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Politics & Security

Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force march

Analysis

As Iran regime marks 200 days of war, is it also preparing for dissent?

Seven months into the war with the US, Iranian authorities staged a pro-government mobilization in Tehran, combining patriotic spectacle with a carefully calibrated demonstration aimed for domestic internal security capacity.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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

Latest News

Former Assad official sentenced to 60 years in US for torture

Mario Tama/Getty Images

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.

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

AMER HILABI/AFP via Getty Images

Hope, despair in Yemen as Biden travels to Saudi Arabia

Ahead of the US president's Saudi trip, Yemenis are feeling a mixture of optimism and gloom about its likely benefits for them.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog, US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid at the opening of the Maccabiah Games, Teddy Stadium, Jerusalem, July 14, 2022.

Biden captures Israeli hearts

On the strategic level, the visit of US President Joe Biden to Israel generated mixed results, but on the level of image and intimacy, Biden captured the hearts of Israeli citizens.

Turkish military tanks drive past the town of Ariha on the M4 highway in Syria's rebel-held northwestern Idlib province on May 7, 2020.

Pentagon warns Turkey against renewed invasion of Syria

A US defense official called for a political process to end Turkey's perpetual battles with Kurdish militants.

Tunisia's President Kais Saied (C-R) receives Algeria's President Abdelmajid Tebboune (C-L) as the latter arrives at Tunis-Carthage International Airport, Tunis, Tunisia, Dec. 15, 2021.

Will Tunisia, Algeria relations recover through land border reopening?

Several issues, including gas and the dispute over the Western Sahara, continue to linger over the tense Algerian-Tunisian relations, despite the reopening of the land borders between the two countries.

Members of Syria's top jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

HTS arrests members of little-known Syrian group behind attacks against Turkish army in Idlib

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham announced that it arrested most members of the Ansar Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Brigade, a small, little-known jihadist group that is hostile to HTS and has repeatedly targeted Turkish forces in Idlib.

U.S. President Joe Biden meets Israeli singer Yuval Dayan on July 14, 2022.

Why did Israeli singer Yuval Dayan refuse to shake Biden’s hand?

The religious Jewish singer declined the US president's outstretched hand during his visit to Israel, but she did not mean to offend him.

AL-MONITOR Staff

By AL-MONITOR Staff

Hamid Nouri

Tehran slams Sweden over 'political' verdict against ex-official

Already holding two Swedish nationals on death row, Iran warned that the verdict by a Stockholm court could harm bilateral ties.

Bekir Bozdag

Turkish extradition requests often disregarded by Western allies

Ankara has long viewed foreign courts’ refusal to repatriate suspects as a sign of obstruction by their governments, but the West looks askance at the Turkish judicial system.

i2u2

Israel, US, India, UAE hold virtual summit on food security, clean energy

During US President Joe Biden's trip to Israel, the leaders the two countries met virtually with those of India and the United Arab Emirates to discuss food security and clean energy.

US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid sign the Jerusalem Declaration, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Jerusalem, July 14, 2022.

Biden, Lapid sign Jerusalem Declaration

While the document lays out a platform for continued US-Israeli cooperation, there are still signs the two are divided on diplomacy with Tehran.

Bedouin guides lead tourists hiking through the mountains of south Sinai, near St. Catherine, Egypt, April 17, 2015.

Egyptian tourists unwelcome in south Sinai as Israelis visit in droves

Israeli tourists are flocking to south Sinai while Egyptians are being forced to turn back, in violation of the law and the constitution.

Turkish-backed Syrian rebel fighters are pictured in the border town of Azaz in the rebel-held northern part of Aleppo province.

Is Syrian government withdrawing from Tal Rifaat in favor of Turkey?

FSA forces are carrying out military maneuvers in preparation for the battle against Kurdish forces in Tal Rifaat, while Turkey is bringing in more reinforcements.