On the surface, the Reopening of the Nassib Border Crossing, connecting Syria and Jordan, which has been closed since 2015 might give the impression that the situation in Syria has stabilized and that Bashar al Assad, the President of Syria, has restored his sovereignty and control over the country. However, zooming in and zooming out helps you understand that that…

The Price of Pita & Stability in Jordan February 8, 2018 Information: The Jordanian government’s decision to raise the price of commodities and well as taxes, sparked a wave of peaceful public protests on February 2nd in different cities in Jordan. The major trigger for the demonstrations is the rise in the price of bread. The common bread in Jordan…

Avi Melamed on I24 News with Calev Ben David discussing Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Palestinians, Jordan, etc. on The Rundown  

Immediate Intelligence Bulletin   July 16th, 2017 Terror attack at the Temple Mount Compound: Regional Reactions (** This is an immediate Bulletin. I will publish a more detailed Intelligence Report over the next few days **) Information: On Friday July 14, 2017, three Israeli-Arabs opened fire on Israeli Border Patrol Police securing the Temple Mount Compound in Jerusalem, called Al-Haram…

In case you missed it….. Avi Melamed on I24 Friday, July 7 talking about the United States, Russia and Syria and Terror in the Sinai   Click on Screen Shot below to See the Show…. 

Click Here for PDF of this Report June 27, 2017 Intelligence Report The Concept of Greater Jordan and the Creation of a Safe-Zone in South Syria  Information: Reportedly in June 2017 the United States, Russia and Jordan signed a memorandum establishing a “Safe-Zone” in southern Syria – a 30-kilometer-wide strip in Syria running parallel to the Jordanian border. The exact…

Published in The Cipherbrief,  February 2016 by Avi Melamed   The collapse or weakening of state authority in different parts of the Middle East and Africa, together with growing inner challenges and chronic instability in large parts of the region and the widening and escalating Iranian-Arab power struggle, creates a chaotic environment militant Islamic groups exploit to expand their activities…

December 6, 2014 by Avi Melamed The Middle East continues to constantly provide dramatic events in different areas – in Syria, Yemen, Egypt, Iraq and other places. However, I would like to divert your attention for a while from the dramatic events in those arenas and take a pause to explore some very interesting processes taking place for a significant player in the region – The Muslim Brotherhood movement. Following the outbreak of events in the Arab world known as the Arab Awakening, the Muslim Brotherhood has succeeded in attaining their primary political goal in two Arab countries. In the elections held in Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood won by an overwhelming majority in the Egyptian parliament, and its candidate Mohamed…

A New Middle East Requires a New Understanding. Events of an historic scale are rocking the Middle East. I have spent many years of my life in the streets of the Arab world.  I have watched the Arab Awakening evolve and erupt from the inside. The Middle East in changing before our very eyes, the landscape is shifting and changing every day, and can drastically change any minute now. My upcoming US lecture tour will help you understand the present and navigate the future. Egypt, the biggest and most important Arab State, is embroiled a fierce battle over its identity. Iraq, Libya, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen are disintegrating in a bloody and violent process. Lebanon, once known as the Paris…

******* Intelligence Bulletin Information Date:                October 26, 2013 Event Date:                            October 25, 2013 Information Item:                 Leader of Jabhat Al- Nusrah killed in Syria? Information Platform:         Varied Source:                                    Vary Source Reliability:                 Unknown Spring:                                     Syrian National TV Network Spring Reliability:                  Unknown Information Validity:            Unconfirmed Relevant Information:         The Syrian TV News network (SANA) associated with the Assad regime, reported that Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani, the leader of the Jabhat Al-Nusra organization, which is affiliated with Al-Qaeda in Syria, was killed on October 25, 2013. Jabhat Al-Nusra rushed to deny the report, announcing that Al-Joulani, as well as Abu Anas Al-Sahabh, another senior leader of the organization, were safe and sound. It should be mentioned that the news item was removed from SANA’s website shortly after it was published. It also…

Ask A Senior Analyst – Mr. Avi Melamed   Mr. Avi Melamed Editor’s Note: Wikistrat’s Facebook followers recently engaged in a 24-hour exclusive Q&A drill with one of Wikistrat’s Senior Analysts – Mr. Avi Melamed. Mr. Avi Melamed, former Israeli Senior Official on Arab Affairs and is an independent Middle East Strategic Intelligence Analyst and lecturer specialized in the current affairs of the Arab and Muslim world, as well as their impact on Israel and the region more widely. Mr. Melamed provides intelligence analysis, briefings and tours to diplomats, Israeli and foreign policy makers, international media outlets and a wide variety of organizations as well as private clients on a range of Israeli and Middle Eastern affairs. Miguel Nunes Silva: …

October 17, 2012 The Emirate of Qatar formally announced its intention to invest $254,000,000 in the Gaza Strip.  The money will be used to build a new hospital, new residential projects, new roads and new physical infrastructure.   The investment is expected to generate thousands of job opportunities for the people of Gaza who struggle with a 30% unemployment rate.  There were rumors that the Qatari Emir and/or his wife, Princess Moza, were supposed to have visited Gaza this week, but the trip was postponed.  This explains the fact that Gaza Streets were recently lined with huge billboards and posters of the Qatari Emir Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani with word “shukran” (“thank you” in Arabic).  Rumors of the supposed visit…

September 5, 2012 by Avi Melamed The Hashemite kingdom of Jordan is experiencing growing unrest. Jordan is grappling with many challenges – just some of which are:  a growing external debt; an unbalanced budget which is threatening to bankrupt the country’s fragile economy; a high unemployment rate; growing inflation; a severe shortage of fresh water; constant electric blackouts and brownouts; a disintegration of public order; and growing feelings of insecurity among the population. At the same time, Jordanians are also focused on two additional issues:  the exposure of what seems to be deep corruption among politicians, civil servants and people who are part of the monarchy’s inner circle – specifically the Queen; and the perennial, yet sharply escalating debate, between…

February 13, 2011 by Avi Melamed The following story allows the West to have a glimpse into Middle Eastern Politics. It’s always good to learn something… Mrs. Randa Habib is the Correspondent of the French Agency News (FAN) in Jordan.  She knows everything that there is to be known about what is going on in Jordan.  She has direct access to theRoyal Court. A couple of days ago she published an interesting report.  Thirty-six senior figures from the Bedouin Tribes in Jordan published a petition criticizing the Jordanian Queen Rania. Queen Rania’s is from the Yasin family, a very wealthy Palestinian family originally from the city of Nablus on theWest Bank.  Rania was born in Kuwait, where her father had…