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Politics & Security

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GCC to build military command center in Kuwait as region simmers: What to know

GCC countries have stepped up their joint defense efforts with the announcement of a new forward command center to be headquartered in Kuwait, as tensions between Iran and the US continue to escalate.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Hegseth strikes defiant tone, calls House impeachment process 'farce'

Pentagon's top official called Rep. Thomas Massie's charges a 'farce,' arguing other defense secretaries trespassed on the War Powers Act without being impeached.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) casts his ballot, next to his wife Sara

Explainer

From Oct. 7 inquiry to blocking Netanyahu: Eisenkot's bloc maps out Knesset agenda

Israel's opposition to advance anti-Netanyahu government measures as soon as Knesset convenes Tuesday, without waiting for a new cabinet to take shape.

WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 23: U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) speaks at a press conference on China AI export controls at the U.S. Capitol on September 23, 2026 in Washington, DC. Slotkin, joined by fellow Senate Democrats, urged Senate Republican's and the Trump administration to enact stronger export controls on AI technology and computer chips to China. The Democrats also call for a vote on bipartisan export control legislation, including the AI OVERWATCH Act, the MATCH Act, and the Chip Security Act. (

Slotkin, Van Hollen emerge as potential challengers to Schumer’s Senate leadership

A growing number of Democrats are calling for new leadership in the Senate to replace Schumer, arguing that the party needs a leader who better reflects its generational and ideological shift to the left.

Latest News

Massie introduces impeachment articles against Hegseth over Iran war

SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images

France blames Iran for supermarket fridge hack, seeks EU sanctions

This photograph shows empty fresh-food refrigerators at an Intermarche supermarket in Nevez, France, on Oct. 12, 2026, following a cyberattack that caused its refrigerators to defrost.

Explainer

Iraqi PM cancels Mosul airport contracts, citing Iran militia links: What to know

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi speaks during a joint press conference with Germans chachellor at the Chancellery on September 15, 2026 in Berlin, Germany. High on the meeting's agenda is the expansion of economic cooperation between Germany and Iraq. (Photo by Michele Tantussi/Getty Images)

Trump meets Qatar PM as mediators push Iran deal

President Donald Trump (R) attends a bilateral meeting with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani during the G7 summit, in Evian, France, on June 16, 2026.

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

JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

Russian-Israeli tensions escalate over Ukraine, Holocaust

Jerusalem and Moscow continue to exchange accusations following the Sunday statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that Hitler was of Jewish descent.

A general view of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Guba, Ethiopia, Feb. 20, 2022.

Ethiopia’s next move on Nile dam may hinder negotiations

Ethiopia started concrete construction on the body of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam ahead of the third filling of the dam’s reservoir, amid continued stalled negotiations with Egypt and Sudan.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Istanbul mayor challenges AKP government on visit to Erdogan’s home province

Ekrem Imamoglu of the Republican People’s Party took his campaign to Rize on the Black Sea coast during the Eid al-Fitr holiday.

Tehran

Israeli intel shares story of Iranian spy plot

The Shin Bet and the Mossad have tightened their cooperation on Tehran in recent months, uncovering hostile actions by Iranian agents on social media.

Iraqi riot police protect the Turkish embassy in Baghdad on February 18, 2021.

Is Turkey behind border wall, Iraqi deployment in Sinjar?

Baghdad’s military moves in Sinjar, coinciding with a Turkish military operation in northern Iraq, and the construction of a wall along the border with Syria have rekindled fears among the local Yazidi population.

Iraqi-Kurdistan

KHALED DESOUKI/AFP via Getty Images

Cairo releases dozens of activists, calls for dialogue with political opposition

Egyptian President Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi has called for a national dialogue with opposition groups.

This general view shows an Ethiopian national flag.

Egypt braces for third-stage filling of Nile dam

Egypt continues to implement projects for water management, although some say the third filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam will not affect Cairo’s water supply this year.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s president meets with political activists

In a rare move, Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi met with a group of activists to discuss their political and economic concerns.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech.

Has Ukraine war given Erdogan free hand at home?

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan might be aiming to tighten his grip on the domestic front, taking advantage of Ankara’s rising profile amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Flags of Azerbaijan (L) and Israel.

Israel's Liberman talks wheat, strategy in visit to Azerbaijan

Officially, the visit of Finance Minister Avigdor Liberman to Azerbaijan focused on exporting wheat to Israel, but reports suggest that the minister also discussed strategic and energy issues.

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Prisoner swap, assassination plot bolster Turkey's image as intrigue hotspot

Newly revealed spy rings are reinforcing Istanbul’s long reputation as playground of intelligence agents.

Israeli Minister of Defense Benny Gantz meets with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin (not in frame) at the Pentagon the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on December 9, 2021. (Photo by Samuel Corum / AFP) (Photo by SAMUEL CORUM/AFP via Getty Images)

Gantz says Israel still coordinates with Russia on Syria

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz discussed Israel's delicate strategic balance between Ukraine, Russia and Iran in an exclusive podcast interview with Al-Monitor's Ben Caspit.