Here it is: the first annual Middle East Matters year-end roundup listing the ten most significant Middle East developments of the year. As 2011 was such a tumultuous year in the region, almost any one of these items could have been deemed the most significant development in a "normal" year. So identifying significant developments is relatively easy. The hard part is winnowing down the events to just ten. Consistent with the theme of focusing on the interplay between U.S. foreign policy and the region, these were the items that were most significant from a U.S. foreign policy perspective. So in roughly chronological order are the top ten developments of 2011.

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