top of page
MECRA RESEARCH BLOG
The MECRA research blog is composed of short articles and may include outside contributions. The views expressed in these blogs and articles are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the Middle East Center for Reporting and Analysis editorial stance.
Search
The Badr Organization: Role in Iraq and Iranian influence
Badr Corps / Badr Organization: A case study The Badr Corps is a branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps formed in 1982 by...
MECRA
Jun 20, 20195 min read
Timeline and details: June 13 Gulf of Oman tanker "attack"
Timeline of the June 13 alleged attack on two oil tankers off the coast of Iran's Jask.
MECRA
Jun 13, 20198 min read
Death of Abdel Basset Al-Sarout shocks Syrian opposition: Reflections and memories on social media
Abdel Basset Sarout (Abdul Basset Saroot, Abdel Basset al-Sarout, Abd Al Basset El Sarwat #Abdel_AlBasset_ElSarwot , عبد الباسط...
MECRA
Jun 8, 20197 min read
Bombings target Raqqa, near symbolic Naim Square
Bombings targeted Raqqa (الرقة) on the night of June 1 before midnight. It comes amid an uptick in ISIS threats that have occurred across...
MECRA
Jun 1, 20192 min read
Quds Day 2019: Iran, the IRGC and the 'Deal of the Century'
Quds Day 2019 - Iran Quds Day was named by Ayatollah Khomeini as an official day to support the Palestinian people. On August 7, 1979, in...
MECRA
May 31, 20194 min read
Iran's FM Zarif meets Badr's Hadi al-Amiri
During a trip to Iraq by Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (محمد جواد ظريف) on Sunday May 26, the Iranian met with Badr...
MECRA
May 26, 20193 min read
How Iraq's Shia militias are reacting to the rocket attack on the Green Zone and US embassy area
On May 19 a Katyusha rocket fired from near Baghdad's Technological University landed near the monument to the Unknown Soldier not far...
MECRA
May 20, 20196 min read
Southern Syria's Yarmouk Basin after the Syrian government's return
Southern Syria's Yarmouk Basin after the Syrian government returned in the summer of 2018 has experienced changes and fears
MECRA
May 19, 20194 min read
Timeline of US-Iran tensions May 2019
Beginning on May 5 tensions have escalated between the US and Iran. This comes in the context of US claims that Iran and its proxies pose...
MECRA
May 15, 20195 min read
Yazidi ruling helps children of women kidnapped by ISIS return
By SETH J. FRANTZMAN A new ruling by the Yazidi Supreme Spiritual Council has sought to help solve one of the more complex and...
MECRA
Apr 26, 20198 min read
The brothers: New IRGC leader Salami has influential brother in Iranian armed forces
The new IRGC commander, Hossein Salami, is the more well known of two brothers who play an influential role in Iran's security forces....
MECRA
Apr 22, 20192 min read
Who is the IRGC's new head of security: Fathollah Jamiri?
In a short announcement on Saturday Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that Fathollah Jamiri had been appointed to a key...
MECRA
Apr 20, 20192 min read
Filmmaker Seeks to Highlight Kurdish Plight through Indie Movies in America
Iranian-Kurdish movie director Shepol Abbasi has put the final touches on his new movie “Performance of the Dead,” which will be released...
MECRA
Apr 17, 20193 min read
IRGC Information security service targets dual nationals in Iran
In 2002, the United States began to increase the flow of news and information into Iran. The Voice of America (VOA) established what...
MECRA
Apr 5, 20194 min read
The Arrest of Aws al-Khafaji: Looking at the Abu al-Fadl al-Abbas Forces
By AYMENN JAWAD AL-TAMIMI In February, security forces affiliated with the Iraqi government’s Hashd Sha’abi commission carried out a raid...
MECRA
Apr 2, 20196 min read
Will ferry disaster in Mosul have broad political ramifications
The deaths of over 100 people on a ferry ride to Umm al-Rabeein island on March 21 in Mosul has led to protests and the likely dismissal...
MECRA
Mar 24, 20193 min read
Analysis: The threat of sleeper cells continues after ISIS territorial defeat in Syria
By WLADIMIR VAN WILGENBURG March 23, 2019* With the liberation of the last ISIS pocket in Baghouz (Baghuz) in the Deir Ezzor (Deir ar...
MECRA
Mar 23, 201911 min read
Can Iraq and Kurdistan rebuild and stabilize Sinjar?
By PAUL IDDON The Iraqi government in Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) plan to jointly rebuild the Yazidis homeland,...
MECRA
Mar 14, 20196 min read
IRGC: 'To Jerusalem' drone operation showcases technology and use of 50 drones simultaneously
On Thursday Iran's IRGC announced that it had launched a major drill dubbed Illa Beit al-Maqdis (الی بیت المقدس 1), a reference to the...
MECRA
Mar 14, 20192 min read
How Baghuz unfolded: Humanitarian aid, 22,000 people, FBR and the end of ISIS
Interview with Paul Curtis Bradley By SETH J. FRANTZMAN March 11, 2019 Free Burma Rangers is a humanitarian relief org that specializes...
MECRA
Mar 12, 20199 min read
bottom of page