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

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Politics & Security

Members and supporters of the Nafas movement take part in an anti-government protest against Tunisian President Kais Saied, chanting "Degage" and calling for political change, in Tunis,Tunisia on August 20,2026. (Photo by Imen Ben Youssef / Hans Lucas / AFP via Getty Images)

Tunisia’s water, power crisis fuels growing protests against Saied: What to know

A utility crisis is giving momentum to opposition forces challenging Saied’s grip on power.

Zaidi

Iraq’s Zaidi doubles down on militia disarmament, boosting oil exports

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi made the comments amid Hormuz-related export struggles and a nearing deadline for armed groups to disarm.

ANKARA, TURKEY - JULY 7: U.S. President Donald Trump (L)shakes hands with with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a formal arrival at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Emrah Gurel - Pool/Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them

Israeli officials remain skeptical of Turkish and Syrian denials over Ankara’s military ambitions in Syria, warning that a deeper Turkish foothold could threaten Israel’s security and strain its ties with Washington.

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

Latest News

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

LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images

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

Win McNamee/Getty Images

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

MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

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

A handout picture provided by the Iranian Army official website on September 11, 2020, shows an Iranian navy warship during the second day of a military exercise in the Gulf, near the strategic strait of Hormuz in southern Iran.

Cameras missing from US Navy drones briefly seized by Iran, Pentagon says

It remains unclear whether Iran's navy took the cameras or whether they became dislodged when hauled onto the deck of the frigate IRIN Jamaran in the Red Sea last week.

A picture shows traffic back to normal outside the Ministry of Justice in Baghdad.

Iraq reels in wake of political violence

Tension remains high in Iraq as leaders try to reassure the international community after dozens were killed.

People wave Turkish flags in an immigrant-heavy district.

Public outcry as EU increasingly rejects Turkish visas

The Turkish public’s outcry over the growing number of EU visa rejections has prompted the Turkish government to threaten the EU with countermeasures, but the matter will unlikely be resolved until underlying structural problems are addressed.

Hadar Muchtar.

TikTok celebrity Hadar Muchtar shakes up Israeli election campaign

Unknown to most Israeli voters until just a few weeks ago, social media star Hadar Muchtar becomes a political figure to reckon with.

An exhibition calling for an end to executions in Iran on Trafalgar Square on October 10, 2020, in London, England.

Iran revokes death penalties handed to three protesters

The executions were reduced to jail terms in a controversial case that had drawn a furious public backlash.

Deputy IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi with UN Envoy Gilad Erdan at a briefing in the north of Israel, Nov. 16, 2021.

Gantz appoints new IDF chief

New IDF Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi is not a man hiding his opinions, even when the political echelon expects other positions to be voiced.

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Far-right Turkish leader likens Syrian refugees to garbage, vows expulsion

Ultranationalist Meral Aksener's plans include “isolating” migrants in “concentration camps” and forcing them to return to their countries of origin against their will under a formal policy of refoulement.

(From L-R) Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (3rd-L) and Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (L) attend a meeting with members of Bosnia and Herzegovina's tripartite presidency Sefik Dzaferovic (3rd-R), Milorad Dodik (2nd-L) and Zeljko Komsic (2nd R) and Bosnian Security Minister Selmo Cikotic (R) in Sarajevo on Sept. 6, 2022.

Erdogan travels to Balkans as tensions rise between former Yugoslav states

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s trip to Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia comes as ethnic rivalries bristle 30 years after the war.

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Israel ramps up security talks with US to stave off Iran deal

After visits by both Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz and national security adviser Eyal Hulata, Mossad Chief David Barnea is now in Washington to discuss the Iranian file.

Baquer Namazi

Baquer Namazi, American held by Iran, requires life-saving surgery

The Namazi family urged Iran to grant furlough to Siamak Namazi so that he can be by his ailing father’s side as he undergoes emergency surgery.

Western Sahara's Polisario Front independence movement leader Brahim Ghali (C).

Western Sahara dispute spills into Tunisia

A diplomatic crisis is brewing in the Maghreb region amid tension between Morocco and Tunisia after President Kais Saied received the leader of the Polisario Front.

A Syrian man walks past graves at a camp for displaced Syrians from the former rebel bastion of Douma, in al-Bil, east of the rebel-held town of Azaz, Syria, April 13, 2018.

Five bodies likely killed by IS found in mass grave in Aleppo

A mass grave was found in Azaz in the northern countryside of Aleppo, containing the remains of people who were believed to have been killed during the Islamic State control of the area in 2016.