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Politics & Security

Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government, gives a press conference in the autonomous region's capital Arbil on June 25, 2025.

Interview

Barzani calls for enhanced air defense for Kurdistan Region to counter drone attacks

Iraqi Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani backs US-led regional economic integration efforts and lauds US partnership in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor.

Masrour Barzani

Masrour Barzani

KRG Prime Minister

Saddam Hifter meets with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin

Russia’s Putin hosts Saddam Hifter amid instability in Libya: What to know

Moscow has built a strong relationship with Libya’s eastern camp, as Washington and Ankara pursue efforts to reunify the country’s political and military institutions.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive

Saudi Arabia wants Iran-backed militia 'heads to roll' in Iraq amid talks with Tehran

Riyadh is pressing Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to act against the groups behind attacks on the kingdom as Baghdad struggles to balance ties with Tehran and Washington.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks during a press conference at the site where Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by a US airstrike in 2020 near the airport upon his arrival in Baghdad, on Aug. 19, 2026.

Iran’s Ghalibaf makes high-level visit to Iraq ahead of disarmament deadline

The Iraqi parliament speaker is calling on his Iranian counterpart to help Iraq export oil through Hormuz amid the regional conflict.

Latest News

With talks stalled, Iran ups threats against Gulf, Europe: What to know

Pedestrians walk past a billboard depicting Iran's late Supreme Leaders Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2026.

In first, Lebanon to hand over former Syrian general to Sharaa government

This handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency on Aug. 18, 2026, shows Judge Fakhr al-Din al-Aryan (C) during the sentencing of Wassim al-Assad.

Analysis

How failing US-Iran diplomacy is giving way to fresh confrontation

Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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

Israeli President Isaac Herzog (seated 2nd L) sits in front of Israel's veteran ex-Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) and next to outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid (seated 3rd L), as he poses with the heads of all parties of the 25th Knesset at the Marc Chagall hall in the Knesset building, after Israel swore in a new parliament, Jerusalem, Nov. 15, 2022.

Minutes before deadline, Netanyahu says he assembled government

The announcement came despite the fact that not all coalition deals were indeed finalized.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the US Congress flanked by US Vice President Kamala Harris (L) and US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) at the US Capitol in Washington, DC on Dec. 21, 2022. -

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy criticizes Iran’s support for Russia during Congress speech

Iran has been accused of sending drones to Russia for use in the Ukraine war.

The Department of the Treasury building is seen in Washington, DC, on Aug. 29, 2022.

US targets Iran's prosecutor general, military officials with new sanctions

The US Treasury Department also designated a company manufacturing riot gear for Iran's law enforcement.

Imamoglu

Turkey's media board fines TV chains for Imamoglu coverage

Three channels were given harsh penalties for criticizing the Istanbul mayor's prison sentence and politics ban and for questioning Erdogan’s economic policies.

Dignitaries pose together in a photo at the start of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership.

Iranian, Saudi FMs meet in Jordan after months of stalled dialogue

The Iranian-Saudi dialogue stalled earlier this year amid the protests in Iran and political tensions in Iraq.

Dignitaries pose together in a family photo at the start of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership.

Iraqi PM stresses need for regional reconciliation at summit in Jordan

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani attended the second round of the Baghdad conference today in Jordan and expressed Iraq's willingness to push forward on regional cooperation and partnership.

Turkey's main opposition party chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu and Ekrem Imamoglu, the mayor of Istanbul, meet in an attempt to dispel rumors of rivalry over which of them will become the presidential candidate.

Opposition rallies around Istanbul mayor as Turks reel from conviction

Polls find that most Turks, including a sizable number of supporters of the ruling party and its nationalist ally, see the prison sentence and political ban against Istanbul’s charismatic mayor as unfair and politically motivated.

Ghassan Banat holds a picture of his brother, late Palestinian activist Nizar Banat, outside the International Criminal Court, after submitting a case accusing top Palestinian officials over his death in custody, The Hague, Netherlands, December 2022.

Family of Palestinian activist appeals to ICC to probe death

One and a half years after his death, the family of Palestinian political and opposition activist Niza Banat filed the first complaint against the Palestinian Authority before the International Criminal Court, accusing the security services of killing Banat.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, and French President Emmanuel Macron arrive with other dignitaries at the start of the "Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership" in Sweimeh by the Dead Sea shore in central-west Jordan on Dec. 20, 2022.

Iran FM talks nuclear deal as hard-liners defend bomb deterrence

Iran’s top diplomat spoke with the EU foreign policy chief on the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal, but the meeting was strained against the backdrop of deadly unrest at home and hard-liners' push for nuclear weapons.

Ground crew unload weapons and other military hardware delivered by the US military at Boryspil International Airport, Boryspil, Ukraine, Jan. 25, 2022.

Turkish military cargo planes stranded in Ukraine return to Turkey

Turkish military planes that were stranded at a Kyiv airport after the Russian invasion of Ukraine have returned to Turkey.

Amir Levy/Getty Images

Netanyahu’s new government will set Israel back, tech leaders warn

Mass letters to Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu are warning that the legislation his coalition partners are currently advancing will harm Israel’s flourishing tech industry and beyond.

Palestinians take part in a demonstration demanding the release of Nasser Abu Hamid, a Palestinian prisoner held by Israel who has cancer, Ramallah, West Bank, Sept. 21, 2022.

Cancer-stricken Palestinian detainee dies in Israeli custody

Nasser Abu Hamid, jailed by Israel since 2002, died on Tuesday morning following a battle with cancer. Palestinian rights groups accuse Israel of negligence.