US says Israel boosted Gaza aid flow after convoy strike, but more is needed

US envoy David Satterfield said the volume of assistance reaching Gaza is "significantly greater" than it was, but issues remain with aid distribution.

Palestine

Has Turkey’s Erdogan axed his Biden meeting because of Israel?

Despite rumors of a cancellation in Turkish media, several high-level US diplomats have traveled over the past few days to Ankara to lay the ground for the summit.

Turkey

Interview

Israel's ex-intel chief: Biden distrusts Netanyahu, Iran escalation unlikely

Former head of IDF intelligence Amos Yadlin believes Israel should take the time to estimate whether the additional sanctions announced by the US and the EU would indeed affect Iran’s decision-making on its regional aggression and nuclear program.

Amos Yadlin

Former Head of Israeli Military Intelligence

Lebanon’s Hezbollah launches deepest attack into Israel, targets near Haifa

The attack is the deepest inside Israeli territory since the cross-border fighting between Israel and Hezbollah began last October.

Lebanon

Dubai's record rainfall spotlights Gulf’s troubled relation with water

The Gulf’s longterm love–hate relationship with water lies behind a year and a half's worth of rain that fell on Dubai in 24 hours. It includes climate change-induced shifting rainfall patterns, groundwater extractions and unsustainable consumption.

United Arab Emirates

New attacks near US bases in Iraq, Syria threaten uneasy detente

The Pentagon seemed to downplay the first new attacks on US troops in Syria and Iraq since February, as Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah militia distanced itself from responsibility.

Iraq

Azerbaijan detains Iranian boat for alleged drug smuggling

The incident has added to tense ties between Iran and Azerbaijan, in part due to the Baku’s ties to Israel and Tehran's support to Armenia.

Iran

Pentagon confirms talks to withdraw US troops from Niger

Washington failed to reach a compromise with junta leaders in Niamey, as Russia continues to make gains across the Sahel.

North Africa

9% spike in Mideast military spending driven by Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey

Military spending in the region increased by its largest percentage in a decade, in part due to the Gaza war, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Saudi Arabia

Analysis

Inside Netzah Yehuda Battalion, Israel’s army unit bracing for US sanctions

In an unprecedented move, the Biden administration is set to sanction the Netzah Yehuda Battalion, which is accused of violating the human rights of West Bank Palestinians.

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah denies resuming attacks on US bases

Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah denied on Monday it had resumed attacks on US bases after two apparent barrages threatened to break a fragile detente that had held since February.

Iraq

Israeli army intel chief first top official to resign over Oct. 7 failures

IDF intelligence chief Aharon Haliva is the first high-ranking Israeli military official to take responsibility for the intelligence failures that led to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Israel