Aging and dementia research in Middle Eastern North African (MENA) populations: inclusion and diversity beyond political conflicts

There is a recent scientific effort to draw attention to the rapid aging and rise of dementia prevalence in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, resulting from challenges in dementia diagnosis, burden, and care in the MENA countries 1 , 2 . For example, a comprehensive review synthesized evidence across epidemiological, socioeconomic, environmental, and policy dimensions, with recommendations for the region 1 . An additional review 2 assessed the burden of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD) among MENA countries based on the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) data 3 , suggesting the burden of dementia in the MENA region remains higher than global estimates, especially for women 2 , 4 . These scientific endeavors are recent examples of a focused effort to invest in aging and dementia research in MENA countries. However, from a medical, scientific, and ethical perspective, the exclusion of Israel from the MENA classification in some of these publications 1 , 2 is highly problematic and scientifically concerning. Nevertheless, this exclusion lacks scientific consensus. A recent 2026 meta-analysis 4 on dementia prevalence in the MENA region identified Israel as having the highest prevalence rate (17%) suggesting Israel’s central relevance to mapping regional trends, particularly given that 46% of the data analyzed in this study (24 out of 52 studies) originated from Israeli studies.