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

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Politics & Security

Local residents look on from outside a cordoned off area in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on April 29, 2026, following the stabbing to two people nearby.

Iran-linked group claims stabbing in Jewish area in London: What to know

Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya has been linked to a number of attacks on Jewish targets in Europe, as well as an anti-regime Iranian news outlet.

President Donald Trump gives a speech during the State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn on April 28, 2026, in Washington.

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

President Donald Trump spoke by phone separately with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, discussing the situation in Iran and the possibility of extending the ceasefire.

This aerial photograph shows Turkey's first floating natural gas production platform, "Osman Gazi," passing through the Bosphorus, in Istanbul, on May 29, 2025.

Turkey advances gas pipeline plan to northern Cyprus as East Med rivalry grows

The Turkish energy minister said the country's oil and natural gas pipeline operator, BOTAS, has started the engineering work for the pipeline.

Latest News

Pentagon: Iran war has cost US estimated $25B so far

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy, Two F/A-18 Super Hornets launch from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 3, 2026 in the Mediterranean Sea.

Analysis

Why Abbas' win in Gaza remains 'symbolic,' not rejection of Hamas

Displaced Palestinian people look at paintings at an open-air art exhibition at the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on April 28, 2026. The majority of Gaza's 2.4 million people have been displaced, often multiple times, by the war that began with Hamas's attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023. With displaced families living in tented camps, with serious concerns raised about their living conditions. (Photo by Eyad Baba / AFP via Getty Images) / -- IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDI

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

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

Analysis

How long can Iran's economy withstand Trump's naval blockade?

The Ateela 2 oil tanker boat navigates the sea on April 28, 2026, on Qeshm Island, Iran, in the Strait of Hormuz.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Meet Ali al-Zaidi, businessman and Iraq's new prime minister-designate

Prime Minister Mohammed S. al-Sudani met with Prime Minister-designate Ali Faleh al-Zaidi on April 28, 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

Kurdish-run al-Hol camp, which holds relatives of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters.

Syria’s Kurdish forces thwart major attack on Islamic State prison camp

Botched suicide bombings came less than two weeks after the top US general in the Middle East sounded the alarm over security and humanitarian conditions at al-Hol camp.

Jared Szuba

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

Iraqi-Kurdish peshmerga officers.

US extends military support for Iraq’s Kurdistan Region

The renewed agreement entails further steps to reform peshmerga forces as Pentagon aims to prepare Iraq’s forces for long-term self-sufficiency.

Iraqi-Kurdistan

A worker sorts out plastic waste collected at a plastic recycling factory in Kartepe, district of Kocaelion, Turkey, May 11, 2022.

Health of Turkey’s plastic waste workers under threat as European imports grow

A report by Human Rights Watch finds Turkish authorities are not enforcing a law to protect vulnerable workers and local residents from toxic fumes.

A picture obtained by AFP outside Iran on Sept. 21, 2022, shows Iranian demonstrators burning a rubbish bin in the capital Tehran during a protest for Mahsa Amini, days after she died in police custody.

Breaking | Last Updated: September 22, 2022, 8:12 pm

Iran’s morality police hit with US sanctions as nationwide protests rage

The sanctions come less than a week after Mahsa Amini's death in custody of the morality police.

Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi during an official visit to France, Defense Ministry headquarters, Paris, France, Sept. 21 2022.

Israeli army chief discusses Lebanon, Iran with French counterparts

The visit of IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi to Paris offered Jerusalem the possibility to discuss the security situation in Lebanon, and how France can play a constructive role against the Hezbollah threat.

Syrians gather in front of the Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey on Sept. 12, 2022.

Syrian jihadist group HTS blocks civilians from reaching Turkish border

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham used violence to break up a caravan that was heading toward Syria's Bab al-Hawa border to cross into Turkey.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh delivers a speech after Friday prayers at Al-Azhar Mosqu, where he hailed the "heroic" Syrian struggle for democracy, Cairo, Egypt, Feb. 24, 2012.

Hamas normalizes ties with Syria under Iranian mediation

Hamas officially announced the resumption of relations with the Syrian government after a decadelong hiatus caused by the 2011 Syrian uprising, raising questions about the gains Hamas might achieve and why Iran sought to mediate the reconciliation.

US Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking takes part in a conference on Yemen's devastating war hosted by the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council in the Saudi capital Riyadh on March 30, 2022, hours after the Riyadh-led coalition announced a ceasefire for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Analysis

The Takeaway: Biden’s Yemen envoy wants more than ‘nice words’ from Iran

Al-Monitor spoke to Timothy Lenderking on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly about Iran's role in Yemen.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Andrew Parasiliti

By Elizabeth Hagedorn , Andrew Parasiliti

Turkey drone

UAE receives first batch of Turkish armed drones

Turkey’s delivery of 20 armed drones to the United Arab Emirates showcases the rapid advance in Ankara’s regional fence-mending.

Mikdad

UN General Assembly updates: Syria's FM slams Israel, reiterates amnesty offer for rebels

Follow along for the latest updates as Middle East leaders head to New York for the annual UN General Assembly.

AL-MONITOR Staff

By AL-MONITOR Staff

Russian "Marina" shows her Russian passport as she poses for a photo in a hostel in Belgrade, on March 17, 2022.

Turkey braces for fresh influx of Russians as Putin announces mobilization

Prices of international flights from Russia to countries where Russians can visa-free travel skyrocketed within hours following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s partial mobilization announcement.

Members of Israeli security forces and emergency services inspect the site of a reported attack on an Israeli bus.

How West Bank flare-ups could impact Israeli election

Confronted with a wave of terror attacks, Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Defense Minister Benny Gantz adopt a more hawkish approach to security in the West Bank.