One year ago today, The Levant Files took its first steps as a modest pilot initiative — a carefully curated blog with a bold ambition: to offer nuanced, evidence-based insight into one of the world's most complex and consequential regions. We could not have imagined, then, just how consequential the year ahead would prove to be.
The twelve months since our launch have confronted us — and the world — with an extraordinary succession of historical ruptures. We have covered the unfolding of wars and armed confrontations that have reshaped borders, alliances, and civilian realities across the Eastern Mediterranean and the broader Middle East. We have traced the fragile and contested transition in post-Assad Syria, the deepening tragedy in Gaza, the shifting postures of regional and global powers, the stirring of new conflict fronts, and the quiet but consequential sociopolitical transformations that rarely make the front pages but define the long arc of the region's future. Throughout it all, The Levant Files has endeavored to remain what it set out to be: a space for analysis that respects the complexity of events and the dignity of the peoples living through them.
We are grateful — and humbled — to have had readers walk alongside us through this turbulent year.
Growth Beyond What We Imagined
What began as a trilingual platform in English, Greek, and Turkish has grown into something wider and more diverse. Today, The Levant Files reaches its audience in five languages. Arabic and Persian — two of the most vital linguistic and cultural pillars of the region we cover — are now part of our offering, currently in beta phase, as we work to deepen their reach and analytical quality. This expansion is not merely a technical milestone; it is an expression of our core conviction that understanding the Levant demands that we listen and speak in the voices of those who live it.
Our podcast has become a platform in its own right — one that has found a dedicated and growing audience among listeners who care deeply about Middle Eastern affairs. Through long-form conversations, expert analysis, and on-the-ground perspectives, it has given The Levant Files a voice in the truest sense, reaching people in moments and spaces that the written word sometimes cannot.
Across our social media channels, The Levant Files has built a meaningful and engaged presence — a community of readers, researchers, journalists, and citizens who share our belief that this region deserves serious, honest, and accessible coverage.
Looking Ahead
We begin our second year with a clear sense of purpose and with concrete plans that we look forward to sharing with you in the weeks and months ahead. New formats, new collaborations, and a deeper commitment to the analytical standards that have defined us from the start are all part of the road we see before us.
The Eastern Mediterranean remains at the crossroads of civilizations, as it has always been — and the demands on those who seek to understand it have never been greater. We are honored to continue this work alongside you.
With gratitude and resolve,
Dr. Nikolaos Stelgias
Founder, The Levant Files
Cyprus, March 14, 2026