is at the centre of the geopolitical turbulence in the Middle East. Since the Islamic revolution, Iranian regional policy has become one of the main drivers of the confrontation between the West and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Tehran’s Read More …