Alistair Taylor

Editorial Director, @MiddleEastInst. Editor, writer & analyst with a focus on #MiddleEast and #Turkey. Views are my own. T/RT≠ endorsement.

[Gönül Tol @gonultol]

I had a great conversation with my colleagues at @MiddleEastInst about how competition for influence in the Horn of Africa among Middle Eastern powers — especially the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Israel — is reshaping the region’s political landscape. Listen here:

[Middle East Institute @MiddleEastInst]

"The ultimate end goal of reaching a diplomatic solution is something that I think a majority of Iranian leaders that are left would accept as ... a necessity for regime survival at this point," @AlexVatanka tells @mideasteditor and Matthew Czekaj.
https://t.co/7xgVZFEk5y

[Gönül Tol @gonultol]

The latest episode of @MiddleEastInst 's podcast is great. My colleagues @mideasteditor and Matthew Czekaj speak to our Yemen expert @Ndawsari to unpack why the Houthis continue to stay on the sidelines of the Iran war and what might prompt them to join the fray.https://t.co/JbD4j91kvQ

[Nadwa Dawsari @Ndawsari]

In my latest piece for the Middle East Institute, I examine why the #Houthis have so far stayed out of the conflict despite heavy U.S. & Israeli strikes against #Iran.
https://t.co/gVlfGam5hc

[Gönül Tol @gonultol]

My latest piece on Turkey and the Iran war:

1️⃣ NATO intercepted a second Iranian missile that entered Turkish airspace. Ankara warned Tehran, while Iranian officials denied responsibility and said they respect Turkish sovereignty. But Iran’s so-called “mosaic defense” strategy, which decentralizes decision-making, makes such assurances hard to rely on.

2️⃣ Disrupting regional trade and energy flows appear to be the unifying strategy in this decentralized structure. That poses serious risks for Turkey, which sits at the crossroads of key energy corridors. One vulnerable asset is the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, which supplies roughly one-third of Israel’s oil imports.

3️⃣ Turkish officials I spoke with say Iran and its allies have tens of thousands of drones, missiles, and rockets, potentially enough to sustain the conflict for four to five months. For President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, that would be a nightmare scenario as he hopes to stabilize the economy ahead of possible early elections in 2027.

4️⃣ Most importantly, Ankara believes it has little leverage to shape the course of this war.

👉 Read the rest here:https://t.co/N5OICvK2S0

[Middle East Institute @MiddleEastInst]

"Lebanon's government, its president, and its prime minister... must make clear to everyone involved there is only one future for Lebanon and it is the Lebanese state and not the militia," @dr_nickfn tells Matthew Czekaj and @mideasteditor. https://t.co/pIZdZi85Wk

[Alex Vatanka @AlexVatanka]

I have a look here at the interim power council in Iran, what the game plan likely is and how Trump's next moves factor in Tehran's calculations

https://t.co/aKcMW1vU84

[Alex Vatanka @AlexVatanka]

Great to join @mideasteditor and Matt Czekaj for this conversation about state of Iran's explosive domestic realities and the US-Iran standoff -
@MiddleEastInst

https://t.co/63u3EIhWwy

[Mohammed Soliman @ThisIsSoliman]

Happy book release day! Order your copy today.

@MiddleEastInst

https://t.co/oMLvcRlSy0

[Middle East Institute @MiddleEastInst]

"What I will be looking for is momentum. Does this go beyond making big pronouncements, designing a logo, and moving on?" Lucy Kurtzer-Ellenbogen tells @mideasteditor and Matthew Czekaj on this week's episode of Middle East Focus.
https://t.co/pdSzOxUhIM

[Charles Lister @Charles_Lister]

"According to one high-level regional security official, several senior #SDF figures with deep roots within the #PKK — but not Mazloum Abdi — have consulted at length in recent days with Hikmat al-Hijri" in #Suwayda.

My latest for @MiddleEastInst:

https://t.co/fNR1y67dH1

[Charles Lister @Charles_Lister]

"Emergency Podcast: #Damascus & #Syria's Kurds Come to Blows"

- I just recorded a 30min podcast for @MiddleEastInst looking at events over the past days:

https://t.co/Ct3eRqFTC4

[Charles Lister @Charles_Lister]

"How #Damascus & the #SDF came to blows in #Aleppo — and what might come next."

My NEW piece for @MiddleEastInst looks at the recent hostilities, why integration talks have failed until now, & where things are headed.

https://t.co/npHWIaRohW

[Julius Kim @Julius_Kim]

JUST got home from dropping 20 off at O’Hare in Chicago. Got to the airport on time today around 2:30 pm, and his flight got delayed two hours. Ok, not a huge deal, but then his flight got cancelled and pushed back until tomorrow afternoon! This would cause him to miss all of his orientation meetings because he wouldn’t get to London for two days. Everyone on his flight was scrambling for alternate travel arrangements—including us, and we finally found a route that will get him to London by tomorrow evening. He just made it to Boston, and is sleeping in an airport for the first time lol. This is what it’s all about though, right? 😬🥳💪🏼 Say a prayer to keep him safe please.. 🙏🏼

[Alistair Taylor @mideasteditor]

In the last episode of Middle East Focus for 2025, we're joined by @paul_salem to unpack the major developments that shaped the Middle East over the past year and to look ahead to 2026. @MiddleEastInst

https://t.co/op9ivuR5wI

[Alistair Taylor @mideasteditor]

As the year comes to a close, experts from across the @MiddleEastInst weigh in on where the region may be headed in 2026. With analysis from @paul_salem, @Katulis, @gonultol, @natansachs, @ProfessorKaren, @AlexVatanka, @Charles_Lister, @IuliJo & more.

https://t.co/UFueg4AUd8

[Alistair Taylor @mideasteditor]

This week on Middle East Focus, I'm joined by Amb. David Hale to discuss the Trump administration's new National Security Strategy & what it means for US policy toward the Middle East. @MiddleEastInst

https://t.co/jwZpu8EtTa

[Gönül Tol @gonultol]

Iraqis have just gone to the polls in a pivotal parliamentary election that could redefine the country’s political trajectory. What do the results tell us about the state of Iraqi democracy? What happens next? And is there still space for meaningful democratic reform? In this episode of Rethinking Democracy, I spoke with @renadmansour , Director of the Iraq Initiative at @ChathamHouse , to unpack the election’s aftermath, Iraq’s deeply fragmented political landscape, and the entrenched system of corruption, elite bargaining, and ethno-sectarian power sharing. Listen herehttps://www.mei.edu/multimedia/podcast/ballots-bargains-struggle-iraqi-democracy

[Charles Lister @Charles_Lister]

NEW -- Just back from #Syria, I joined the @MiddleEastInst podcast this week to discuss President al-Sharaa's visit to #Washington, the ongoing transition, sanctions, US-#Syria security ties, #ISIS, the #SDF & more.

Listen here -- https://t.co/yUGoWucvVp

[Alistair Taylor @mideasteditor]

This week @Charles_Lister joins the podcast to discuss the Nov. 10 Trump-Sharaa meeting & his recent trip to Damascus. We cover Syria's ongoing transition, the challenges of post-war recovery, Caesar sanctions, ISIS, SDF talks & more. @MiddleEastInst

https://t.co/4uAAV5m0wD