The regional turbulence dramatically affected the international arena, and the great powers found themselves drawn into the region and engaging in what some experts called a new Cold War. This period generated an overwhelming number of refugees, not witnessed since the Second World War, while jihadist terrorism exported its ideology and inspired the formation of the Islamic State, which has been in decline but still boasts proxies and loyalists worldwide. These trends destabilized the European Union, and deepened conflicts that led to the strengthening of nationalist far-right movements in countries such as Hungary, Poland, Greece, Germany, France, and the UK, thus exacerbating the fragmentation of the EU – as exhibited by Brexit, the UK’s departure from the EU.

The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), Israel’s leading think tank, ranked by the University of Pennsylvania’s Global Think Tank Index as among the most prominent research institutes worldwide on national security affairs, has studied the regional trends up close. INSS scholars research developments and build on a growing knowledge infrastructure that INSS aspires to share with the public, policy experts, decision makers, and students.

To fulfill this objective, INSS holds a myriad of public events and regularly publishes books, monographs, journals, and articles. In addition, it has organized and hosted at its facilities a 3-week international summer course on the changing Middle East, which included lectures, simulations, and field trips. The courses, held over three consecutive years, received highly positive feedback. The fourth class, originally scheduled for July 2020, was canceled due to COVID-19, despite the high number of students registered. This year, INSS decided to conduct the fourth class of the international summer course in the format of an online webinar, to comply with COVID-19 restrictions.   

The program will mark 10 years since the Arab upheaval (the Arab Spring) and will last two weeks (June 21, 2021-July 1 2021), each week structured as a course that can be taken individually or combined. Each week’s course runs for four days, including 3 sessions of 45-60 minutes per session, with short breaks in between. Each course will include a virtual guided field trip relevant to the topic of the course.

The manager of the program is Dr. Kobi Michael, a Senior Researcher at INSS and editor of Strategic Assessment, with lectures given by top INSS experts (information about the INSS team is found on our website). The program will start daily at 2:30 PM GMT (9:30 AM ET) to accommodate international audiences. Completion of one or two courses will award the participant with an official INSS diploma.

The cost of each course is $250, and a $100 discount will be granted to those who register for both courses. All lectures will be recorded and uploaded to a closed portal, allowing participants to watch sessions they missed.