The Middle East Forum presents this week's podcasts.

Israel’s Seven-Front War: #5 Iraq

with Jonathan Spyer

21 years after the toppling of Saddam Hussein and the US invasion, Iraq remains a divided, unstable and strife ridden society.  The current government of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani is dependent on the support of the Iranian proxy militias.  These militias have freedom of action throughout the country (outside the Kurdish north) and are an active component of the Iranian regional axis, assisting the IRGC in Syria, and launching periodic missile attacks on Israel.  ISIS, too, still exists and while far weaker than in its heyday, remains a potential threat, biding its time in the remote regions of central Iraq. 2500 US service personnel remain present in Iraq, though their role is no longer clearly defined. So where is Iraq headed?  Is there a chance for a more stable future, or is chronic strife likely to continue to plague the country?


Monday, June 17, 2024
2:00pm - 2:30pm ET

Online:
Click
here to register online.


Jonathan Spyer is Director of Research at the Middle East Forum and editor of Middle East Quarterly.  A journalist by background, he has lived and worked extensively in Iraq, as well as in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel (where he is resident).  He has a Ph.D and BSc (Econ) from the London School of Economics and an MA in Middle East Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.


Israel Insider

with Ashley Perry

President Biden on Friday gave a speech in which he outlined a proposed deal for the end of the war and the return of the hostages.  He presented this proposal as coming from the Israeli side.  Was that accurate?  How far will Israel go to get the hostages back? What could this mean for the future of the coalition?


Online:
Click
here to register online.

Ashley Perry is an advisor to the Middle East Forum’s Israel office. He served as advisor to Israel's minister of foreign affairs and deputy prime minister in 2009-15, and has also worked with Israel's Ministers of Intelligence, Agriculture and Rural Development, Energy, Water and Infrastructure, Defense, Tourism, Internal Security, and Immigrant Absorption and as an advisor to The Negev Forum. Originally from the UK, he moved to Israel in 2001. He holds a BA from University College London and an MA from Reichman University (IDC Herzliya).

Catch up with our previous podcast episodes!

All podcasts are recorded for viewing after the event. To view past episodes, please visit our
YouTube channel or our website.

The Middle East Forum

An activist think tank, deals with the Middle East, Islamism, U.S. foreign policy, and related topics, urging bold measures to protect Americans and their allies. Pursuing its goals via intellectual, operational, and philanthropic means, the Forum recurrently has policy ideas adopted by the U.S. government.

(215) 546-5406 | www.MEForum.org