The editors welcome submissions for the tenth anniversary issue of the Oxford Middle East Review (OMER), a peer-reviewed, interdisciplinary journal for discussion and debate on issues relating to the Middle East and North Africa. The theme of this issue will be:

Reconstruction

***

As the Oxford Middle East Review marks its tenth anniversary, we turn our attention to the idea of reconstruction, not only as a process of rebuilding after destruction, but as a way of reimagining futures after rupture. Across the Middle East and North Africa, moments of crisis and collapse, from wars and revolutions to environmental disasters, have repeatedly given rise to new political, social, and cultural forms. Reconstruction invites us to consider what can emerge in the wake of loss: how communities, institutions, and imaginations reshape themselves.

Reconstruction has never been a purely technical or material process; it is deeply entangled with questions of power, memory, and belonging. The past year has been marked by profound moments of rupture across the region. The fall of the Assad regime represents a major shift in the regional order, inviting reflection on how the Syrian nation might reimagine its social contract and political system, rebuild its economy, and address the displacement of millions of its citizens. In Sudan, a continuing civil war that is eroding institutions, civil society, and trust compels us to ask what reconstruction means when it must also rebuild the very idea of a shared political future. In Gaza, where both physical and imaginative reconstruction are fraught with political tension, post-war rebuilding raises fundamental questions: how can one rebuild when the conditions that caused destruction remain unresolved? Is it even possible to rebuild under occupation?

This issue invites contributors to think broadly about the forms that reconstruction can take, be it physical, political, environmental, or cultural. How are futures imagined after crisis? What new solidarities, aesthetics, or institutions materialize when old structures collapse? How do processes of reconstruction engage with memory, and justice? And what happens when reconstruction itself becomes a site of contestation, shaped by global capital, humanitarian intervention, and ideology?

We welcome submissions that examine these questions through empirical, theoretical, and comparative perspectives, and encourage authors to explore the theme of reconstruction across disciplines, from history, politics, and economics to anthropology, literature, and art.

Papers will be considered for the journal’s three sections:

Policy Section:
Shorter briefs or position papers up to 2,000 words (including references and citations) aimed at influencing contemporary debate or policy-making.

Research Section:
Articles from 7,500 to 10,000 words (including references and citations) that present original material from any discipline and engage critically with the theme of reconstruction in the context of the Middle East and North Africa.

Book Reviews:
Brief, critical reviews of up to 1,500–2,000 words of topical books published in late 2023, 2024, or 2025.

Deadline for Submissions: January 4, 2026

Full Submission Guidelines: https://omerjournal.com/submit/

To submit, please email: submissions@omerjournal.com

For general queries, please email: omerjournal@gmail.com