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Politics & Security

Four Arab Israeli parties join forces ahead of Israel's next elections.

Analysis

Can newly unified Arab Israeli bloc bridge gaps to block Netanyahu next election?

The move signals to their constituents that the four leaders can set aside differences to try to strengthen Arab representation in the Knesset.

Mazal Mualem

By Mazal Mualem

In Tel Aviv, reporting on politics

Turkish Foreign Ministery Press Service / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Turkey’s Syria gains come with risks as Damascus pushes Kurdish integration

Turkey has benefited from the Syrian government’s rollback of the Kurdish-led forces, but whether those gains translate into lasting security, refugee returns and domestic de-escalation will depend on political inclusion in Damascus.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

This photograph shows an Iranian national flag installed on the Beheshti Mosque that was damaged during recent public protests, in Tehran on Jan. 21, 2026.

Analysis

Proxies, maritime pressure, power plays: Iran’s options if US strikes

A military strike risks entrenching hard-liners in Tehran if Washington fails to accomplish regime change driven by a clear endgame.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Members of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) arrive at the Kurdish-held city of Ain al-Arab, also known as Kobane on January 23, 2026, after they withdrew from the Al-Aqtan prison in the Raqqa province of Syria.

Exclusive

US military negotiated SDF withdrawal from Syria's Raqqa prison

Syrian government forces took full control of Raqqa after hundreds of SDF fighters were evacuated to Kobani under US-negotiated safe passage.

Jared Szuba

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

Latest News

Thousands rally for South Yemen independence amid Saudi diplomatic push

AFP via Getty Images

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

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.

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

US President Joe Biden.

Analysis

As Biden-Netanyahu rift grows, so does pressure to condition aid to Israel

The growing rift between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Joe Biden, and rising discontent at the White House with the situation in Gaza, could lead the US president to respond more forcefully.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Palestinian worshippers gather on April 10, 2024 in the courtyard of Gaza City's historic Omari Mosque, which has been heavily damaged in Israeli bombardment during the ongoing battles between Israel and Hamas, on the first day of Eid al-Fitr to mark the end of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Palestinians in Gaza mark solemn Eid at destroyed mosques, in displacement

Eid al-Fitr has been a somber holiday this year in the Gaza Strip, where the dead have left gaping holes in families.

TEHRAN, IRAN - MARCH 01: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) arrives to cast his ballots during the parliamentary and key clerical body elections at a polling station on March 1, 2024 in Tehran, Iran. Iranians are voting in parliamentary elections and will also cast ballots for the Assembly of Experts, which selects and nominally oversees the work of Iran's supreme leader. (Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

Iran’s Khamenei says Israel ‘will be punished’ for Syria consulate bombing

Khamenei's remarks come as the region awaits a response to the suspected Israeli strike on the Iranian Consulate in Damascus.

Ismail Haniyeh, the Doha-based political bureau chief of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, speaks to the press after a meeting with the Iranian foreign minister in Tehran on March 26, 2024.

Breaking | Last Updated: April 11, 2024, 7:43 am

Three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh killed in Israeli strike

Ismail Haniyeh confirmed his sons were killed in a strike in Gaza, and Israel later said its air force targeted the three men.

A volunteer distributes sweets to Muslims after special morning prayers to start the Eid al-Fitr festival, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem on April 10, 2024.

Syria to Sudan, Middle East celebrates bittersweet Eid in shadow of war

Pro-Palestinian protests sweep across the region as Muslims mark the first day of religious holiday Eid al-Fitr.

A general view as players of Real Madrid warm up prior to the UEFA Champions League quarter-final first leg match between Real Madrid CF and Manchester City at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on April 09, 2024, in Madrid, Spain.

What’s behind ISIS threat to Champions League soccer matches?

The threats follow an ISIS-linked shooting in Belgium in October. The group remains particularly active in Iraq and Syria, though it no longer holds territory there.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Protesters interrupt Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin as he testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on April 09, 2024 in Washington, DC. Austin was testifying about the Biden Administration's FY2025 budget request for the Pentagon, which includes supplemental funding for Israel, Ukraine, Taiwan and other allies. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

US defense chief: 'We don't have any evidence' Israel is committing genocide in Gaza

Lloyd Austin's statement came just weeks after the State Department said it had found no evidence of the Israeli military violating the law of war in Gaza, despite extensive allegations to the contrary by UN officials and international aid groups.

Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during an interview in the countryside outside the northwestern Syrian city of Hasakah, in the province of the same name, on Jan. 24, 2019.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander says resolve of US-led anti-ISIS coalition weakening

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, SDF chief Mazlum Kobane said the conflict in Gaza has boosted ISIS and warned that the conditions exist for a "resurgence" of the group to its former strength.

Mazlum Kobane

Mazlum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

An Iranian Navy warship takes part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019.

Iran naval chief calls Israeli presence in UAE 'threat,' seeks Islamic army coalition

During the course of the Gaza war, Iran has been critical of some Islamic countries for their refusal to sever ties with Israel, and it's hoping that the war will shelve Arab-Israeli normalization plans.

A Pakistani police officer stands guard outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad on Jan. 18, 2024.

Iran: At least 5 security forces killed in latest Jaish al-Adl attack in Baluchistan

The Baluchi Islamist group Jaish al-Adl has escalated its attacks against Iranian forces in the Sistan and Baluchistan province, a region that suffers from poverty and neglect, and where the unrest has complicated relations with neighboring Pakistan.

An Israeli soldier checks a mobile atop a tank in a army camp near Israel's border with the Gaza Strip on April 8, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the militant group Hamas. (Photo by Menahem Kahana / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

What Netanyahu's abrupt Gaza withdrawal means for Israel, Rafah op

While negotiations continue for a hostage release and cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is busy currying favor with his far-right ministers, promising them a military operation in Rafah.

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

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa (L) meets Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, April 9, 2024.

Saudi Arabia hosts Palestinian PM as Gaza cease-fire talks advance

Mohammed Mustafa’s visit to Saudi Arabia comes after he stopped in Jordan and Egypt in the past days as mediators are pushing for a Gaza cease-fire.