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

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Politics & Security

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Israel strikes Lebanon's capital Beirut for first time in 3 weeks: What to know

According to Israeli media, Ali al-Husseini, the commander of the missile unit in the Imam Hussein Division, a brigade affiliated with Iran’s Quds Force that operates alongside Hezbollah, was the target of the attack.

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi (L) and US President Donald Trump pose during a summit on Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh on October 13, 2025.

Trump threatens to 'blow up' Oman as US-Iran talks stall

“Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we will have to blow them up,” Trump said in surprising comments on Wednesday.

Latest News

With Hungary’s ICC U-turn, Israel loses a key European ally

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, (R) shakes hands with Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, during a news conference on April 3, 2025 in Budapest, Hungary.

Iraq’s Sadr moves to place his militia under state control: What to know

Iraqis walk past portraits of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, including one on a banner calling for a boycott of the upcoming parliamentary elections in Sadr City, east of Baghdad on October 29, 2025. Parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held in Iraq on 11 November 2025, which will determine the 329 members of Iraq's Council of Representatives, who are responsible for electing the country's president and approving the appointment of the prime minister. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP) (Photo by

Who was Mohammed Odeh, Hamas military commander killed by Israel in Gaza?

Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP via Getty Images

White House calls Iranian report on Hormuz, MOU 'complete fabrication'

Vessels are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off the port city of Khasab on Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula on May 17, 2026.

Jared Szuba

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

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

Beersheba stabbing victim funeral

Terror attack in Beersheba unsettles Israeli government

The stabbing attacks that killed four in the south of Israel is forcing the government to shift focus away from Ukraine and back to the domestic front.

Bermuda-flagged luxury yacht "My Solaris" belonging to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich.

Will Turkey become haven for sanctioned Russians?

Ankara is facing increasing pressure to comply with sanctions imposed on Moscow and to increase scrutiny on Turkish banks to make sure they don’t violate sanctions.

Iran attack

Iran's Revolutionary Guards warn Israel over more attacks

Escalating the conflict in Iraq's Kurdish region, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has said that they will immediately respond to attacks by Israel.

American pastor Andrew Brunson.

Wave of expulsions shakes Turkey’s tiny Protestant community

Dozens of foreign Protestant missionaries have been forced to leave Turkey based on intelligence reports classifying them as security risks.

An Iraqi woman farmer digs with a shovel in a field in Diwaniyah

UN releases dire warning about water scarcity in Middle East and North Africa

Water scarcity is so bad in parts of Yemen that it has led to displacement, a UN official said.

AL-MONITOR Staff

By AL-MONITOR Staff

Children stand next to a sign reading "To reconstruct it, do not leave Halabja alone" by the Martyrs' Cemetery in Halabja on March 16, 2022.

Halabja anniversary takes political turn

Thirty four years after Saddam Hussein's Baath regime launched a chemical attack on the city, resident's of Halabja feel they have been forgotten by Iraqi and Kurdish authorities.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah a-Sisi, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed meet in Sharm el-Sheikh, March 22 2022

Analysis

The Takeaway: Israel looks to mediate Saudi, Emirati anger over Iran deal

Zelenskyy’s Holocaust comparison unsettles Israelis; Islamic State takes advantage of Russian distraction in Ukraine; Egypt, Sudan deepen military ties; Lebanon embraces cryptocurrency amidst crisis; Jenin becomes model of resistance to Israeli occupation — all in less than 1,100 words!

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Tyler Huffman

Andrew Parasiliti

Joe Snell

By Elizabeth Hagedorn , Tyler Huffman , Andrew Parasiliti , Joe Snell

Smoke billows from the house of a Palestinian suspect after it was demolished by Israeli security forces, in the village of Silat al-Harithiya near the flashpoint town of Jenin, West Bank, March 8, 2022.

Jenin becomes hub of resistance to Israeli policies in West Bank

Israel targets Palestnian armed groups and fears resistance could spread to other cities in the West Bank.

Iranian Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine.

Russia war forces Iran to relocate Kyiv embassy

Iranian authorities face anger at home over their failure to promptly evacuate nationals caught up in the Russian war on Ukraine.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (R).

Turkey, Netherlands patch up relations amid Ukraine crisis

Arriving for a top-level visit in Ankara after years of tense relations, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he would like Turkey to join sanctions against Russia but understands Ankara’s unique position.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah a-Sisi, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed meet in Sharm el-Sheikh, March 22 2022

Bennett meets with Egyptian, Emirati leaders on Iran, regional alliances

In his meetings yesterday and today in Sharm el-Sheikh with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Emirati Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett continued his efforts to establish a regional alliance against Iran and a new nuclear deal.

This picture shows a view of houses in the unrecognized Bedouin village of Sawaneen, Negev Desert, Israel, June 8, 2021.

Israel approves five-year development plan for Bedouin villages

Not everyone in the Bedouin community approves of the five-year development plan recently adopted by the government, as it does not resolve the issue of unrecognized Bedouin villages.