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

Aryeh Deri

Ultra-Orthodox instrumental in dissolution of Israel's government

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's decision to dissolve the Israeli Knesset and go for new elections could have perhaps been avoided, had he made more efforts to include the ultra-Orthodox in his coalition.

Stoltenberg

No breakthrough in Turkey’s talks with Sweden, Finland over joining NATO

Discussions between Turkey, Finland and Sweden about the Nordic countries' proposed NATO membership have ended inconclusively as Ankara showed no signs of abandoning its hardline position.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett (R) and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid.

Israel dissolves parliament, declares new elections in October

Foreign Minister Yair Lapid will take over as prime minister.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (2nd-L).

Analysis

US, Iran still trying to close gap on nuclear deal

The Biden administration may be considering options for a Plan B if nuclear talks fail, but backchannel diplomacy is continuing.

Ali Hashem

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Ali Hashem , Elizabeth Hagedorn

Mansour Abbas, head of Israel's conservative Islamic Ra'am party, speaks in his capacity as Knesset deputy speaker during a plenum session on the state budget, Jerusalem, Sept. 2, 2021.

Israel Ra'am leader tries to keep party together as coalition collapses

Faced with rebel legislator Mazen Ghnaim, Muslim party Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas opted for dialogue instead of confrontation.

A Cham Wings Airlines Airbus A320-211 is pictured at the Aleppo airport after flights were diverted from Damascus aiport following an airstrike that damaged the airport, Syria, June 15, 2022.

Russia reportedly drafts UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel over Syria

Reports yesterday claimed that Russia is preparing a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israel over its alleged attack last week on the Damascus airport.

Burak Kara/Getty Images

Turkish court bans Erdogan rival from own party

The ruling appears to be a pattern of similar events befalling political rivals of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of the 2023 elections.

A woman uses her phone to livestream a traditional "hakawati" storyteller performing late after midnight during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, at the historic Dar Halabia Hotel in the Bab Antakya area of the Old City of Aleppo, Syria, April 12, 2022.

Women in Idlib face online harassment

Many women in Idlib have been subjected to online harassment and blackmail, where their personal data posted on social media have been exploited for financial or moral gain, or for sexual exploitation purposes.

Bedouin village

Hamas’ use of excessive force to displace Bedouins angers Gazans

Public and official anger could be felt in Gaza after Hamas security forces attacked the residents of the Bedouin village of Umm al-Nasr, north of Gaza, to forcibly displace them and demolish their homes under the pretext that they do not own these houses.

Iraq counterterror

Counterterror ops rake in 'high-value targets' in Iraq, Syria

Multiple counterterrorism operations against Islamic State hideouts in both Iraq and Syria in recent weeks have taken out men whom officials claim were leaders within the international terrorist organization.

A woman takes a photograph of another standing in front of a wall of cement blocks, set up by Lebanese security forces to bar a street leading to the parliament building, Beirut, Lebanon, Jan. 24, 2020.

Lebanon elects record number of women to parliament

Lebanon has one of the highest overall gender gaps in the world, ranking 145 out of 153 countries.

Hamas drone

Hamas bets on locally made drones for next confrontation with Israel

Hamas’ armed wing has revealed some new information about its drone production, a move that some experts see as a show of force for Israel.