| BRIEFINGS BY AVI MELAMED |
TO UNDERSTAND ISRAEL | WE MUST UNDERSTAND THE MIDDLE EAST
The Middle East is moving fast. Narratives are multiplying. Certainty is disappearing. And the past is always present.
People are not looking for more information. They are looking for understanding.
This is not a moment for recycled lectures or fixed talking points.
Avi Melamed grounds today’s headlines in regional context that is largely absent from Western discourse, helping audiences understand Israel through the broader Middle Eastern landscape.
Drawing on decades of intelligence experience and deep engagement with the Arab world, Avi exposes the forces shaping events now and offers a framework for thinking about where those events may be heading. Avi then turns the lens back on the West, examining how public opinion now actively shapes the conflict, often without access to the language, context, or internal regional conversations shaping reality on the ground.
People do not leave with answers handed to them. They leave more educated, more informed, equipped with context and the confidence to understand the region beyond the noise, buzzwords, and slogans. Avi brings people into the conversation most people never hear - and it is the one communities need now more than ever.
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WHAT IS A BRIEFING ?
Now & Next | How Did We Get Here?
Where Are We? Where Are We Going?
Two Years After October 7th | The Domino Effect
& The Path Ahead
Beyond The Narratives | Inside The Forces Shaping
The Middle East
The Past Is Present | What’s Driving
The Middle East Now & What Comes Next?
Beyond The Two-State Paradigm | Alliances, Realignments, And The Road Ahead
Jerusalem | Seam Line Between Religion, Nationalism & Competing Power Struggles
Contact Us to Book A Briefing By Avi Melamed
“Given the frequency of speakers coming to campuses to discuss Israel, students feel there is rarely new information provided nor an objective position taken. Avi’s talk provided both! Every student went away feeling they had a more complete understanding of the war, and the necessary information to engage with it more holistically going forward.”
Anna P
“Avi Melamed is not your typical Israel speaker. He didn’t just recite the usual talking points; he opened our eyes to the grand scale of the conflict and the current-day implications. This is exactly what students need to continue engaging with Israel in a meaningful way.”
Jonah Snyder
“Avi was able to tone his presentation and language to the complexity and understanding of a college student, expressing himself in a way that both an activist and a newcomer could equally understand and benefit.”
President | Co’ 2026
“Avi’s nuanced, balanced, thoughtful analysis has helped many, myself included, gain a deeper understanding of the events in Israel and the wider Middle East. Nearly 2,000 participants have joined our virtual briefings or access our online recordings. I am so proud and honored to provide this important resource to our JCC community at this critical time when greater education is essential.”
Judy Wolff-Bolton
“I’m a progressive; I’m a local California council member. I was coming for the photo-op. But your briefing is the most important one I’ve heard. So, I cleared my calendar for the day so I could stay and hear you. I want you to brief the council.”
California legislator
“The board and staff said that it was the best presentation that we have ever had and are now capable of having productive conversations with people who question Israel.”
Laura Friedman
“It’s not easy curating educational experiences around Israel. People have strong opinions, contrasting narratives, and political perspectives.Avi did an amazing job with nuance and perspective rather than his own “op-ed.”
Brian Schreiber
| Now Booking Avi's Newest Briefing |
The Middle East 2026 | Regional Dynamics, Western Discourse, and What Comes Next
The war initiated by Hamas on October 7 set in motion a fast-moving and complex dynamic that continues to reshape the Middle East. A critical factor in this process is Western public opinion, which is no longer a passive observer but an active force influencing realities on the ground.
Western discourse on the region has grown increasingly charged and polarizing, largely because the Middle East is interpreted through Western lenses rather than anchored in regional context and internal dynamics.
In this briefing, Avi Melamed reframes the conversation by offering an apolitical, intelligence-based, and authentic reading of regional discourse from within the Middle East. Drawing on decades of professional experience and deep engagement with the Arab world, he explains the forces shaping the region, forces often absent from Western conversations yet decisive on the ground.
He traces how the region arrived at this moment, the domino effect triggered since October 7, where the Middle East stands today, and the dynamics likely shaping what comes next.
Using ITME’s signature framework:
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How did we get here?
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Where are we now?
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Where are we going?
Each program concludes with a live Q&A, offering participants the opportunity to explore current developments through Avi’s unique lens of intelligence, experience, and regional fluency.
This is not advocacy or politics. It is authentic, apolitical education, customized to reflect current developments in real time.
Avi Melamed, a former Israeli intelligence official, Senior Arab Affairs Advisor, author, and trusted educator, delivers briefings designed to help audiences understand Israel through the broader lens of the Middle East. He does not tell audiences what to think. He teaches them how to think, equipping them to engage with confidence, context, and critical thinking.
At Inside The Middle East | Intelligence Perspectives [ITME], we believe one thing above all: to understand Israel, you must understand the Middle East.
Through authentic, apolitical education, ITME helps people move from confusion to clarity and from confrontation to connection.
OTHER SAMPLE BRIEFING TOPICS
Now & Next | How Did We Get Here? Where Are We? Where Are We Going?
Beyond the Narratives | Inside the Forces Shaping the Middle East
The Past Is Present | What’s Driving the Middle East Now - and What Comes Next?
Beyond the Two-State Paradigm | Alliances, Realignments, and the Road Ahead
Jerusalem | The Seam Line between Religion, Nationalism, and Competing Power Struggles
Also available: Screening & Discussion of The Seam Line | Living on The Edge of Eternity, an original ITME Jerusalem docuseries written, produced, and featuring Avi Melamed.
Contact Us to Book A Briefing By Avi Melamed
