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

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Politics & Security

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Former Assad official sentenced to 60 years in US for torture

Samir Ousman Alsheikh was convicted by a jury in March of three counts of torture, one count of conspiracy to commit torture, visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud.

Yemenis gather during a rally to show their support for the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) in the coastal port city of Aden, on December 14, 2025. (Saleh Al-OBEIDI / AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

Yemen separatists urge US not to let Saudi Arabia ‘call the shots’

As Houthi fighters steamroll Yemen’s Red Sea coast, the country's southern separatists say an independent South Yemen is the best check on the group’s expansion.

A US Air Force F-35 fifth-generation jet fighter takes off during the NATO's Ramsteign Flag 2025 exercise at Leeuwarden Air Base on April 8, 2025.

Trump administration approves $24B sale of F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia

Trump first announced the planned sale in November 2025, ahead of hosting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.

A pedestrian passes by the Treasury Building in Washington, DC on Jan. 18, 2023.

US sanctions Iranian crypto exchange BitBank over Hormuz payments

The US government says the exchange was used to channel payments from an Iranian maritime-insurance scheme to the regime.

Latest News

Turkey's Erdogan to run for 'final' third term in 2028, adviser says

Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / AFP via Getty Images

Israel, Morocco agree to exchange ambassadors, open embassies

Royal Air Maroc Boeing 787-9 'Dreamliner' aircraft

China presses Iran, US to reopen Hormuz as disruptions threaten oil supply

AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Why France is pushing to keep UNIFIL in Lebanon beyond 2026

UN peacekeepers stand next to an armored vehicle during a patrol in southern Lebanon, Feb. 22, 2026.

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

Israel balloon

Hamas captures sophisticated Israeli military balloon

Hamas has captured an Israeli military surveillance balloon that accidentaly landed in northern Gaza, and Israel now fears they'll use it against them.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi (C) joins mourners as they accompany the casket of the late Iraqi poet Muzaffar al-Nawab through the streets during his funeral procession, Baghdad, Iraq, May 21, 2022.

Militias target again Iraq’s intelligence service

Since Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi took office in mid-2020, extremist Shiite militias have been trying to undermine the National Intelligence Service, which he has been heading since 2016.

Virus Iraq

Iraqi health authorities scramble to contain new animal virus outbreak

Viral hemorrhagic fever is spread by contact with animals and can constitute a "public health emergency of international concern."

A youth breaks a window as men smash up shops and homes believed to be owned by Syrian families.

Syrian refugees recount harassment, abuse in Turkey

Syrian refugees in Turkey are living in constant fear among rising attacks, while the Turkish government increases restrictions on them.

Borrell

Analysis

Don’t write off the Iran nuclear deal just yet

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi still wants and needs the JCPOA more than Biden.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a protest against the Israeli government, Jerusalem, April 6, 2022.

Racing the clock: Lapid fears Netanyahu will form alternative government

Chances for succeeding seem low, but opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu does not give up on the possibility of establishing an alternative government.

Saudi Crown Prince HRH Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Egypt and was received by HE President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, June 20, 2022.

Egypt's Sisi, Arab leaders coordinate positions ahead of Biden visit

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has been meeting with several Arab leaders in the lead-up to US President Joe Biden’s visit to the Middle East slated for mid-July.

Civilians fleeing the battered Islamic State-held holdout of Baghouz.

Syrian Kurds, Arabs join forces to defend Manbij ahead of Turkish military operation

The Syrian Democratic Forces are seeking Arab tribes’ support in Manbij, northeast of Aleppo, ahead of the anticipated Turkish military operation in northern Syria.

Yesh Atid party leader Yair Lapid speaks at a press conference, Tel Aviv, Israel, May 6, 2021.

Lapid may need to rely on boxing experience in battle with Netanyahu

Col. Gadi Eizenkot joining Alternate Prime Minister Yair Lapid's party could help him in an expected tough election battle against Benjamin Netanyahu.

Supporters of the Tunisian General Labour Union gather with national flags during a rally outside its headquarters, amid a general strike announced by the UGTT, Tunis, Tunisia, June 16, 2022.

General strike in Tunisia prompts warnings of imminent social tension

Most of Tunisia’s sectors were paralyzed June 16 due to the general strike called for by the country’s largest and powerful trade union to pressure the government to respond to the workers’ demands.

Bedouins' sheep and structures are pictured in the village of Humsah al-Baqia in the Israeli occupied West Bank.

Israeli settlement plan in West Bank stirs tensions ahead of Biden trip

US President Joe Biden's visit to the region occurs as Israel escalates military policies in the West Bank and unveils new settlement plans.

Iraq Sadr

Explainer: How Sadr's Shiite rivals became largest bloc in Iraq's parliament

Many of the new members of the Council of Representatives taking the place of the 73 Sadrists who resigned are aligned with Iran.