Iran, South Africa sign agreement in Pretoria ahead of BRICS summit The South African and Iranian foreign ministers have signed a cooperation deal ahead of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg, which Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi will attend. Iran
Why Turkey's Erdogan sings the same tune with Russia's Putin in Africa Turkey’s efforts to expand its influence in Africa often align with those of Russia, with both Ankara and Moscow holding back from condemning military coups and seeking to capitalize on post-colonial resentments. Turkey
In radical shift, Israel's El Al airline in talks to buy Airbus planes El Al is in "serious" talks with Airbus to purchase new planes but continues to negotiate with Boeing as well. Israel
Turkey logs $674M account surplus, breaking 20 month deficit Turkey posted a current account surplus in June for the first time since October 2021. Turkey
Islamic State attack kills 26 Syrian soldiers, third in 2 weeks The deadly attack, the group’s third this month, follows the death of another one of its leaders. Syria
Turkey-Syria reconciliation slips away as Assad bashes Erdogan The top diplomats of Syria and Turkey met in Moscow earlier this summer, but little substantial progress seems to have been made in their path toward reconciliation. Turkey
Middle East Water Security: Competition heats up as resources become scarcer The Middle East and North Africa region is “the most water-scarce region in the world” and is home to 11 of the 17 most water-stressed countries globally.
Analysis Israel’s Lapid warns against Saudi Arabia enriching own uranium as Netanyahu pleads normalization Opposition head Yair Lapid warns that allowing Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium on its soil could lead to an arms race in the region. By Ben Caspit In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense
Why did Turkey restrict gold imports as it rolled new economic measures? Observers believe Turkey’s new economic leadership is unlikely to take strong measures to curb inflation before Erdogan gets through local elections in March 2024. Turkey
On the Middle East with Amberin Zaman 'My father shares a prison cell with inmates who make sandwiches with their own flesh,' says British-Tunisian activist Kaouther Ferjani Amberin Zaman