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

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Politics & Security

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.

Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / AFP via Getty Images

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

If Turkey's parliament votes to move the next election up during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s second term, he could constitutionally run for third.

Latest News

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.

Algeria pulls Sky News Arabia accreditation amid UAE rift: What to know

Sky News

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

The Iranian national flag is seen outside the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters during the agency's Board of Governors meeting in Vienna on March 1, 2021.

Israeli spy chief warns Iran deal won't give Iran 'immunity from Mossad'

The comments by the Mossad chief reaffirmed Israel’s “octopus head” policy adopted by former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.

Hamas training video

Video of Hamas fighters training in West Bank unsettles Israel

Hamas has released a video of its fighters training in Jenin that's been taken as a message that they will soon resume operations in the West Bank.

A picture taken on Aug. 10, 2018 during a trip in Yemen organized by the UAE's National Media Council (NMC) shows a view of Yemeni fishing boats along the Yemeni side of the strategic strait of Bab al-Mandab, which separates the Arabian Peninsula from east Africa.

Egypt’s navy to lead new Red Sea maritime task force

The US Navy will hand over command of Task Force 153 to Egypt as the Pentagon aims to enable regional militaries to take on new roles

Turkish pop singer Tarkan performs March 3, 2007, during his concert in Rotterdam.

Turkish megastar comes under fire for centennial concert in Izmir

The centennial of Izmir’s liberation from three years of Greek occupation in the early 20th century started a new fight between the opposition in the government as well as Neo-Ottomans and Kemalists.

Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid meets with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, Germany, Sept. 12 2022.

In Germany, Lapid makes case for Israel’s position on Iran

Israel’s diplomatic blitz against a renewed JCPOA reaches new heights, with Prime Minister Yair Lapid traveling to Germany and Defense Minister Benny Gantz traveling again to the United States.

ABBAS MOMANI/AFP via Getty Images

As violence spreads, Israel braces for escalation in West Bank

Ahead of the Jewish holiday period, the Israel Defense Forces are preparing for the possibility of more terror attacks originating from the West Bank.

This picture shows a general view of the Israeli Knesset (parliament) during a meeting, in Jerusalem on June 30, 2022.

Israeli parties unconcerned with equal gender representation

Few, if any, Israeli parties are expected to present for the upcoming Nov. 1 elections Knesset lists with equal representation of women.

Cars drive on a highway with a backdrop of the Milad telecommunications tower in Iran's capital Tehran on March 12, 2022. - Iran said that US attempts to seize its tankers and oil cargo had failed to stop exports that are subject to sanctions imposed by its arch foe. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Post-sanctions risks & opportunities for international companies in Iran

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images

Iran criticizes Europe over nuclear talks comments

Tehran has criticized the three European signatories to the nuclear deal for their recent joint statement questioning Iran's intentions.

A media adviser of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu makes a Facebook live broadcast as he opens the weekly Cabinet meeting at his office, Jerusalem, Jan. 21, 2018.

Courting Arab voters, Netanyahu creates TikTok, Instagram accounts in Arabic

Much like the 2021 election campaign, but with multiple efforts, opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu opens Arabic-language accounts on all social media networks.

ABBAS MOMANI/AFP via Getty Images

Israel watches closely as West Bank seethes

Increasing skirmishes have Israel reportedly considering a large-scale invasion of the northern West Bank.

Souvenir stand in Petra, Jordan.

Gendarmerie operation sparks controversy in Petra, Jordan

Petra’s tribal entrepreneurs react to a security operation carried out inside Jordan’s most-visited UNESCO World Heritage Site with criticism and concern for their livelihoods.