Africa and Middle East
The division's work is focused on social and political transformation, domestic and regional conflicts, as well as questions relating to external and security policies in Africa and the Middle East.
Head
-
Areas of Expertise
- Iran
- Defence and security policy / Armed forces
- Elites and elite change
- Political systems
-
Areas of Expertise
- Southern Africa
- Human rights
- Migration
- Strategic partnerships
- Sustainability governance
Staff
-
Areas of Expertise
- Israel
- Middle East
- Palestinian Territories
- Syria
- Civil wars
- Fragile states
- Middle East conflict
- Political systems
- Regional and interstate conflicts
-
Areas of Expertise
-
-
Areas of Expertise
- North Africa and Middle East
-
Areas of Expertise
- Libya
- Sahel
- Civil wars
- Fragile states
- Regional and interstate conflicts
-
-
Areas of Expertise
- Ethiopia
- Horn of Africa
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Sudan
- Civil wars
- Conflict prevention
- Peacebuilding
- UN missions
- United Nations Security Council
-
-
-
Areas of Expertise
- Arabian Peninsula
- Kurds in the Middle East
- Middle East
- Jihadism
- Political Islam / Islamism
- Terrorism
-
-
Areas of Expertise
- Sahel
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Civil wars
- Defence and security policy / Armed forces
- Political systems
-
Areas of Expertise
- East Africa
- Ethiopia
- Horn of Africa
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- Sudan
- Civil wars
- Fragile states
- Jihadism
- Political systems
- Regional and interstate conflicts
-
Areas of Expertise
- Algeria
- Maghreb / North Africa
- Morocco
- Tunisia
- Arab Spring
- Elites and elite change
- Political Islam / Islamism
- Political systems
Research Support
-
Areas of Expertise
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Areas of Expertise
- North Africa and Middle East
Social Media
Follow us on Bluesky!
SWP Publications
-
Der Iran-Krieg und seine Folgen – für den Mittleren Osten, die Großmächte und die Weltwirtschaft
Der Iran-Krieg verschiebt die globalen Kräfteverhältnisse: Teheran zeigt Resilienz, Israel gewinnt Zeit, verfehlt aber zentrale Kriegsziele – und die USA verharren im Dilemma. Welche Folgen das für den Mittleren Osten, die Großmächte und die Weltwirtschaft hat, legt dieses 360 Grad dar.
360 Grad, 30.04.2026 -
Multipolarities – The World-Order Visions of Others
SWP Research Paper 2026/RP 08, 20.04.2026, 47 Pagesdoi:10.18449/2026RP08
-
Metallic Raw Materials: Security of Supply as a Geoeconomic Task
in: The Return of Power Politics to the Market: Theory and Practice of the Geoeconomic ZeitenwendeContribution to a Research Paper 2026/RP 07, 15.04.2026, 109 Pages, pp. 55–61
-
International Sudan Conference in Berlin: Time for a change of perspective
Germany is inviting key international and Sudanese actors to Berlin. The conference offers an opportunity to develop a civilian-centred perspective on ending the war in Sudan, says Gerrit Kurtz.
Point of View, 10.04.2026 -
Internationale Sudankonferenz in Berlin: Zeit für einen Perspektivwechsel
Deutschland lädt zentrale internationale und sudanesische Akteure nach Berlin ein. Die Konferenz bietet die Chance, eine zivile Perspektive für ein Ende des Kriegs in Sudan zu entwickeln, meint Gerrit Kurtz.
Kurz gesagt, 08.04.2026 -
A Sustainable Commitment to Peace in an Age of Transient “Deals”
in: With, Without, Against Washington: Redefining Europe’s Relations With the United StatesContribution to a Research Paper 2026/RP 05, 27.03.2026, 81 Pages, pp. 39–42
External publications
-
Azadeh Zamirirad, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, zum Machtgefüge in Iran
Interview, in: tagesschau24, 27.04.2026 (Video) -
America and Israel against Iran: Strategic results during the ceasefire
Clingendael, 24.04.2026 -
Iran’s Supreme Leader No Longer Reigns Supreme
in: Time, 22.04.2026 -
The Role of Civil Society in Transitional Justice and Peace in Sudan
The devastating war in Sudan centres, by definition, on those waging it: the army, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), armed groups, militias, mercenaries. It seems to relegate civilians to the passive position of victims of the hostilities, of mass atrocities, forced displacement, starvation and gender-based violence. Conventional approaches to ending the war, based on Sudan’s long experience with conflict, tend to be narrow elite bargains that privilege those with guns through power and wealth sharing arrangements. Impunity reigned, either through blanket amnesty or long-delayed implementation ofofficial commitments.
in: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Policy Paper, 09.04.2026 -
L'Europe doit dénoncer la situation de Mohamed Bazoum
Interview in: Deutsche Welle, 01.04.2026 (in Französisch) -
How Mojtaba Khamenei Became the Supreme Leader
And What It Means for Iran’s Domestic and Foreign Policy
in: Iran Analytica, 11.03.2026