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

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Politics & Security

Anwar AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Upcoming Lebanon-Israel talks will see higher-level participation, discuss security ‘framework’

The third round of talks between Lebanon and Israel will stretch over two days and include diplomatic and military officials.

Ronen Zvulun / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu fears being left out as Trump pursues Iran diplomacy

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was not surprised by President Donald Trump’s suspension of Project Freedom and move toward talks with Iran, but analysts say Washington may not be fully weighing Israel's concerns in negotiations with Tehran.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

Turkey’s planned test of a 6,000-kilometer missile could boost Ankara’s defense industry prestige, strengthen its deterrence messaging and feed a powerful domestic narrative of technological self-reliance, but it also raises questions about cost, timing and NATO protection.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A woman walks past a banner featuring Iran's late supreme leaders, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L) and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (C), next to newly elected Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran on April 19, 2026.

Analysis

Why Iran's wartime behavior risks lasting rupture with Gulf states

Iran's rhetoric and policies toward Gulf states have sharply escalated, raising questions about whether years of painstaking regional rapprochement can survive mounting distrust and maritime confrontations.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Latest News

Iraq’s Sadr says 'exclude' armed groups from next government as pressure builds

Shiite Muslim cleric Moqtada Sadr gives a speech in Iraq's central holy shrine city of Najaf on August 30, 2022.

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

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

US strikes Iran tankers as UAE reports fresh missile, drone attacks

Getty

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

Turkey heads to local elections amid voter apathy, unclarity for Erdogan

Melting purchasing power in Turkey looms large over the upcoming local elections.

Laura

Turkish man rapes Dutch cow; Islamophobes have a field day

The incident is likely to serve as ammunition for the swelling number of Islamophobes in the country.

Members of the Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) cheer as they carry upside-down a black flag of the Islamic State (ISIS) group in the Old City of Mosul on July 2, 2017.

Iraq says it killed prominent ISIS leader as group resurfaces

The Islamic State remains active in Iraq as Baghdad and Washington discuss winding down the US presence in the country, though the group is relatively weak at present.

A display of photos of protesters killed during a candlelight vigil on the first anniversary of Mahsa Amini's death in Iranian custody, Washington, DC, Sept. 16, 2023

Iran continues crackdown on women as executions approach 100 for the year

Iran handed prison sentences to 11 activists defending women’s rights and has executed 98 people this year.

Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas (R) receives German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah on March 25, 2024. (Photo by Nasser Nasser / POOL / AFP) (Photo by NASSER NASSER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

US welcomes new Palestinian cabinet, pushes for reforms

The Palestinian Authority has been under US pressure to undertake various reforms amid proposals that it take the reins in the Gaza Strip after the war ends.

Palestinians check the rubble of buildings that were destroyed following overnight Israeli bombardment in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on March 27, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

White House: No Rafah invasion until Israeli delegation talks alternatives

"We don’t support a major ground operation," White House NSC coordinator John Kirby emphasized on Thursday, as an Israeli delegation is expected to discuss alternatives with top officials in Washington next week.

BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images

Biden-Netanyahu spat more play to electorates than showdown over Gaza

The dispute won't shake 'ironclad' US support for Israel.

A picture taken from Rafah shows smoke billowing after Israeli bombardment on Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on March 21, 2024, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

State Department staffer resigns over Biden's handling of Gaza

Annelle Sheline is the second State Department official to publicly resign since Oct. 7, citing the erosion of US credibility on human rights in the Middle East as a result of the war.

Washington Pulse

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (not pictured) speak to the media following talks at the Chancellery on March 16, 2023 in Berlin, Germany.

In latest about-face, Netanyahu agrees to resend canceled US delegation to discuss Rafah

The White House said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed for his top aides to travel to Washington to discuss the situation in Rafah after the Israeli leader canceled the delegation Monday.

RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images

Fresh Hezbollah-Israel escalation kills 8, raising fears of Lebanon open front

Wednesday’s escalation renewed fears that Lebanon could be dragged into a wider war with Israel as Gaza negotiations collapse.

Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (R) receives Hamas' Doha-based political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh.

Iran reassures Hamas of continued support as Haniyeh visits Tehran

The meetings in Tehran were held as Iranian officials celebrated a moment of triumph for Hamas after the United States allowed the UN Security Council to pass a Gaza cease-fire resolution.

A motorcyclist rides past a high school at Panjgur district in Balochistan province on Jan. 17, 2024. Pakistan recalled its ambassador from Iran on Jan. 17, and blocked Tehran's envoy from returning to Islamabad after an Iranian air strike killed two children in the west of the country on Jan. 16.

More attacks in Baluchistan regions of Iran, Pakistan following border dustup

Iran and Pakistan reconciled after their border conflict earlier this year, but clashes involving Baluchi separatists and unidentified armed groups remain an issue.