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

politics and security cover image

Politics & Security

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi (L) and US President Donald Trump pose during a summit on Gaza in Sharm el-Sheikh on October 13, 2025.

Trump threatens to 'blow up' Oman as US-Iran talks stall

“Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we will have to blow them up,” Trump said in surprising comments on Wednesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, (R) shakes hands with Viktor Orban, Hungary's prime minister, during a news conference on April 3, 2025 in Budapest, Hungary.

With Hungary’s ICC U-turn, Israel loses a key European ally

Hungary’s parliament voted to remain in the International Criminal Court, reversing a planned withdrawal and marking a shift in Budapest’s approach to Israel and the EU.

Iraqis walk past portraits of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, including one on a banner calling for a boycott of the upcoming parliamentary elections in Sadr City, east of Baghdad on October 29, 2025. Parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held in Iraq on 11 November 2025, which will determine the 329 members of Iraq's Council of Representatives, who are responsible for electing the country's president and approving the appointment of the prime minister. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP) (Photo by

Iraq’s Sadr moves to place his militia under state control: What to know

Muqtada al-Sadr is the first militia leader to heed new Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s call to place weapons in the hands of the state as US pressure continues.

Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP via Getty Images

Who was Mohammed Odeh, Hamas military commander killed by Israel in Gaza?

Odeh was killed in a Tuesday strike in the Palestinian enclave just days after he assumed his leadership position.

Latest News

White House calls Iranian report on Hormuz, MOU 'complete fabrication'

Vessels are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off the port city of Khasab on Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula on May 17, 2026.

Jared Szuba

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

Analysis

'Very bad news’: Israel alarmed as Trump pushes ahead toward Iran deal

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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

Israel strikes near Lebanon’s Qaraoun dam as war intensifies: What to know

A partial view shows a drainage vacuum hole on the lake of Qaraoun in Lebanon's southern Beqaa Valley on April 5, 2019.

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

PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 16: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, accompanied by Trump's choice for Secretary of Commerce, Cantor Fitzgerald Chairman and CEO Howard Lutnick, speaks at a news conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort on December 16, 2024 in Palm Beach, Florida. In a news conference that went over an hour, Trump announced that SoftBank will invest over $100 billion in projects in the United States including 100,000 artificial intelligence related jobs and then took questions on Syria, Israe

Analysis

Possible strike on Iran, pressure on Hamas: Israel holds breath for Trump

The Israeli government is hoping for carte blanche from President-elect Donald Trump on several issues, including combatting Hamas and attacking Iran’s nuclear program.

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

Newly elected Lebanese president Joseph Aoun reviews an honor guard upon his arrival at the presidential palace in Baabda, east of Beirut, on Jan. 9, 2025.

From Saudi to US, congrats pour in for Lebanon's new President Aoun

Lebanon's parliament elected Gen. Joseph Aoun as president on Thursday, ending the country's two-year presidential vacuum.

In this picture taken on Dec. 16, 2024, Lebanese army chief Joseph Aoun (C) walks toward the Grand Serail in Beirut.

Joseph Aoun emerges as front-runner for Lebanon president on eve of vote

Hezbollah’s candidate dropped out and endorsed the Lebanese Armed Forces leader on Wednesday, as Lebanon seeks to elect a president after more than two-year void.

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (R) and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on Jan. 8, 2024.

Khamenei pushes for US withdrawal from Iraq in meeting with Sudani

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s trip to Tehran is his first since the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and comes ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

Tishrin Dam

Kurdish-led SDF says civilians killed as Turkey strikes Syrian dam

Turkish-backed forces are intensifying attacks on Kurdish-controlled areas, targeting civilians and critical infrastructure as fears grow over a potential dam collapse.

Cecilia Sala

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala lands in Rome after release from Iranian prison

After more than three weeks of detention, Cecilia Sala has been released from Tehran's Evin Prison and was met at the airport in Rome by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

US President Donald Trump and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) take part in a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC on November 13, 2019. President Donald Trump greeted his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House for a high-stakes meeting Wednesday that underlined his claim to be ignoring the impeachment drama unfolding simultaneously in Congress. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

As Trump praises Erdogan, Turkey says ready to take control of ISIS prisons in Syria

The top Turkish diplomat said Turkey is prepared to take control of the Islamic State detainee camps as he downplayed Israeli support for the Syrian Democratic Forces.

A general view of the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility is seen on April 9, 2007, 180 miles south of Tehran, Iran.

What to make of Iran's IRGC drills near Natanz nuclear site amid Israeli threats

The exercise, which was part of larger-scale drills, tested the capabilities of several air defense systems designed to thwart potential strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

US army soldiers queue to board a plane to begin their journey home out of Iraq from the Ain al-Asad Air Base west of the capital, Baghdad, on Nov. 1, 2011.

Exclusive

Syria's new Islamist rulers reduce Iraq's appetite for US troop withdrawal

Iraq's prime minister is heading to Iran to discuss concerns about Syria's new rulers, as Baghdad is considering the delay of the US troop withdrawal to address regional instability.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Gideon Saar, Israel's Foreign Minister, in Abu Dhabi.

Israeli, Emirati foreign ministers meet in Abu Dhabi, discuss Gaza humanitarian crisis

Emirati Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar met in Abu Dhabi, marking the first official high-level meeting between the two states since Oct. 7, 2023.

A man stands by burnt vehicles at the site of a reported attack by Israeli settlers in a residential area on the outskirts of Ramallah city in the occupied West Bank, on November 4, 2024. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by ZAIN JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Israeli settlers vandalize Palestinian property across West Bank: What we know

The attacks follow the deadly shooting of Israelis in the territory and coincide with raids by both Israeli and Palestinian forces against armed groups.

A picture taken on July 15, 2021, shows an abandoned Israeli army post in the Jordan Valley in the occupied West Bank near the border with Jordan (background). - As scientific warnings of dire climate change-induced drought grow, many in Israel and Jordan cast worried eyes at the river running between them and the critical but limited resources they share. (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel sees surge in Iran weapons smuggling to West Bank via Jordan

With its proxies in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria all but paralyzed, Iran is encouraging a Palestinian uprising against Israel in the West Bank.

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