Politics & Security - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

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Politics & Security

US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, speaks during a press conference

Explainer

Who will lead Congress? Democrats weigh Schumer alternatives, Jeffries bid

A number of contenders have emerged as challengers to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, including strong critics of the Iran war and US support to Israel.

Tump

Can Trump turn midterm defeat into Iran breakthrough?

Although Iran may have contributed to Republican losses in midterms, the Trump administration still has a historic opportunity in the Middle East.

Manon Roca / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon files charges against 2 Hezbollah members as UNIFIL prepares to withdraw

The move comes amid growing security concerns in the south less than two months before the UNIFIL mandate expires.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses Turkish members of parliament during the opening of the parliamentary session at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on Oct. 1, 2026.

Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia

Turkey will now decide the scope of military support for Saudi Arabia amid ongoing Iran-backed Houthi attacks on the kingdom.

Latest News

Explainer

Arab parties' backing gives Eisenkot edge over Netanyahu for PM: What to know

Tomer Neuberg / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Massie renews Hegseth impeachment push as GOP blames Iran war for midterm losses

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth testifies during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill, on July 21, 2026, in Washington.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift?

TOFIK BABAYEV/AFP via Getty Images

Russia to provide Iran with 90 missile launchers as military ties grow: Reports

Russian Mil Mi-8 military helicopters fly over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy, northeastern Hasakeh province, Syria, Feb. 4, 2021.

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a meeting of provincial election officials at the headquarters of his ruling Justice and Development Party in front of giant portraits of himself and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, Ankara, Jan. 29, 2019.

Turkish lawyer detained over Sharia comments as Islamist-secularist debate flares

In the run-up to nationwide municipal elections, the arrest of the lawyer for her comments has provoked a fresh maelstrom over the role of religion in public life.

TOPSHOT - Muslims celebrate in front of the Dome of the Rock mosque after the morning Eid al-Fitr prayer, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, at the Al-Aqsa mosques compound in Old Jerusalem early on May 2, 2022. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Can Netanyahu stop Ben-Gvir from restricting Al-Aqsa access during Ramadan?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu caved in part to the demands of National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir despite warnings by the security establishment against the appearance of an attack on religion.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

US vetoes Gaza cease-fire resolution at UN Security Council

The United States blocked a Security Council resolution demanding “an immediate cease-fire” between Israel and Hamas but offered its own draft calling for a “temporary” one.

This picture shows a general view of Lebanon's port city of Tripoli on April 26, 2023. A crushing economic crisis in Lebanon has impelled members of the security forces to take on side hustles to get by, raising concerns about security in the eastern Mediterranean country. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Nearly 1,000 buildings in Tripoli, Lebanon are at risk of collapse: Amnesty

Amnesty International has denounced the local Tripoli government’s lack of action to protect residents who have been living in unsafe buildings since last year’s earthquake.

Supporters of China's Muslim Uighur minority wave flags of East Turkestan and Turkey during a demonstration at Beyazid Square, Istanbul, Dec. 14, 2019.

Turkey detains 6 people suspected of spying on Uyghurs for China

The suspects were rounded up in simultaneous raids in Istanbul for allegedly “collecting information” about prominent members of the Uyghur diaspora and their institutions based in Turkey.

Smoke billows following two Israeli air raids (L and R) in the southern Lebanese city town of Ghaziyeh.

Israel strikes near Sidon in serious Lebanon escalation

The latest strikes hit an area some 30 kilometers from the Israel-Lebanon border, where Israel and Hezbollah have been engaged in tit-for-tat exchanges since last October.

JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images

Russia sets up observation points in Syria near Golan Heights

New Russian observation posts have popped up in southwest Syria amid increased tensions between pro-Iranian groups and Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war.

ICJ starts hearing arguments on Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories

Israel has decided not to participate at the hearing, arguing the court has no authority on an issue to be discussed diplomatically between the sides.

School Lebanon

In south Lebanon, schools resume classes as displaced shelter inside

Hezbollah steps in as municipalities struggle to respond to the growing number of displaced.

An ambulance leaves from Santa Maria Church as anti-riot police officers block the street after an attack in Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 28, 2024.

How and why ISIS-K has resurged in Turkey

The latest attack on an Istanbul church signals the militant group’s resurgence in Turkey.

Computer teacher Behnam Soleimani makes his way along an uneven sidewalk in Tehran, July 17, 2017.

Disabled Iranians on tough terrain as hurdles persist

Iran was late to the table in passing a law on the rights of the disabled, and oversight is not required.

A man in Tehran holds a local newspaper reporting on its front page the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.

A year on from Iran-Saudi thaw, little to show beyond photo ops

Despite the detente, the two sides appear to have adopted few tangible measures to narrow their long-standing differences over regional influence, while their covert divergence on the Gaza war has only added to the complications of their fragile rapprochement.