Middle Orient

High-profile figures from the former regime are being captured by the authorities in Damascus Former warlord Ghazwan Al Salmoni carved a niche in the Syrian civil war, commanding an abduction and extortion ring that specialised in ambushing lorry cargo traffic near his home in the centre of the country. He …

Restrictions on HTS and Ahmad Al Shara are rooted in group’s deep ties to Al Qaeda and role in Syria’s civil war The US is preparing to circulate to the UN Security Council a draft resolution calling for the lifting of sanctions on Syria’s leader Ahmad Al Shara. Discussions are …

The U.S. and Israeli attacks last month on Iran to “obliterate” its nuclear program may have hit another target: Central Asia’s interests in accesses the large Iranian market and use Iran’s transport links to trade with the wider world. Iran’s “Look East” policy was launched by then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in …

On May 14, President Donald Trump stood smiling with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman and Syria’s self-declared leader, Ahmed al-Shara’a, on the sidelines of the President’s visit to Riyadh. After the get together, the President declared that the United States would lift sanctions on Syria and re-establish diplomatic …

The aftermath of Operation Midnight Hammer, a strike by the US Air Force on three nuclear facilities in Iran authorised by President Donald Trump on June 22, was raucous and triumphant. But that depended on what company you were keeping. The mission involved the bombing of the Fordow Fuel Enrichment …

Rafael Grossi, le directeur général de l’Agence international de l’Énergie atomique (AIEA) a permis que son agence soit instrumentalisée par les États-Unis et Israël – un État nucléaire non déclaré, en violation de longue date des règles de l’AIEA – pour fabriquer un prétexte leur permettant d’attaquer l’Iran, malgré que …

Ever since Israel launched its illegal war of aggression against Iran on 13 June, speculation has swirled around the role played by MOSAIC – a tool created by shadowy spy-tech firm Palantir. This software has been deeply embedded within the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) operations, particularly its “safeguarding” mission: …

Since the onset of the 21st century, Turkiye’s foreign policy agenda has shifted decisively eastward, charting a course through Central and South Asia. This transformation signals more than a revival of Ottoman-era influence. It reveals a layered geopolitical project anchored in Pan-Turanist nationalism, Muslim Brotherhood-aligned political Islam, and strategic deployment …

The Islamic Republic’s long-range missile doctrine is not just a tale of arsenal accumulation, but a four-decade transformation from survivalist improvisation to operational supremacy in the face of western and Israeli air dominance. Under a regional sky long dominated by US and Israeli air and intelligence superiority, Iran made a …

Israeli officials described the move as a resource-saving measure, but the result was intensified bombing of Gaza by jets returning from unrelated missions Israeli fighter pilots returning from air defense missions during the 12-day war with Iran were routinely authorized to unload their leftover munitions on the Gaza Strip, according …