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

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Politics & Security

A giant billboard depicts late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (2nd L), and his son Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, with Arabic writing that reads: "Thank you Iran," in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, on June 15, 2026.

Khamenei says Hezbollah's agenda 'strategic mandate' for Iran

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s comments come as Lebanon and Israel move forward with a US-backed plan to disarm Hezbollah in the south, though the Iran-backed group is resisting calls to turn over its weapons.

Trump Netanyahu

On eighth visit, Israel’s Netanyahu seeks to repair ties with Trump

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to focus on Iran in his Tuesday meeting with President Donald Trump, while the US leader is more likely to want to discuss Lebanon and Syria.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi speaks during a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (not pictured) at the Pentagon on July 14, 2026 in Arlington, Virginia.

Zaidi to meet Erdogan as Turkey-Iraq ties take off, Kurds feel sidelined

The Iraqi prime minister's visits to Ankara and Riyadh underscore Baghdad's push to deepen regional ties as Turkey seeks closer cooperation on energy and security.

Latest News

Trump says Iran seeks talks after strikes halted

US President Donald Trump takes questions from the media during a bilateral meeting with President of Lebanon Joseph Aoun in the Oval Office of the White House on July 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Iran summons French ambassador after detaining 2 diplomats: What to know

Iranian security forces stand guard in front of the French Embassy in Tehran in this undated image.

Analysis

Zaidi’s test in Tehran

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is welcomed to the Saadabad Palace in Tehran by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, July 23, 2026.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

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

Masoud Barzani

Barzani says former Turkish president wanted federation with Iraq’s Kurds

In his memoir, Iraqi Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani shares that Turkey's former President Turgut Ozal had once floated the idea of "annexing" Iraqi Kurdistan.

Marwan Tahtah/Getty Images

More silos collapse at Port of Beirut as air quality concerns mount

Other parts of the grain silos have collapsed this summer as the 2020 port explosion continues to plague Lebanon.

Sami Abu Shehadeh, a member of the Knesset for the Joint List and leader of the Balad party, speaks during a press conference to announce the launch of the party's election campaign, Nazareth, Israel, Feb. 20, 2021.

Arab Israeli coalition could split again as election approaches

Estimating that the Arab Joint List no longer represents their ideas and interests, leaders of the Balad factions are considering to run independently on Nov. 1.

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on the phone with French President Emmanuel Macron, Jerusalem, Aug. 22 2022.

Israel resigned to new Iran nuclear deal over its objections

Israel appears to have resigned itself to the defeat of its prolonged campaign against an agreement.

A plane of the Israeli airline Arkia.

PA deters Palestinians from using Israel's Ramon Airport

The Palestinian Minister of Transport and Communications confirmed the imposition of measures and penalties against travelers through Israel's Ramon Airport.

A picture taken on October 20, 2017, shows Islamic State group writing on a wall.

Islamic State threatens Kurdish workers in northeast Syria

The Islamic State is threatening to kill employees in the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria in the countryside of Deir ez-Zor if they continue to report to their jobs.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi attended a summit today in Egypt’s New Alamein city.

Iraq's prime minister attends Arab summit in Egypt’s New Alamein

Leaders of Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Jordan and Bahrain met today in Egypt's New Alamein city to discuss regional security and cooperation.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Turkey hopes to extend mediation role in Ukraine war after grain deal success

Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has said the agreement to ship Ukrainian foodstuffs could be a stepping stone toward peace.

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey signals new rules of engagement to Syrian Kurds, Damascus

Turkish strikes on Syrian government troops and overt Kurdish attacks on targets inside Turkey signal that both sides are changing the rules of the game as Ankara eyes normalization with Damascus.

Josep Borell

EU's Borrell says Iran's response to nuclear text 'reasonable'

EU High Representative Josep Borrell said he hoped the American response would "put an end to the negotiations."

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s president denies making concessions in nuclear talks

As the world waits to hear the results of the nuclear talks, Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi has denied that his country made any major concessions.

Palestinian laborers work at a construction site in the Israeli settlement of Kerem Reim, West Bank, July 31, 2019.

Palestinians working in Israel strike to protest salary payments in banks

Palestinian construction workers are suspicious about a new mechanism agreed upon by Israeli and Palestinian Authority administrations, for salaries to be paid directly into Palestinian bank accounts and not in cash.