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Analysis

Gaza realities test Trump’s 2025 Middle East ambitions

During its first year, the second Trump administration confronted wars in Gaza and Sudan, forged new ties with Syria and grappled with the growing nuclear threat from Iran.

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Supporters of Lebanon's Shiite militant group Hezbollah carry the coffins of militants killed in recent Israeli attacks during their funeral in the southern city of Nabatiyeh on November 2, 2025. Hundreds of people gathered in south Lebanon's Nabatiyeh on November 2, 2025 to mourn five Hezbollah members killed in recent Israeli attacks, an AFP correspondent said, as Israel warned of intensifying attacks against the Iran-backed group. On November 1, an Israeli strike killed four people in Kfar Rumman, Nabati

Analysis

In 2025, Hezbollah was weakened in Lebanon, but unlikely to disarm in 2026

Hezbollah has been under increasing internal and external pressure to surrender its heavy weapons, which it has refused to do, raising questions about its steps in the coming year.

By Beatrice Farhat

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Saudi Air Force advanced F-15SA fighter jets perform during a ceremony in Riyadh on Jan. 25, 2017.

Analysis

2025: Why Gulf defense megadeals finally met reality

From fighter jet debates to drones and megadeals, Gulf defense planners are shifting from political signaling to tangible results.

By Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Analysis

Eyeing Turkey, Netanyahu boosts Greece, Cyprus ties ahead of US visit

Worried about the increasing empowerment of Turkey across the Middle East, Israel is making a show of neighborhood strength with Greece and Cyprus.

By Ben Caspit

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

A boy looks on as supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally calling for the revival of the former independent state, in Aden on December 12, 2025. The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council last week swept through swathes of Yemen in a near-bloodless takeover they say aimed to expel Islamists and halt smuggling for the benefit of the Iran-backed Houthis. (Photo by Saleh Al-OBEID

As UAE-Saudi rivalry heats up, Yemen’s STC accuses Riyadh of airstrikes

Saudi Arabia has criticized the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council’s military offensive, which has sent shockwaves through the country and the Gulf.

Yemen

Latest News

Israel becomes first country to recognize Somaliland in slight to Turkey

The flag of Somaliland is seen during a campaign rally of the main opposition party Waddani in Hargeisa on November 8, 2024, ahead of the 2024 Somaliland presidential election. The self-declared state of Somaliland is set to host a long-delayed presidential and legislative elections in November 13, 2024. (Photo by LUIS TATO / AFP) (Photo by LUIS TATO/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel

Explosion at Alawite mosque in Syria's Homs kills eight

A view shows an interior of a damaged mosque after several people were killed in an explosion at a mosque of the Alawite minority sect, as a Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said, in Homs, Syria December 26, 2025. REUTERS/Ali Ahmed al-Najjar

Feature

Cheap oil, tighter finances, wars constrained Mid East economies in 2025

A picture taken from a station of Dubai's Palm Monorail shows traffic on a road in Palm Jumeirah on Aug. 28, 2025.

By Jack Dutton

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Analysis

In 2025, Netanyahu saved his coalition but stalled on Gaza, Iran, Lebanon

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in a joint news conference with US President Donald Trump (not seen) in the State Dining Room at the White House on Sept. 29, 2025, in Washington.

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) praised US President Donald Trump (L)

Netanyahu to meet Trump in US on Monday

Agence France-Presse

A Yemeni fighter brandishes the flag of the formerly independent south, the emblem of a powerful separatist movement whose grievances persist despite the detente under way between regional heavywights Iran and Saudi Arabia

Saudi-led coalition demands Yemen separatists withdraw forces

Agence France-Presse

Members of the forces of Yemen's main separatist group, the Southern Transitional Council, gather in a mountainous area where they are launching a military operation in the southern province of Abyan, Yemen, December 15, 2025. REUTERS/Stringer

Yemen's Saudi-led coalition says it will deal with military moves in Hadramout

Reuters

In Hargeisa, crowds took to the streets to celebrate, many carrying the flag of the breakaway state

Somalia, African nations denounce Israeli recognition of Somaliland

Agence France-Presse

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Turkey’s year 2025 in review: Progress abroad, challenges at home?

Adam Lucente interviews Ezgi Akin

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What’s next for Syria's economy, security after Trump repeals Caesar sanctions?

Adam Lucente interviews Danny Makki

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The Saudi-UAE clash: The regional stakes and what Trump can do

Amberin Zaman interviews Joyce Karam

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Cyprus weighs joining Gaza force but 'not enough clarity' on mission, FM says

Constantinos Kombos

Cypriot Foreign Minister

Interview

UNRWA plans Turkey office to boost Gaza, Syria aid as pledges dip

A boy sits outside the entrance to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) building complex in Gaza City, on Sept. 6, 2025.

Tamara Alrifai

Interview

Can protests in Israel halt Netanyahu's second attempt at judicial overhaul?

Shikma Bressler, an Israeli physicist and one of the leaders of the protest against the government's judicial overhaul.

Interview

Robots can solve UAE construction labor shortage, says Buildroid AI

Analysis

Stay a step ahead of your colleagues.

Analysis

In 2025, Hezbollah was weakened in Lebanon, but unlikely to disarm in 2026

By Beatrice Farhat

In Beirut, reporting on regional news, culture, conflict

Analysis

Gaza realities test Trump’s 2025 Middle East ambitions

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Analysis

Eyeing Turkey, Netanyahu boosts Greece, Cyprus ties ahead of US visit

By Ben Caspit

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

Analysis

2025: Why Gulf defense megadeals finally met reality

By Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Amberin Zaman, Elizabeth Hagedorn, Danny Makki, Joyce Karam in a virtual discussion on Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's visit to Washington

Syria's Sharaa in Washington

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Iraqis prepare to head to the polls

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Amberin Zaman Reports from Damascus

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Elizabeth Hagedorn Reporting from UNGA in New York

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AL-Monitor Global Institute hosts food security forum with Dr. Conrad Rein

On October 16, 2025, the AL-Monitor Global Institute hosted Dr. Conrad Rein, Secretary of the Global Flagship Initiative for Food Security, alongside representatives from multilateral development banks and the private sector for a discussion on food security in the Middle East and Africa.

Washington, DC

October 16, 2025 11:00 EDT

Past Live Journalism

AL-Monitor Global Institute hosts Digital Cooperation Organization Secretary-General Deemah AlYahya

On Sept. 21, 2025, the AL-Monitor Global Institute hosted Deemah AlYahya, Secretary-General of the Digital Cooperation Organization, for a discussion on digital inclusion and economic empowerment in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

New York, NY

September 21, 2025 17:00 EDT

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Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Masrour Barzani at AL-Monitor Global Institute

AL-Monitor Global Institute hosts Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and US Energy Secretary Chris Wright

On May 22, 2025, the AL-Monitor Global Institute hosted Prime Minister Masrour Barzani of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq and US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright in Washington DC to discuss the future of power and energy in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.

Washington, DC

May 22, 2025 10:30 EDT

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