Middle Orient

Rami Makhlouf (left) portrays himself as a messianic figure. Kamal Hassan (right) believes Alawites must take up arms to defend themselves. REUTERS/Illustration/Catherine Tai; Source photos: REUTERS/Stringer and Facebook From exile in Moscow, ex-intel chief Kamal Hassan and Assad cousin Rami Makhlouf are spending millions of dollars in competing efforts to …

Just as the United States and Iran’s negotiations to end their three-month war appear to be gaining momentum, Israel has stepped up operations on another volatile front in Lebanon. The recent decision by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to intensify airstrikes and ground operations against Hezbollah, one of Iran’s closest …

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and The Critical Threats Project (CTP) at the American Enterprise Institute are publishing daily updates to provide analysis on the war with Iran. The updates focus on US and Israeli strikes on Iran and Iran and the Axis of Resistance’s response to …

Le Protocole de paix, dont les États-Unis et l’Iran sont convenus sous la médiation pakistano-chinoise, ne porte ni sur la liberté de circulation dans le détroit d’Ormuz, ni sur le renoncement à la bombe atomique : ces deux problèmes n’existant pas. Il convient de la restitution des avoir iraniens gelés …

As negotiations continue to end the fighting between Iran and the United States, it is increasingly clear that Iran’s leaders are interested in securing a ceasefire and avoiding further escalation. Tehran understands the heavy strategic, economic, and military costs of continued confrontation and appears determined to prevent the conflict from …

“National security is achieved only through support for the cause. We are talking about a new Middle East with four key countries: Syria, Iraq, Turkey, and Iran. The Kurds are in all of them.” The only way to topple the Iranian regime is from within, and the key to doing …

Power parity informs the view from Ankara, which has a strong interest in preventing Iran from going nuclear or alternatively falling into chaos—even as the war’s outcome will be largely outside Turkish control. On May 22, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to …

Iran US War Live Updates: The US-Israel-Iran conflict remains at a delicate crossroads as military action and diplomacy unfold simultaneously across the region. The United States says it carried out “self-defence” strikes on missile launch sites and mine-laying vessels in southern Iran, while senior Iranian negotiators have travelled to Qatar …

Strategic Alert: Trump’s “Wedding” Deception and the Boiling Point of “Fuel”… Washington Arms the Middle East Slaughterhouse. Friday, May 22, 2026 (Day 84 of the War) US President Donald Trump’s erratic statements regarding the negotiations were merely a smokescreen. His sudden announcement of skipping his son’s wedding to “stay at …

The US/Israeli war with Iran not only altered the military balance in the Middle East. It also opened a deeper crisis: that of the power model upon which the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries built their rise over the past few decades. The US/Israeli war with Iran not only altered …