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

politics and security cover image

Politics & Security

LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi crown prince heads to France as ties deepen: What to expect

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will start a visit to Paris this weekend, his fourth to France since his appointment in 2017.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

Caught in the middle, Oman shrugs off Trump's latest Iran threat

For the second time in months, President Donald Trump has threatened to strike the US partner as it holds talks with Iran.

MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Houthis claim new strikes on Saudi Arabia after IRGC warning: What to know

A senior Iranian commander said Saudi Arabia will be unable to the defeat the Yemeni group as the conflict intensifies.

Latest News

Turkey signals restraint as war of words with Israel escalates over Syria

Burhaanettin Duran

Syria’s FM pays Pakistan first visit in 19 years amid new regional alignments

Islamabad

Australia summons Israeli ambassador over World Central Kitchen strike: What to know

Zomi Frankcom

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

Members of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) jihadi group advance toward the village of Jindayris.

Are Syria’s HTS jihadis Turkey’s new friends?

After Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the jihadi faction that runs the northwestern province of Idlib, moved into Afrin, the question of where Turkey stands in this power grab is of critical importance.

AFP via Getty Images

IRGC warns Saudi Arabia over Iran protest coverage

The head of the IRGC has issued a warning to Saudi Arabia over coverage by Persian-language news outlets.

EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images

Ultra-Orthodox campaigning goes digital as Israeli election nears

In a dramatic shift from past elections, ultra-Orthodox parties have gone digital to keep up with their own constituencies.

Israeli security forces check the documents of Palestinian laborers who work in Israel, before allowing them to cross through a hole in a security fence in the village of Muqeibila near Jenin, West Bank, Sept. 6, 2021.

Israel revokes work permits of 164 Palestinian militants' relatives

In addition to pressuring the Nablus-based Lion’s Den group, Defense Minister Benny Gantz revoked the permits of group members' relatives to work in Israel.

People take part in a funeral in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province.

Islamic State claims over 125 people killed in Syrian operations in 2 months

The Islamic State announced the largest number of operations it has so far carried out in the span of two months in the countryside of Deir ez-Zor, which is under the control of Kurdish forces in northeast Syria.

An Ethiopian national flag is seen at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) in Guba, Ethiopia, on Feb. 19, 2022.

Egypt, Sudan joint committee resume talks on Nile waters

The Permanent Joint Technical Commission for Nile Waters between Egypt and Sudan has convened after a four-year hiatus amid the stalled negotiations over Ethiopia’s controversial Nile dam.

Syrians take part in the funeral of 10 fighters with the Turkey-backed Faylaq al-Sham rebel faction in Syria, in the northwestern city of Idlib, following their death in a Russian airstrike, Syria, Oct. 26, 2020.

Russian warplanes hit targets in northwest Syria

Russian warplanes escalated their shelling of Idlib amid field clashes between Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and the Syrian government forces in the countryside of Aleppo.

CIS summit

Middle Eastern leaders converge on Kazakhstan

The Central Asian nation hosted the annual Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia and the Commonwealth of Independent States summits this week.

Blinken Iran

Analysis

Iran nuclear talks on hold for now as US, EU focus on protests

MENA region is expected to suffer more than most from the global slowdown partly caused by the Ukraine war.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Iran protest

Ayatollah criticizes ‘British Shia’ as protests continue

The tweet from the Iranian Supreme Leader follows the Islamic Republic's complaints about London-based Persian language media outlets’ coverage of ongoing anti-government protests in Iran.

Turkey mine blast

Turkish coal mine explosion kills 22, traps dozens

The accident in northern Turkey killed 22 people, injured more than 20 and trapped dozens of miners waiting to be rescued from underground.

ROSH HANIKRA, ISRAEL - OCTOBER 11: Wind surfers surf by an Israeli navy boat in the mediterranean sea at the Israeli side of the border with Lebanon on October 11, 2022 in Rosh Hanikra, Israel. The agreement should resolve a territorial dispute in the eastern Mediterranean sea, where Lebanon wants to explore for natural gas. Israel is already extracting natural gas at nearby fields. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)

Israel-Lebanon maritime agreement to prompt working relations

Gerald Kepes

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional energy trends