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Politics & Security

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani visits Latakia airport on Sept. 18, 2026.

Syria’s Shibani visits Latakia airport to review Russia deal progress: What to know

Syria is seeking to ensure that the August deal to turn Russian facilities in the country into joint training centers is implemented.

Hibatullah Barakat / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon charges 5 in alleged Hezbollah operation to train Assad loyalists

A Lebanese military court has charged the five, including an Assad-era Syrian officer and Hezbollah members, with running a cross-border security network planning attacks in Syria’s coastal region.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on as he attends a trade agreement signature ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris on August 24, 2026. (Photo by LOU BENOIST / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How Netanyahu is leveraging Houthi threat in secret Saudi normalization push

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to capitalize on Riyadh's need for intelligence assistance to make normalization headway ahead of the October elections.

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

Mario Tama/Getty Images

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.

Latest News

Interview

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

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)

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

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.

US sanctions Iranian crypto exchange BitBank over Hormuz payments

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

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

Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / AFP via Getty Images

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

Syrian Kurdish and Arab families are pictured fleeing in the countryside of the town of Darbasiyah.

Clashes turn tribal between Turkish-backed opposition factions

The Turkish-backed opposition factions are trying to portray their conflicts as tribal in a bid to absolve themselves of the violations committed in the area.

A man stands on the bank of the Shatt al-Arab waterway, formed at the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra on May 23, 2022, during a sandstorm sweeping the country.

Iran, Iraq, Syria to cooperate on sandstorms

Sandstorms have pummeled the region this year, particularly Iraq.

Biden Bennett

Ahead of Biden visit, Israel redoubles efforts to isolate Iran

While continuing its creative campaign to isolate Iran, Israel’s leadership also puts efforts into constructing relations with Saudi Arabia and advancing an aerial-intelligence alliance in the region.

In this photo illustration taken on April 21, 2022, the icon of a video-sharing mobile phone application TikTok is pictured on a mobile phone.

Turkish-backed Syrian factions target TikTok influencers in Aleppo

TikTok content creators in the countryside of Aleppo and Idlib face a spate of arrests over accusations of corrupting the public morality of the local Syrian community.

Erdogan

Analysis

Erdogan: Sweden, Finland need to ‘act accordingly’ toward Kurdish groups for approval on NATO bids

The Turkish president repeated these points while announcing another military operation into Syria.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Secretary of State Antony Blinken (2L) and Yemeni Foreign Minister Ahmed Awad Bin Mubarak (2R).

US welcomes 2-month extension of Yemen truce

Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Yemen's warring parties to "seize this pivotal moment."

Iranian Basij paramilitary forces.

Tehran denounces GCC over missile comments

The GCC enumerated worries about Iran and its "destabilizing behavior," triggering typically strong rhetoric from Tehran.

Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu and Mayor of Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu's poster.

Cases against opposition politicians mount ahead of Turkish elections

Critics claim the government has weaponized the judiciary to neutralize leading figures in the Republican People’s Party.

Amir Levy/Getty Images

Netanyahu celebrates as corruption case falters

Opposition head Benjamin Netanyahu scored political points after the judges in his trial rejected the prosecution's request to amend the charges against him.

A boy listens to Live Go-Go music playing at Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2021.

Iran calls exodus of Black staffers from Biden White House 'systematic racial discrimination'

Iran has criticized the treatment of Black Americans before, but the Islamic Republic has its own issues with discrimination against Kurds, Arabs, Jews and others.

MAZEN MAHDI/AFP via Getty Images

OPEC+ alliance agrees to production increase

Pressure on Saudi Arabia, Russia and other major oil producers has boosted production amid high prices.

AL-MONITOR Staff

By AL-MONITOR Staff

MBS

Saudi crown prince balances Turkey visit with stops in Greece and Cyprus

Mohammed bin Salman’s plan to visit Turkey as part of a regional tour shows that the kingdom has no intention to upset Greece and Cyprus while mending fences with Turkey.