Middle East Research and Information Project

Critical Coverage of the Middle East Since 1971

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Rebranding the Turkish State in the Time of COVID-19
Members of Turkey’s Tourism Police patrol for people not wearing protective face masks at the main shopping and pedestrian street of Istiklal as the spread of COVID-19 continues, in Istanbul, September 27, 2020. Murad Sezer/ReutersFigure 1: Infographic by AFAD.Figure 2: Passengers from the Turkish Airlines evacuation flight collecting baggage upon arrival. Photo courtesy of the authors.Figure 3: AFAD workers and camera crew welcome citizens into the dormitory for quarantine. Photo courtesy of the authors.
Covid-19 Coverage

Rebranding the Turkish State in the Time of COVID-19

As Turkish scholars residing in the United States when the pandemic began to curtail normal life, Ergin Bulut and Başak Can signed on to take the Turkish government’s evacuation flight home. This experience and their time spent in government-managed quarantine yielded interesting insights into the s
Ergin Bulut, Başak Can • 15 min read
Birth Defects and the Toxic Legacy of War in Iraq
Boys play in front of burning oilfields in Qayyara, south of Mosul, Iraq, 2016. Goran Tomasevic/ReutersA US Air Force equipment manager tosses used uniform items into a burn pit at Balad Air Base, Iraq, 2008. Department of Defense photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter/US Air Force
Current Analysis

Birth Defects and the Toxic Legacy of War in Iraq

In Iraq, birth defects are a visible embodiment of the enduring toxic legacy of war, burn pits, sanctions and other military interventions. War and occupation shattered public infrastructures necessary for health and well being, but also triggered cascades of environmental degradation. Kali Rubaii i
Kali Rubaii • 10 min read
Going to War with the Coronavirus and Maintaining the State of Resistance in Iran
Fig. 1. “Doctors and Nurses! Your reward is with God.” Source: Office of Supreme Leader.Fig. 1. “Health Defenders.” Source: Student News Network.Fig. 2. “The Sacrifice Continues.” Source: Navid Shahed Gilan.Fig. 3. “The Nation’s heroes are always in the field,” original design and postage stamp. Source: Tehran Times.Fig. 4. “War, work until victory.” Source: Yanon Design.Fig. 5. A war medic and health care professional collapsed into one figure. The slogan reads, “The holy warriors of yesterday, today, and tomorrow.” Source: Office of Supreme LeaderFig. 6. Source: Public Relations Office of Dezful Governorate.Fig. 6. “The trench is the same trench, the people are the same people.”Fig. 7. “Like Avini.” Source: Office of Supreme Leader.
Covid-19 Coverage

Going to War with the Coronavirus and Maintaining the State of Resistance in Iran

The Iranian government is fighting against the coronavirus pandemic not only with travel restrictions and social distancing rules, but also with ideological tools that promote unity and resistance. Through the production of posters and other media, Iran is creating connections between earlier battle
Kevin L. Schwartz, Olmo Gölz • 15 min read
The Armenian Genocide in Kurdish Collective Memory
Activists hold portraits of victims of the 1915 mass killing of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Istanbul, April 24, 2017. Murad Sezer/Reuters
Current Analysis

The Armenian Genocide in Kurdish Collective Memory

Kurdish acknowledgement of participation in the Armenian genocide of 1915 along with Kurdish municipal efforts to atone have grown tremendously in the past 20 years. Adnan Çelik draws on his fieldwork and personal experience to explain how Kurdish memory work—drawing on knowledge transmitted for mor
Adnan Çelik • 15 min read
Arabs Across Syria Join the Kurdish-Led Syrian Democratic Forces
Ahmed Abu Kholeh, head of the Deir Ezzor military council which fights under the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during a press conference in the village of Abu Fas, Hasaka province, Syria, September 2017. Rodi Said/ReutersMap of Northern Syria, Crisis Group/KO, May 2017. Based on UN map no. 4204, Rev. 3 (April 2012).The answer to a question on the survey by an Arab male SDF member from Ras al-Ayn who joined in June 2016.Arab female respondent’s message in the margin of the questionnaire. She is from Homs and joined the SDF in March 2017.Response from an Arab male SDF member from Aleppo who joined in January 2017.
Current Analysis

Arabs Across Syria Join the Kurdish-Led Syrian Democratic Forces

The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) defending it were established by Kurdish political and military forces. But the SDF also attracts recruits from all over Syria. Why do Arabs from areas both inside and outside SDF control join this military
Amy Austin Holmes • 19 min read
Why Civil Society is Libya’s Best Defense Against the COVID-19 Pandemic
People wear protective masks and keep their distance, as part of precautionary measures against COVID-19, at a bank in Misrata, Libya, March 22, 2020. Ayman Al-Sahili/ReutersThe Red Crescent Benghazi distributes assistance to families who were displaced by the conflict in western Libya, in partnership with Libyan Humanitarian Relief Agency (LibAid), and UN agencies, June 21, 2020. Photo courtesy of Red Crescent Benghazi.
Covid-19 Coverage

Why Civil Society is Libya’s Best Defense Against the COVID-19 Pandemic

With its national government in fragments and fighting ongoing, Libya was in an extremely vulnerable position when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in March. Four months later, however, infection rates have been kept relatively low. Nada Elfeituri explores the crucial role of post-Qaddafi civil society
Nada Elfeituri • 11 min read
The Kurdish Freedom Movement, Rojava and the Left
Protesters demonstrate against Turkey’s military action in northeastern Syria, in Berlin, Germany, October 12, 2019. Christian Mang/Reuters
Current Analysis

The Kurdish Freedom Movement, Rojava and the Left

Efforts by the Kurds to put revolutionary ideals into practice in Rojava captured the imagination of anarchists and leftists in Europe and North America. Thomas Jeffrey Miley explains the left's fascination with Rojava, the ties of solidarity that connect the Kurdish freedom movement to Europe, Öcal
Thomas Jeffrey Miley • 13 min read
The Elusive Quest for a Kurdish State
A boy rides a bicycle with the flag of Kurdistan in Tuz Khurmato, Iraq, September 24, 2017. Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters
Current Analysis

The Elusive Quest for a Kurdish State

Kurdish communities in the Middle East have been struggling for independence, autonomy and civil rights since at least the 1880s. While Kurdish movements across the region have suffered from fragmentation, the more formidable obstacle to fulfilling Kurdish aspirations are regional and global geopoli
Djene Rhys Bajalan • 18 min read
Turkish Intervention in Syria Heightens Authoritarianism in Turkey and Fragmentation in Syria
Turkish and Syrian opposition flags at the al-Bab city council building, in the northeast part of the Aleppo Governorate under Turkish-SNA control, July 2018. Khalil Ashawi/Reuters
Current Analysis

Turkish Intervention in Syria Heightens Authoritarianism in Turkey and Fragmentation in Syria

Turkish military incursions into Syria since 2016 are shaping power dynamics not only in Syria but also domestically. Turkish state building practices in Syria are changing the demographics of the border area in Syria and benefiting Turkish industry and political elites. At home, Ankara is suppressi
Sinem Adar • 10 min read