Analysis
Since 2012, the Week in Review keeps you ahead of the curve with in-depth analysis of the trends in the region, based on Al-Monitor’s world class reporting.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s risky independence referendum
Iraqi Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani may seek leverage from Sunni Arabs to balance opposition from Baghdad, Tehran and Ankara.
![A man takes a picture of his daugther near the Kurdistan flag at the castle of Erbil, Iraq, July 29,2017. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily - RTS19OL9](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/08/RTS19OL9.jpg/RTS19OL9.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=2x9l-Bcv)
Does Turkey face day of reckoning with al-Qaeda in Idlib?
Al-Qaeda affiliate gains upper hand in northern Syrian city; Turkey’s shameful show trial of independent journalists part of “vicious crackdown.”
![Members from a coalition of rebel groups called "Jaish al Fateh", also known as "Army of Fatah" (Conquest Army), man a checkpoint in Idlib city, Syria July 18, 2017. Picture taken July 18, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Abdullah - RTX3C9L9](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTX3C9L9.jpg/RTX3C9L9.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=xDLbwX-y)
Will Netanyahu enforce Syrian red line against Iran?
Israel opposes cease-fire plan, as Russia, Turkey and Syria inch toward possible agreement on Afrin.
![Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG) run across a street in Raqqa, Syria July 3, 2017. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTS19M60](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTS19M60.jpg/RTS19M60.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=85LXK3Ov)
Abu Mazen plays losing hand badly in Gaza Strip
The Palestinian president faces a challenge from a bitter rival backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates; what is Saddam Hussein’s family doing in Qatar?; Russia and the United States wary of Turkish military intervention in Syria.
![Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) holds a news conference after a meeting with European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in Brussels, Belgium, March 27, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman - RTX32WQI](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTX32WQI.jpg/RTX32WQI.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=zsOPN-0i)
Turkey potential spoiler of US-Russian progress on Syria
Turkey may find common ground with Damascus and Tehran in its concerns about Syrian Kurds; UNHCR notes trend of "spontaneous returns" in Syria; Turkey seizes property of ancient Christian community.
![Turkish military vehicles drive east of al-Bab town, Syria March 9, 2017. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RTS126QM](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTS126QM.jpg/RTS126QM.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=VNkUYNyU)
Does the US have answer for Turkish threats against Syrian Kurds?
Turkey also seeks sway in Salafi-controlled Idlib; Hamas inches closer to Iran, Hezbollah.
![A Turkish army tank drives towards to the border in Karkamis on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern Gaziantep province, Turkey, August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX2MYWT](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTX2MYWT.jpg/RTX2MYWT.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=ak0HKoxd)
Iran draws line in the sand in Syrian desert
Iran stakes claim in eastern Syria; Saudi move against Hamas; Qatar risks confrontation in the Gaza Strip.
![Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad take positions in the Badia, in the southeast Syrian desert, in this handout picture provided by SANA on June 13, 2017, Syria. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. - RTS16TU2](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/06/RTS16TU2.jpg/RTS16TU2.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=HJS-xD0F)
Iran seizes high ground in Saudi-Qatar dispute
Iran probably can’t believe its luck; is it time for a second look at the Aleppo “narrative”?
![Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif attends a press conference in Berlin, Germany, June 15, 2016. REUTERS/Axel Schmidt - RTX2GGHH](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/06/RTX2GGHH.jpg/RTX2GGHH.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=4_pMf7JV)
Mixed messages since US-Saudi-Islamic summit prove costly
Is the United States missing an opportunity with Iran in the war against the Islamic State? Turkey, Hamas deal with fallout from Qatar dispute; Al-Monitor had the jump on “secret” US-Russia talks on Syria.
![People attend the funeral of the victims who were killed on the June 7 attack at the Iranian parliament and Ayatollah Khomeini's mausoleum, in Tehran, Iran June 9, 2017. TIMA via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY? - RTX39TEM](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/07/RTX39TEM.jpg/RTX39TEM.jpg?h=bebcaf8a&itok=gSZMty9B)
Saudi bloc splinters over hard line on Iran
Riyadh summit may have fueled sectarian animosities; Hamas resets its ties with Iran and Russia.
![U.S. President Donald Trump poses for a photo with Arab and Islamic countries' leaders during Arab-Islamic-American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 21, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RTX36UH3](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2017/06/RTX36UH3.jpg/RTX36UH3.jpg?h=4644478a&itok=uexKEXyk)
Pagination
Netanyahu, regional leaders hedge on possible Trump win in November
The Israeli prime minister is under pressure to deliver on a cease-fire during his Washington visit next week; Biden can’t heal Democrat divisions over Israel and the Gaza war.
![JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-1230516369.jpg?h=1d34674f&itok=-Zxq4qmm)
Lebanon FM warns of 'devastating’ regional war if Israel escalates campaign against Hezbollah
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Lebanon's top diplomat, Abdallah Bou Habib, adds that security in the south ultimately depends on a strong Lebanese army and an agreement on the border – not war.
![BERLIN, GERMANY - DECEMBER 15: Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib speaks to the media following talks with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on December 15, 2023 in Berlin, Germany. The two diplomats discussed mutual measures to prevent the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict from expanding to other regions, among other issues. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-1857491748.jpg?h=9855f42d&itok=rgoJZYYE)
US, Iran guarantors of shaky deterrence between Israel and Hezbollah
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is not ready to go to the mattresses over the killing of another senior commander on Wednesday, and Iran doesn't want a war while it favors the threat of confrontation as a deterrent.
![A portrait of Musa al-Sadr sits amid the rubble of a destroyed building in the heavily damaged, Hezbollah stronghold town of Aita al Chaab on June 29, 2024 in Aita al Chaab, Lebanon. Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been trading cross-border fire since the October 7 attacks, with the conflict escalating in May when the group launched a missile-carrying drone against Israel for the first time. The conflict intensified in June when Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets and drones at Israeli m](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-2159834748.jpg?h=4296c093&itok=iuOsSvRF)
G42-Microsoft partnership in Kenya 'just the beginning,' says UAE trade minister
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi discusses momentum in UAE trade with the US, the benefits of economic diversification and Africa’s priority in UAE trade policy.
![Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) listens to a speech by United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi (R) during the inauguration of the newly built floating solar power plant on the water that can generate 192 mega watts of peak electricity in cooperation between the Indonesian government and Masdar from the UAE, at Cirata Reservoir, West Java, on November 9, 2023. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP) (Photo by BAY ISMOYO/AFP via Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-06/GettyImages-1771551969.jpg?h=1dfc45c8&itok=YsgRPZu4)