Iran

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The Iraqi government did the right thing and froze the assets of Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis, but once the story made news on December 4, the government walked its decision back within hours. In November, the country’s Committee for the Freezing of Terrorists’ Funds put the two Iran-backed groups on …

The rapidly evolving dynamics of global power and security have transformed Eurasia into a critical arena of competition and cooperation. The continent, spanning from the Atlantic to the Pacific, has become a focal point for major geopolitical shifts, particularly amid the waning dominance of Western-centric institutions and the rise of …

Toplines Former senior Assad regime officials are likely funding and equipping clandestine networks in Syria to conduct insurgent activity against the Syrian transitional government. Reuters reported on December 5 that former Military Intelligence Chief Major General Kamal Hassan and Bashar al Assad’s cousin, Rami Makhlouf, have formed rival Alawite militias …

Toplines Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba head Akram al Kaabi threatened on December 3 to attack US Special Envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya in response to Savaya’s “blatant interference in Iraqi affairs.”[1] Iranian-backed Iraqi militias are unlikely to attack Savaya due to the potential repercussions that such an …

Signed just days before UN sanctions snapped back into place, the $25-billion Russia–Iran nuclear deal signals a defiant alignment against western pressure, with small modular reactors at the heart of Tehran’s long-term energy ambitions. Just days before the return of UN sanctions on Iran, Russia hosted a major nuclear deal …

Tehran and Moscow’s new contract for the Rasht–Astara Railway deal unlocks the final segment of a Eurasian freight artery In the latest development, Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development, Farzaneh Sadegh, announced on 26 October that a final contract with Russia for the construction of the Rasht–Astara Railway would …

Iran shows no signs of altering its core policies despite the damage done by Israel and the United States to Iran’s strategic architecture. A continuation of Iran’s existing policies is unlikely to bring the sanctions relief that moderate leaders such as elected President Masoud Pezeshkian deem vital to addressing economic …

Toplines Israel reportedly gave the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) a deadline of December 7 to make progress in its disarmament of Hezbollah amid ongoing Israeli preparations for a potential operation in Lebanon.[1] An Israeli Channel 13 journalist reported on November 28 that the LAF has until after Pope Leo XIV …

Toplines The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed Hezbollah’s “de facto chief of staff” and senior commander Haitham Ali Tabatabai in Beirut’s southern suburbs on November 23.[1] Tabatabai’s death will likely disrupt Hezbollah’s reconstitution for a short period because of Tabatabai’s significant experience at many echelons of command in fighting against …