Middle Orient

When President Donald Trump lost the 2020 US presidential election to democratic candidate Joe Biden, many leaders in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) saw an ominous warning that democracy may again take center stage in US foreign policy, with autocrats trying to consolidate power in their hands. However, …

On January 31, US President Biden told the Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, that the United States would nominate Qatar as a “Major Non-NATO Ally” (MNNA). This status recognizes the bilateral security cooperation between the United States and Qatar has matured to the level beyond the already …

“The parties of the international community that are negotiating with Iran…. must realize that the extremist Iranian regime has not, and will not, abide by international laws, regulations and agreements, even if it swore and signed or pledged to abide by and implement them. The Iranian regime was founded on …

The stories of fighters who turned from the Islamic State to Syria’s rebel opposition forces show the how kinship ties, regionalism, and material concerns often trump ideology in the Syrian war. As the Islamic State’s meteoric rise reversed course in 2016, the terror organization’s fighters in northeast Syria faced a …

Infighting between Turkish-backed factions in north Syria continues despite pleas by civilians, with most recently dozens of members of the civilian police resigning in response to a shootout with the military police that left two of its members wounded. Violent clashes erupted Feb. 22 between members of the civilian police …

Turkey will limit the passage of Russian warships through its straits linking the Mediterranean and Black Sea as the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues into its sixth day, in a move that will likely have a larger impact on the Syrian front than the war in Ukraine. The position became …

An Australian-born Islamic State terrorist has been released from jail in Turkey but is stuck in immigration detention while he waits to see if any country will accept him. Melbourne-born Neil Prakash, who was raised a Buddhist, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison in March 2019. He was captured …

Raqqa, the former capital of the Islamic State (IS) and home to about 300,000 people, is now free. Yet many of its people want to leave. Those with property are trying to sell it to save up for the journey to Turkey. Those without money struggle to get by. At …

Olaf Scholz was meant to also visit Jordan and the West Bank, but has canceled those visits and will only be in the region for one day German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will arrive in Israel for a snap visit on Wednesday amid the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Regional alignments solidify after the invasion of Ukraine, as Iraqi politicians call for peace while four-way collaboration on dealing with the Islamic State and border security continues with Russia, Iran and Syria. Hours after the news broke that Russia had begun an invasion of Ukraine at dawn on Feb, 24, …