To Beirut, with love: Young poet to represent Mideast in world competition Rabab Chamseddine, a 21-year-old Lebanese poet, is headed for Paris for the World Poetry Slam next year after winning the Beirut Poetry Slam with works that tackled notions of self and country. Lebanon
Economic ties going strong between Israel, Palestine Palestinian-Israeli economic relations seem unaffected by the political stalemate hindering peace talks between the two sides. Palestine
Egypt's horse exports growing now that most bans are lifted Now that many countries no longer ban imports of Egyptian horses, the government expects the country to become a hub for investment in purebred Arabian horses. Egypt
Lawmakers to study how Egypt's civil servants are paid The majority coalition in Egypt’s parliament wants to amend the civil service law to increase what government employees are paid, while some experts and economic observers believe the state ought to instead create a work environment that discourages incompetent civil servants. Egypt
Who will save Gaza? Despite celebrating the Trump administration cutting off assistance to UNRWA, Israel knows that without US funding the organization will be paralyzed, making a humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip a matter of time. Palestine
Would Netanyahu be better off without Trump? The overly pro-Israeli policies of President Donald Trump, especially his decision to cut funding for the Palestinians, poses a threat to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans to continue using the Oslo Accords as a permanent status solution and for the international community to pay for Israel's occupation of the West Bank and the building of settlements. Palestine
Small Lebanese craft brewers introduce big new tastes in beer Micro and craft breweries are paving the way for locally made Lebanese beer by working around the lack of traditional ingredients and doing what they can to avoid contributing to the Lebanon's persistent environmental problems. Lebanon
Al-Qaeda, foreign fighters have nowhere to go from Idlib Erdogan appeals for support to "moderate rebels," but what may ultimately matter is US-Russia common ground; Al-Monitor's award-winning lobbying series and archive now available. Syria
Russia, Germany at loggerheads over Idlib Germany has recently engaged with the United States, the UK and France to take a stronger stance on Syria. But as Chancellor Merkel encounters strong domestic opposition on potential military action in Syria, the significance of engaging with Russia increases. Syria
Iraqi Kurds stuck between Iran, US The Iraqi Kurds are worried about the US-Iran rivalry in Iraq, as it will weaken their position in the country more than ever before. Iraq
Washington ramps up diplomatic efforts to stave off Idlib operation The new US Syria diplomatic team ramps up diplomacy as it tries to bolster Turkish and European efforts to avert assault on Idlib. Syria
Low-income Turks take early crisis blows Turkey’s economic turmoil is already bruising millions of minimum wage earners, who are grappling with a flurry of price hikes and the prospect of losing jobs. Turkey
Iraq's Abadi under fire from pro-Iran political factions Pro-Iranian factions within Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units are taking advantage of the bloody events in Basra to prevent the prime minister from winning a second term, accusing him of being under US influence. Iraq
Mai Masri, daughters pledge to keep alive Jean Chamoun’s film legacy Jean Chamoun and Mai Masri devoted their cinema careers to the Palestinian cause. A year after Chamoun's death, Masri has started work on a new script for a feature film. Palestine
Al-Azhar includes women in public discussion of harassment, rights For the first time, Al-Azhar’s newspaper published the photos of unveiled women on the front page of an edition devoted to women's issues. Egypt
Why is Egypt canceling T-bond auctions? For the second time this year, the Egyptian government canceled the sale of treasury bonds after banks demanded higher interest rates. Egypt
