Turkish-American economist Daron Acemoglu wins joint Nobel Prize Turkish-American Daron Acemoglu has become Turkey's third Nobel laureate. Turkey
Interview NATO deepens engagement with Iraq as US prepares to withdraw In an exclusive Al-Monitor interview, Lucas Schreurs, commander of NATO Mission Iraq, explains the scope of his outfit's mandate. Commander of NATO Mission Iraq Lucas Schreurs
Azerbaijan detains Iranian boat for alleged drug smuggling The incident has added to tense ties between Iran and Azerbaijan, in part due to the Baku’s ties to Israel and Tehran's support to Armenia. Iran
Iran-Azerbaijan ties still off track despite diplomatic gestures Azerbaijan's energy minister visited Tehran for preparations to reopen his country's embassy, but such hot-button issues as the Nakhchivan corridor and Azerbaijan's affinity with Israel appeared as stumbling blocks on the path to effective normalization. Iran
Apathy dominates Senate elections in Egypt While Egyptians voted this week for members of the newly created Senate, many experts say the elections will not bring about change in Egypt’s political sphere as most candidates have the approval of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. Egypt
UAE shows path for peaceful nuclear development Fuel assemblies have been loaded into the first of four UAE nuclear power plants following the country's yearslong effort to develop major national and international support for nuclear energy. United Arab Emirates
Iraq faces more chaos as PM-designate fails to form government Iraq's prime minister-designate failed to form a government, meaning the country will most certainly witness more chaos. Iraq
Iraq's PM designate mired in Cabinet dilemma Iraq's Prime Minister-designate Mohammed Tawfiq Allawi is unable to form a Cabinet accepted by Iraqi protesters and political parties. Iraq
PMU factions set conditions for next Iraqi prime minister Some pro-Iran factions of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units are demanding that candidates for prime minister meet their standards. Iraq
Gaza men choose family councils but keep women out There have been no elections in Gaza since 2006, but family groupings in the enclave have started holding votes for a leader and board to administer family affairs. Palestine
Iraq’s sidelined Sunnis weigh options amid US-Iran conflict Iraq’s Sunni politicians, who are facing great challenges in managing areas still recovering from the damage caused by the Islamic State, worry that Iran-US tensions will have an added negative effect. Iraq
Erdogan's ties with Turkish army gets alarmingly personal The extraordinary personalization of Turkey’s civilian-military relations is deinstitutionalizing the Turkish military structure and causing internal power struggles within the army ranks. Turkey
Egyptian political party leaders react to Sisi’s merger proposal As Egypt prepares for parliamentary elections in November, political party representatives examine what's needed to implement the president's advice to consolidate the country's more than 100 parties. Egypt
Reshuffle of HTS-linked government fails to bring hope in Idlib It appears that the new cabinet of an Idlib-based opposition government connected to Hayat Tahrir al-Sham will not earn the trust of the public, which continues to suffer under tough economic and humanitarian conditions. Syria
Sex workers fall victim to Israeli government paralysis Due to the paralysis of successive transitional governments in Israel, millions of shekels allocated to the Welfare Ministry to help sex workers get out of the business have gone unused and might therefore be returned to the Finance Ministry. Israel
What is the fate of Baghdad-Erbil’s oil-for-budget agreement amid ongoing protests? Iraqi political sides vow to block a recent oil-for-budget agreement by Iraq’s caretaker government with the Kurdistan region. Iraq
