Sample Newsletters
Find out what gets our members talking. Click on the links below to read recent articles which have sparked discussion.

Ukraine and the ongoing food crisis in Yemen
Summary: while the Yemen truce has largely held and there is hope it will be renewed, the war in Ukraine has exacerbated food insecurity with prices soaring for wheat and other commodities even as ordinary Yemenis, hit hard by rampant inflation, are already lacking the money to buy food.

UK-Saudi relations: the warming trend continues
Summary: following the prime minister’s meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh in March, a Saudi Shura Council delegation visits Westminster and meets with the business minister Kwasi Kwarteng to the horror of the Saudi opposition.

The murder of a journalist
Summary: the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh cannot be left to the Israeli authorities to investigate. Only an independent body can establish the truth of her death.

An academic goes missing in MbS’s kingdom of fear
Summary: Mohammed bin Salman wins kudos for reforming the Saudi economy and opening the kingdom to Western values but a fair and transparent judicial system is not among those values.

Significant developments in the Yemeni conflict
Summary: a truce is announced and a president resigns so does this mean that the war in Yemen, after seven brutal years of fighting, may finally be drawing to a close? We thank Helen Lackner for today’s article. She has worked in Yemen since the 1970s and lived there for nearly 15 years, and has written

Can Algeria raise its gas game with Europe?
Summary: the war in Ukraine presents Algeria with a unique opportunity to exploit its gas reserves as Europe scrambles to ease its dependency on Russian hydrocarbons.

Putin’s war and a MENA food crisis
Summary: before the Russians invaded Ukraine, food insecurity was already an issue for many MENA countries but as of 24 February a bad situation got a whole lot worse.

Will the UAE’s membership of the UNSC lead to diplomatic developments in Yemen?
Summary: UN resolution 2624 offers some solutions but poses many challenges to bringing an end to the seemingly intractable war in Yemen.

How far will Putin go?
Summary: as the war in Ukraine continues with missiles raining down and a massive column of armoured vehicles heads toward Kyiv, fears are growing that the Russian president is prepared to inflict massive civilian harm in order to achieve his objectives. With the question being asked repeatedly and one that often focusses on the mental

Saudi women train drivers: MbS’s ultimate constituency?
Summary: Mohammed bin Salman is following through on his plan to bring Saudi women into the workforce and he is doing so at speed while making it very clear that none of the gains women have been given are a result of grassroots pressure.

UAE diplomats: more smuggling
Summary: the UAE continues to insist it is cleaning up its act when it comes to money-laundering, gold and antiquities smuggling but lucrative criminal networks continue to flourish while key players remain unpunished.

Israel and apartheid
Summary: the description of Israel as an apartheid state has stirred an angry reaction within the country and among its international supporters but there is much in the Amnesty report that deserves consideration.