Middle Orient

Forty days in and the protests that have rocked Iran since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini at the hands of the regime’s notorious morality police show no sign of abating, yet experts remain divided over whether the movement can achieve real change. Multiple waves of anti-government protest have rocked …

During a parade in Baku in December 2020 marking Azerbaijan’s victory in the Second Karabakh War, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recited an Azerbaijani poem that caught the attention of Iran. The poem, titled “Gulustan,” speaks of sadness resulting from the fact that the Aras River divides the ethnically Azerbaijani …

Researchers at the Institute for World Economy IfW Kiel and DIW Berlinhave analysed the economic impact of jointly implementing punitive measures in the context of the 2012 Iran and 2014 Russia sanctions. They find that coalitions serve two crucial purposes—they not only magnify the economic cost imposed on the target …

Israeli Army revealed on Sunday it destroyed 90% of Iran’s military infrastructure in Syria and aborted the Lebanese Hezbollah entrenchment in Syria. “Israel has in recent years succeeded in almost completely curbing Iran’s ability to transfer weapons to Syria,” The Jerusalem Post cited officials in the Israeli Army as saying. …

A source familiar with the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria said the group is preparing for an election round likely to occur in December amid a rivalry between the old leadership of the elderly and the younger generation. The source added in a statement to Syria TV that the main problem …

Farid al-Qasim, the new commander of the Maghawir al-Thawra faction, has made several changes since he took over this position under the auspices of the “international coalition” forces. These modifications included renaming the faction as the Free Syrian Army, which raised question marks — especially as it coincides with the …

In remote villages across the Lebanese Bekaa region, Syrian refugees are packing their belongings and getting ready to return home. Starting Wednesday, and as part of Lebanon’s “voluntary return” plan, hundreds of refugees have returned to Syria. Syrians Returning to Devastated Country, Escaping Economic Meltdown in Lebanon (Zaman al-Wasl) Many …

More than one year after national elections and amid a serious rift in the majority Shia community, Iraq’s major factions are forming a full-term government. The new government will be dominated by leaders that, to varying degrees, support close relations with Iran and are skeptical of relations with Washington. Shia …

Iran is materially supporting Russia’s war effort in Ukraine by selling Moscow armed unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and ballistic missiles. Russia’s purchases of Iranian equipment illustrates the significant shortfalls in Moscow’s existing arsenal and an inability to manufacture military equipment needed to sustain the war effort. The Iranian-made weaponry will …

Eurasia is about to get a whole lot larger as countries line up to join the Chinese and Russian-led BRICS and SCO, to the detriment of the west Let’s start with what is in fact a tale of Global South trade between two members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). …