Two town halls

Dear Colleagues,

Winston Churchill said, it’s been claimed, that “the Balkans produce more history than they can consume.” The same might be said of our region, and certainly these days.

In Iran this week, drought turned to heavy rain and severe flooding across the country’s western provinces as authorities began cloud seeding to facilitate rain. At every turn, the clerical regime faces new tests with a restive population. The economy is still a mess with high unemployment, inflation, poverty. And the U.S. Treasury Department is now reporting that Tehran continues to funnel large sums abroad to Hezbollah.

The IDF confirms drone strikes this week in southern Lebanon in the Bint Jbeil area, where the Israelis claim Hezbollah infrastructure is being restored.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) left Washington yesterday. The U.S. keeps driving news in the Middle East. This week, the Administration pledged to sell F-35 stealth fighter jets to Saudi Arabia. The Saudis have promised in return to increase investments in the U.S. up to $1 trillion (that’s up from the $600 billion promised during President Trump’s May visit; timeline tbd). Human rights were not on the agenda. And there’s no sign that Riyadh is ready to normalize relations with Israel.

Syria’s foreign minister Asaad al-Shaibani arrived in Beijing this week, a week after Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa met with President Trump at the White House. Damascus needs investment. Beijing wants oil and mineral resources in the Middle East. That’s not all. Last month, the Chinese navy conducted its third joint exercise with the Royal Saudi Naval Forces off the Saudi eastern coastline.

MBN Editorial

The editorial team received a note of appreciation on Tuesday from Leila Bazzi. It’s my turn now.

Our Friday newsletter continues to showcase the first-rate material the editorial group is delivering now every week.

Do have a look at this week’s MBN Agenda. There’s outstanding work from our Washington team, including an exclusive conversation with “MBS whisperer” Bernard Haykel, the Princeton academic who speaks regularly to the Saudi crown prince. Check out our scoop on shifting U.S. diplomacy toward Lebanon, insightful analysis of Iraq’s recent elections, and the U.S. at the UN on Gaza. It’s a key part of our mission to shed light on the American story for audiences in the Middle East.

My tip of hat to the Agenda team of Joe, Cheyn, Aya, and Ezat — plus Abed, Karim, and colleagues across the region.

Andres’s Iran Briefing is becoming a must-read on the Iranian regime’s activity across our region. Min’s China tracker launches in December. It all lines up as rich, mission-aligned content.

MBN’s audience comprises influentials in politics, business, media, and culture across the Middle East and North Africa. Our primary language is Arabic. But let’s keep pushing our multilingual approach with English language editions; they’re now getting read in key capitals in the region (and offer stakeholders here an important window on our taxpayer-funded work).

Two Town Hall Meetings  

It’s a full week. We just had Avirahm Bellaishe from the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Policy with us in Springfield.

I was hosted by Ken Pollack for a lunchtime discussion with his research staff at the Middle East Institute (MEI) on Tuesday. Tom Melia from our board joined me. MBN trustee Susan Ziadeh is an MEI board member; Ryan Crocker is an MEI distinguished diplomatic fellow. With Ken and his colleagues, we’re exploring different forms of cooperation.

On Tuesday, the MBN board met with our auditors. Yesterday, Raji and Anne received initial CR guidance from USAGM. We’re awaiting our October disbursement and a new grant agreement. I’ll bring you up to date.

Today at 1 pm, we’ll meet for a town hall to discuss budget, hiring, and the way forward. There are a number of colleagues I’m eager to thank on the administrative side of our operations. I’ll say a word about MBN training and continuing education. And we’ll address 2026 relocation. We have new ways to save taxpayer money.

Tomorrow at 11 am, we’ll meet for a second town hall on editorial strategy. We received useful feedback from members of our board last week. (Pizza is on me after we meet tomorrow).

Our funder, Congress and the American taxpayer, can be proud as you sharpen focus, ramp up content, and serve audiences across a region vital to American interests. I share in that pride.

My very best,

Jeff