Middle Orient

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) is an Iraqi state security service that Iran has infiltrated and uses to wield significant influence in Iraq. Iran’s cooptation of the PMF enables Tehran to pursue its objectives in Iraq while obfuscating its actual involvement in Iraqi internal affairs. Understanding how Iranian leaders wield …

“Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham” recently carried out military operations, in which it attacked Syrian regime forces in various places behind the contact lines in areas under its control, which include Idlib Governorate, part of the western Aleppo countryside, the Latakia countryside, and the Al-Ghab Plain, northwest of Hama. “Indulgent” operations have …

Fighters from Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, which has military influence in Idlib, carried out an “immersion” operation on the evening of Sunday, February 26, targeting a Syrian regime forces position in the countryside of Latakia. Fighters of the “Red Bands” brigades, affiliated with “Tahrir al-Sham,” targeted a gathering of regime forces …

Fighters in Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, which has military control in Idlib, carried out an “immersion” operation today, Wednesday, March 20, targeting a Syrian regime forces position in the Latakia countryside. Fighters of the “Othman bin Affan” Brigade, affiliated with “Tahrir al-Sham,” targeted regime forces’ points in the Al-Kabina axis in …

The “Salvation” government operating in the city of Idlib issued a decision to create an administration called the “Public Security Administration” that operates under the supervision of the Ministry of Interior, in the wake of the demonstrations that criticized the “General Security Service” in Idlib. The decision issued on Wednesday, …

“They wanted Israel’s counterattack, and then they wanted to hold in the tunnels and use the hostages just to buy time for the international community—namely, the United States—to stop the IDF in their operations…. Their only goal is to survive. … It’s all about time. They want to survive Israel’s …

It seems clear that the Biden administration would like to see the rapid creation of a Palestinian state or at least a “Palestinian unity government” — unfortunately composed of the Palestinian Authority and the terrorist group Hamas — and, abracadabra, recognize it. The Palestinian leaders have, in fact, been admirably …

China confirmed a meeting between a Foreign Ministry official and Hamas’ political chief Ismail Haniyeh in Doha as Beijing seeks a wider role in the region. China’s Foreign Ministry confirmed a meeting between Chinese diplomat Wang Kejian and the head of Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, in Qatar over the …

To understand Hamas’s attack on 7 October and Israel’s subsequent onslaught on the Palestinian population of Gaza, it is necessary to accurately evaluate the underlying historical strategic interests of the Israeli state. In this sense, the ongoing crisis reflects both opposition to, as well as the unsustainability of, Israel’s longstanding …

The southern arena: IDF forces continue operating in the Gaza Strip, focusing on three main areas, the northern Gaza Strip and Gaza City, where the forces returned to Shifa Hospital; the central Gaza Strip, where they are establishing a security buffer zone near the border fence and fighting terrorist operatives …