Middle Orient

US sanctions international network laundering funds for Hamas

In a move aimed at cutting off the militant group’s sources of revenue, the Treasury Department designated a Hamas official, three financial facilitators and six companies. The Biden administration sanctioned on Tuesday what it described as a network of Hamas financial facilitators and companies across the Middle East that generate …

Read More »

IRGC colonel’s assassination highlights Israel’s shift in tactics against Iran

After the killing of IRGC colonel Hassan Sayyad Khodaei, reports claim that Israel has multiplied its efforts against Iranian entrenchment in Syria and Lebanon, against Hezbollah’s precision missile project and against terrorism by Iranian agents. Iranian websites list Col. Hassan Sayyad Khodaei as deputy director of the Quds Force’s technological …

Read More »

Turkey inches closer to Egypt

The Turkish finance minister is planning a visit to Egypt next month in the latest step toward rapprochement between the two countries. In a new step toward rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey, Turkish Minister of Treasury and Finance Nureddin Nebati will visit Egypt on June 1. The visit, the first …

Read More »

Turkey’s NATO obstinance threatens more than Nordic membership

From the vantage point of the West, giving in to Ankara’s demands from Finland and Sweden amounts to letting an autocrat design the security architecture of Europe. US President Joe Biden’s announcement of his country’s unequivocal support of Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership bids came as a veiled rebuke of …

Read More »

Gantz says US holding firm against Iran’s demand to remove IRGC from terror list

After meeting US defense officials in Washington, defense minister says they are ‘decisive’ about Guard Corps terror designation as nuclear deal talks remain stalled Following meetings with top American defense officials, Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Sunday that the US remains hopeful for a deal with Iran, but is standing …

Read More »

Iran, Oman to jointly develop oil field

Iran’s president is in Muscat seeking increased cooperation with Oman on energy and transportation. Iran and Oman agreed today to jointly develop an oil field in the Persian Gulf. Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji made the agreement with his Omani counterparts on the “integrated development” of the field. The two …

Read More »

Iran nuclear deal back in play after EU envoy’s visit

Multiple sources in Iran say Mora left Tehran with ‘more than suggestions’ for a revival of the deal, while both sides may have moved on from differences. While in Tehran last week, the European Union’s chief nuclear negotiator, Enrique Mora, meeting with senior Iranian officials, may have given the Iran …

Read More »

Iran Revolutionary Guard colonel is shot dead in Tehran

A senior member of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard was killed outside his home in Tehran on Sunday by unidentified gunmen on a motorbike, state TV reported. Although the Guard gave only scant detail about the attack that occurred in broad daylight in the heart of Iran’s capital, the group blamed …

Read More »

To approve Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership, Turkey wants its F-35s back

The Turkish vote could be critical on whether NATO can be expanded to include Finland and Sweden, and for that, they would demand to rejoin the JSF (Joint Strike Fighter) program and to receive the committed F-35s. It is worth remembering that Turkey is one of the original members of …

Read More »

Unhinged Russian Aggression is Leading Directly to NATO Enlargement

Late last week, Finland’s prime minister and president jointly announced Helsinki’s intention to move ahead with its application for NATO, a move that, if completed, would be a significant boon for the transatlantic alliance. Putin believed a strong and swift invasion of Ukraine would intimidate NATO and non-pliant nations on …

Read More »