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France's President Emmanuel Macron (L) wearing sunglasses shakes hands with Lebanon's Prime Minister Nawaf Salam prior to their meeting at the Elysee presidential palace in Paris, on January 23, 2026. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Narrow opening: Can Lebanon’s push for talks shift Israel’s war calculus?

Although Israel, for the moment, refuses to halt military operations in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah as rocket and missile strikes continue, sources say Israel is nevertheless leaving the door open to negotiations.

By Ben Caspit

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

ALM Live

Iran’s Khamenei vows revenge on ‘enemies’ as US deploys 4,000+ Marines to region

All updates are in your local time zone

Soldiers board a US Marines CH-53 Super Stallion during an airfield seizure exercise as part of the US-Philippines Balikatan joint military exercise at San Vicente Airport in Palawan on May 1, 2024.

How deployment of 4,000+ US Marines could change war in Iran

Two flotillas bearing thousands of US Marines will give Trump more options to open the Strait of Hormuz, but deploying them to the Gulf will necessitate expanding a war that's already widely unpopular at home.

Iran

Indian vessel 'Nanda Devi' carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) arrives at Vadinar Port in the Jamnagar district of Gujarat state on March 17, 2026 after Iran allowed it to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy corridor that remains disrupted by the Middle East war.

Iran’s Hormuz choke hold leaves West divided as energy markets reel

Between March 1 and March 19, there were only 114 crossings of the strait, according to analytics firm Kpler — 95% less than prewar traffic.

Iran

Why a Kharg Island blockade could be Iran’s greatest economic threat

The island is an energy hub that accounts for 90% of Iran's oil exports and is home to key Iranian military installations.

Iran

Latest News

Qatar-based Al Jazeera commentators go dark on social media: What to know

Qatar

Wartime closures at Jerusalem holy sites raise fears of lasting shift among Palestinians

Muslim worshippers break their fast outside the old city walls of Jerusalem on March 17, 2026, as the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound remains closed.

Palestine

Analysis

In Hormuz standoff, Trump struggles to rally allies

US President Donald Trump steps of Marine One as he returns to the White House on March 18, 2026, in Washington, DC.

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

Supreme leader says Iran dealt enemies 'dizzying blow'

US-Israeli strikes have killed a large number of Iran's top leaders

Agence France-Presse

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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media, flanked by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as he departs the White House for Florida, in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 20, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard

Trump says US getting close to meeting objectives in Iran war

Reuters

Panama Canal operating at top capacity as Iran war triggers more LNG vessel traffic, chief says

Reuters

Francesca Albanese is the UN special rapporteur on the rights situation in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967

UN expert claims Israel using 'systematic' torture

Agence France-Presse

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer

Exclusive-Iraq declares force majeure on foreign-operated oilfields over Hormuz disruption, sources say

Reuters

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The Al-Monitor Brief

Is Israel achieving its goals in Iran and Lebanon?

Ben Caspit joins Adam Lucente

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Friends with some benefits: Why Russia cannot overtly support Iran

Nicole Grajewski joins Amberin Zaman

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Iranians flee into Turkey as war, protest crackdown take toll: Dispatch from the border

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Interview

Huckabee confirms US-Israel alignment on Iran, says Hamas will disarm 'sooner or later'

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, US President Donald Trump's nominee to be ambassador to Israel, testifies during his Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, March 25, 2025.

Interview

AI, cybersecurity high on Mideast priorities amid global tech rivalry: Tech Mahindra

A man and woman walk along a promenade overlooking the Burj al-Arab and Dubai skyline on January 4, 2025. (Photo by Giuseppe CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

Treated as 'enemies’: Ahmad Tibi accuses Netanyahu government of indifference to Arab Israeli lives

Ahmad Tibi

Knesset member and Ta'al Party leader

Interview

Yadlin: Israel's war goal to weaken Iran, not immediate regime change

Retired Israeli general and executive director of Tel Aviv University's Institute for National Security Studies Amos Yadlin attends a session at the Manama Dialogue security conference in the Bahraini capital, on Dec. 5, 2020.

Analysis

Stay a step ahead of your colleagues.

Analysis

Iran expands energy targets beyond Gulf as Red Sea and East Med come into play

Excess gas is burned at the oil refinery in Israel's northern city of Haifa late on March 19, 2026.

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

In Hormuz standoff, Trump struggles to rally allies

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

Analysis

How Iran's strike on Qatar gas field could impact LNG market for years

A picture of Qatar Energy's operating facilities on March 3, 2026 in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar.

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

Narrow opening: Can Lebanon’s push for talks shift Israel’s war calculus?

By Ben Caspit

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

Ezgi Akin at Turkey's Kapikoy border crossing

Al-Monitor's Ezgi Akin at Turkey-Iran Border Crossing

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Rebecca Anne Proctor in Dubai offering an update on US-Israel-Iran war

Dubai: Day 7 of US-Israel-Iran War

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Joyce Karam, Elizabeth Hagedorn, Holly Dagres, and Ali Hashem

Are the US and Iran closer to war or a deal?

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Saudi Arabia's former and new investment ministers side by side

Saudi Arabia names new investment minister as Vision 2030 funding lags

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Past

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

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

Past

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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