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Politics & Security

Palestinian Hamas militants arrive to secure the area as Egyptian workers accompanied by members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), search for the last two remaining bodies of hostages -an Israeli soldier and a Thai national- from under the rubble of the Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern of Gaza Strip on Dec. 1, 2025.

Analysis

How Hamas disarmament deal may test Iran's regional strategy

A possible Hamas decision to disarm would represent more than a Gaza development, testing Iran's decades-old strategy of projecting power through regional allies.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Mourners carry one of the bodies of members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) who were killed earlier in Diyala in central Iraq by US-Saudi strikes, during the funeral in Baghdad on July 29, 2026. The US-Saudi strikes killed at least 20 militants, including Iranians, according to the Hashed al-Shaabi. The US and Saudi Arabia said the strikes were in response to attacks on US forces and Saudi oil facilities. (Photo by murtadha ridha / AFP via Getty Images) /

Analysis

Renewed Iraq attacks test Zaidi’s push to disarm Iran-backed militias

An attempt by Iraqi government forces to seize weapons belonging to an Iranian-backed faction encountered resistance, raising questions about Prime Minister Ali Zaidi’s pledge to disarm militias by Sept. 30.

Mustafa Salim

By Mustafa Salim

Fighters lift flags of Iraq and paramilitary groups, including al-Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah, during a funeral in Baghdad for five militants killed a day earlier in a US strike in northern Iraq, on Dec. 4, 2023.

Analysis

Iran-linked militias seek to draw Iraq into regional war

“Iran’s logic is the logic of war,” a Gulf regional official tells Al-Monitor.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Latest News

Explainer

Estimated 60,000 migrants cross from Morocco into Spanish territory: What we know

Ceuta

Analysis

No Iran commitment, no Trump endorsement: Netanyahu leaves US empty-handed

US President Donald Trump walks to board Marine One on the Ellipse near the White House in Washington, DC, on July 31, 2026. President Trump is traveling to Camp David in Maryland to hold a cabinet meeting and later to Bedminster, New Jersey to spend the weekend at his golf club. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein attends a news conference with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in Brussels on Jan. 20, 2022.

Analysis

Iraqi foreign minister says Iran nuclear deal in Iraq’s interest

Fuad Hussein, in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, says Iraq continues to play a role in helping to facilitate dialogue, and de-escalating conflict, between Washington and Tehran.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Demonstrators wave a giant flag of Ukraine and Israel .

Israel’s Bennett continues mediation efforts between Russia, Ukraine

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett continues to be engaged and involved in contacts between Russia and Ukraine and in efforts to end the war.

BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images

Iran, Ukraine top agenda as Blinken tours Middle East

Blinken's trip will include extensive discussions with Abu Dhabi's crown prince and stops in North Africa.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

Israel shocked by Islamic State-inspired terror attack

Israel’s security agencies were blindsided when the killer of four civilians in Beersheba this week turned out to be an Israeli citizen from the nearby Bedouin town of Hura.

Members of Syria's top jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, led by al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate, parade with their flags and those of the Taliban's declared "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan" at the Clock Square in the center of the rebel-held city of Idlib, Syria, Aug. 20, 2021.

HTS faces backlash from jihadis over Syrian revolution anniversary celebrations

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham celebrated the anniversary of the Syrian revolution amid much fanfare, while preventing Islamic banners at the celebrations, in what provoked the jihadis who oppose it and led them to accuse HTS of trying to court the West.

A picture taken on Dec. 7, 2021, in Istanbul shows Turkish liras.

Turkish taxpayers outraged at cost of lira protection scheme

Turkey’s Treasury faces a hefty bill from a controversial plan to defend the Turkish lira, even as the scheme has failed to make a major impact in reducing dollarization.

A picture shows vehicles blocked in traffic in the capital, Tehran, on March 9, 2022.

Iran's New Year marred by alarming road accident fatalities

Officials said an average of two Iranians have died per hour in the first week of the Nowruz holidays, galvanizing debates on the safety of domestically produced vehicles.

US President Joe Biden shakes hands with France's President Emmanuel Macron (C,L) next to Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) at NATO Headquarters in Brussels on March 24, 2022.

Erdogan gets no meeting with Biden at NATO Ukraine summit

Despite reportedly intense diplomatic efforts, Turkey's president did not get to meet his US counterpart at today’s NATO summit in Brussels.

KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images

Europe unhappy with Israel's reluctance to sanction Russia

While European capitals would like to see Israel join the sanctions packages enacted by the West against Russia, they have expressed understanding of Israel’s delicate position.

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.