FROM THE MIDDLE EAST | ABOUT THE MIDDLE EAST | BY AVI MELAMED
THE BRIEFING ROOM
NEXT EPISODE SUNDAY, OCTOBER 11
ITME | Inside The Middle East – Intelligence Perspectives provides apolitical, intelligence-based Middle East education grounded in regional context and incorporating regional voices absent from Western discourse.
(Re) Introducing The Briefing Room
Now Open To The Public! For years, the Briefing Room was reserved for private organizations and select audiences. In response to increasing demand, we’re relaunching it with a new format, new technologies, and new voices — live and unfiltered. Free access. Live participation. No filters.
The Middle East is a chain of links – what happens in one place impacts what happens in another. And what happens in the Middle East does not stay in the Middle East.
The Briefing Room is a live, interactive podcast.
Each episode features Avi Melamed in conversation with one expert from the Middle East about the Middle East, offering real-time discussion of current geopolitics through voices often absent from Western discourse. Plus you will have the opportunity to engage directly through an interactive Q&A.
What You’ll Get:
– A chance to learn directly from Avi Melamed, a leading Middle East analyst and founder of ITME, and his distinguished guests
– Expert insights and perspectives from regional voices|
– Insider access to current, in-depth analysis that you won’t find in Western media
– In-depth understanding of current geopolitical events
– Interactive Q & A
– Resources & tools to connect the dots + see the big picture of the Middle East
– A chance to learn directly from Avi Melamed, a leading Middle East analyst and founder of ITME, and his distinguished guests
– Expert insights and perspectives from regional voices|
– Insider access to current, in-depth analysis that you won’t find in Western media
– In-depth understanding of current geopolitical events
– Interactive Q & A
– Resources & tools to connect the dots + see the big picture of the Middle East
More than a geopolitical podcast, The Briefing Room provides rare access to Ambassadors of Change working to influence how the Middle East is understood in the West—offering insight into both current issues and their personal stories!
If you haven't registered yet for the next Briefing Room | Register Here >>
Last Episode Recording Available
LATEST GUEST ON THE BRIEFING ROOM:
MUHAMMAD NAJIB
Inside Palestinian Politics
Nearly 20 years have passed since the violent confrontation between the two major Palestinian movements—Fatah and Hamas. A broad look at the Palestinian reality since then reveals two fundamental trends: a severe deterioration in Palestinian conditions, particularly in the Gaza Strip, and the complete failure of repeated efforts to reconcile Fatah and Hamas.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has announced that Palestinian parliamentary elections will be held in November 2026. The last elections took place in 2006, when Hamas won a decisive victory.
But will elections actually take place? What does the Palestinian political landscape look like today? With Hamas refusing to disarm, do elections even make sense? What happens in Gaza if Palestinian Authority rule is formally restored while Hamas remains the real power on the ground?
And against the backdrop of the war and the ongoing crisis with Iran, what are the implications for the Palestinian arena? Who are the emerging figures in Palestinian politics today, and what roles might they play in shaping the Palestinian political landscape going forward?
We will explore these questions and more with our guest, Palestinian journalist Mohammed Najib.
Mohammed Najib is a Palestinian defence correspondent, security journalist, and analyst from Ramallah, in the West Bank. For 36 years, he has reported on developments in the Middle East, working for leading newspapers, including Janes Information Group. His writing credits include the book “Global Security and Intelligence”, published by Praeger Security International, as well as the mid-2007 publication “Entry-point to Palestinian Security Sector Reform” by the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF).
A speaker at numerous public diplomacy events and a participant in several security conferences.Since joining Janes Information Group in April 2001, contributed to several of Janes’ publications covering Defence, Intelligence, Strategic Affairs, Islamic Groups, Counterterrorism, Country Risk, and Organised Crime.
Holds a professional degree in Written Journalism from Bir Zeit University and a B.A. in English Literature from Al-Quds University.Proficient in four languages: Arabic, English, French, and Hebrew.Elected to the Foreign Press Association (FPA) board in 2014, and having been re-elected to that position for the past ten years.
PREVIOUSLY ON THE BRIEFING ROOM
Ali Adeeb Alnaemi
Ali Adeeb Alnaemi has been serving as a clinical associate professor for Arabic and media at NYU since receiving his MA in journalism there in 2010. He worked for PBS and the BBC in Iraq after the American invasion in 2003. Then he joined The New York Times and became the news editor of its Baghdad bureau before coming to the U.S. as a Knight-Wallace Fellow at the University of Michigan. He writes for several publications in Arabic and English and conducts research in Middle Eastern politics, media, and methods of teaching the Arabic language.
THE TALIBAN RETAKE AFGHANISTAN | WITH MAIAHAN WALI
Our Regional Guest Was Maihan Wali, Founder Of Women’s Empowerment Through Sport In Afghanistan And An Alumna Of The Inside The Middle East Intelligence Perspectives Program!
THE COUP IN SUDAN | A POWER STRUGGLE OVER SUDAN'S FUTURE |WITH ABU BAKR
Our Regional Guest Was Mohamed Abu Bakr, President, The African Middle Eastern Leadership Project (AMEL).
EGYPT, UM AL-DUNYA “THE MOTHER OF THE WORLD” | WITH DALIA ZIADA
Our Regional Guest Was Dalia Ziada, Founder And Director, Liberal Democracy Institute. Board Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee at Egypt's National Council for Women
THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES & THE ABRAHAM ACCORDS | WITH AHMED OBAID ALMANSOORI
Our Regional Guest Was Ahmed Obaid Almansoori, Former Member Of The United Arab Emirates Federal National Council; Founder, Crossroad Of Civilizations Museum.
LEBANON | THE TRAGIC TRAJECTORY OF THE PARIS OF THE MIDDLE EAST | WITH HUSSAIN ABDUL-HUSSAIN
Our Regional Guest Was Hussain Abdul-Hussain, Former Managing Editor At Beirut’s The Daily Star. Reporting From War Zones In Lebanon And Iraq. Former Head Of The Washington Bureau Of Kuwaiti Daily Alrai. Hussain Is Currently A Research Fellow At The Foundation For Defense Of Democracies.
SUNNIS & SHI’ITES | AN ANCIENT & PRESENT RIVALRY SPECIAL | WITH AVI MELAMED
(PRIMER SESSION BY SPECIAL REQUEST)
The Briefing Room is designed to educate people about Israel’s
neighborhood and connect people to the Middle East through
knowledge & personal encounters!
Thanks to your support we can open the briefing room to more communities and organizations.
INSIDE THE MIDDLE EAST | ENTERING A NEW ERA - PERSPECTIVES FROM SYRIAN-BORN JOURNALIST | WITH HAYVI BOUZO
In March our regional guest will be Hayvi Bouzo, a Syrian broadcast journalist with over 12 years of experience as a Bureau Chief, T.V. host, blogger, and commentator, and the co-founded Yalla, a fun, fast-paced, Arab-language show about the people who are building the future of the Middle East.
2022 INSIDE THE MIDDLE EAST | THE NEW ERA & THE ANCIENT JEWISH COMMUNITIES | RABBI MENDY CHITRIK
In April our regional guest will be Rabbi Mendy Chitrik, the Chief Rabbi of Turkey, the Founder and Chairman of the Alliance of Rabbis in Islamic States.
