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

politics and security cover image

Politics & Security

AFP via Getty Images

Thousands rally for South Yemen independence amid Saudi diplomatic push

Large protests called for southern independence in Yemen on Friday, reflecting persistent support for the separatists despite the Saudi-backed government’s efforts to quash the separatist movement.

Members of Syrian government takeover the Al-Aqtan prison after Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) forces withdraw from al-Aqtan prison, bound for Kobani, on the outskirts of the northeastern Syrian city of Raqqa on Jan. 23, 2026.

Syria forces push deeper into SDF territory, take over ISIS prison: What to know

The advances come as the government and Kurdish forces accuse each other of violating a ceasefire that entered into force this week in northeast Syria.

Latest News

Analysis

Could US shift on Syria’s Kurds unlock progress with Turkey?

Syrian government forces ride on the roof of a vehicle as they deploy after crossing the Euphrates River in the province of Deir Ezzor, eastern Syria, on Jan. 19, 2026.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Analysis

Under fire at home over Board of Peace, Netanyahu hints Trump could OK Gaza war restart

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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

Interview

Grossi: IAEA seeks return to Syria as Kurdish unrest delays nuclear inspections

Rafael Grossi, Director General of the IAEA, speaks during the 69th annual International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference on Sept. 15, 2025 in Vienna, Austria.

Rafael Grossi

Rafael Grossi

IAEA Director General

Analysis

Trump's Board of Peace faces first test: Disarming Hamas

Palestinian Hamas militants secure the area as Egyptian workers, accompanied by members of the International Committee of the Red Cross, search for the last two remaining bodies of hostages from under the rubble of the Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern of Gaza Strip on Dec. 1, 2025.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

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

Palestinians gather at the site of an Israeli strike on a camp for internally displaced people, amid ongoing battles between Israel and Hamas, Rafah, Gaza Strip, May 27, 2024.

Wave of condemnation follows Israeli strikes on Rafah displacement camp

The attack, which killed dozens and burned many alive as tents quickly caught fire, follows a ruling by the UN top court ordering Israel to immediately stop its offensive in Gaza’s Rafah.

Libya's interim Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah (R) welcomes Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as she arrives for a meeting in Tripoli on May 7, 2024.

What's behind Italy's growing Libya engagement as Russia influence expands?

Italy is seeking stronger ties with Libya’s rival groups, though this mission may be hindered by several challenges.

Ron Mendel and Peace, volunteers at the Palestine Museum and Cultural Centre in Bristol, southwest England, stand outside the museum in April 2024.

Europe's only Palestine museum sees visitors surge in light of Gaza war

Bristol in southwest England is home to Europe’s only Palestine museum, run by unpaid volunteers.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi attend a joint press conference in Ankara, on Jan. 24, 2024.

How Raisi’s death will impact Turkey-Iran geopolitical rivalry

While leaders and some commentators in Turkey posthumously praised the late Iranian president and foreign minister, many geopolitical challenges await Ankara and Tehran once Iran elects a new president.

Iraqis carry portraits of Iran's late president Ebrahim Raisi outside the Iranian embassy in Baghdad during a condolences service on May 20, 2024 for the president and his entourage, who were killed in a helicopter crash in Iran the previous day.

Iran pledges continued support for regional proxies despite Raisi's death

In a show of defiance to Western adversaries, Iran hosted senior leaders of several regional militant organizations to renew promises that they will continue to have Tehran's blessing despite President Ebrahim Raisi's death.

Kurdish women hold portraits of their missing sons on May 18, 2011, during a demonstration in Istanbul against the recent killing of 12 Kurdish rebels by security forces.

Many faces of motherhood in Turkey: From new Mothers Museum to 1,000th vigil of Saturday mothers

As a new museum in Ankara pays homage to motherhood, the mothers of the country remain a fractured group, divided by political lines and economic woes

Pakistan's prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, writes a condolence note in a book for Iran's late president, Ebrahim Raisi, and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who died in a helicopter crash at the Iran embassy in Islamabad on May 20, 2024.

Where does Raisi’s death leave Pakistan-Iran relations?

The late Iranian president had paid a three-day official visit to neighboring Pakistan just weeks before his death in an effort to boost ties.

An Iranian man reads a prayer over the coffins of late president Ebrahim Raisi (portrait top L) and late governor of Iran's East Azerbaijan Province Malik Rahmati (portrait top R) during a funeral ceremony at the Imam Reza shrine, in the city of Mashhad, on May 23, 2024.

Analysis

Trump looms over Iranian presidential election

Ali Hashem reports from Tehran that relations with the United States may be a defining issue for next Iranian president.

Week in Review

Andrew Parasiliti

Ali Hashem

By Week in Review , Andrew Parasiliti , Ali Hashem

Office of the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran via Getty Images

Iran investigates Raisi helicopter crash: What we know

Some Iranian officials have blamed US sanctions for the helicopter crash that led to President Ebrahim Raisi’s death, while the first government report on the matter said nothing suspicious occurred.

ICJ

Analysis

Israel unlikely to heed ICJ on Rafah halt, prepares for diplomatic fallout

Israel is unlikely to withdraw its forces from Rafah despite concerns within the political and military establishment over the country's growing international isolation.

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

UAE president

UAE president to finesse ties in upcoming Beijing visit amid US-China rivalry

The Emirati president's first trip to China in two years comes as ties to the People’s Republic are strengthening across a variety of sectors.

United Arab Emirates

Iranian mourners attend the funeral of late president Ebrahim Raisi in the city of Mashhad on May 23, 2024.

Raisi's death unlikely to rattle Iran's foreign, domestic politics

The Iranian president's sudden death is unlikely to cause major disruptions to the political dynamics in Iran, though the Islamic Republic will go through an adjustment process.