Middle Orient

Jordan’s King Abdullah received a phone call from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the royal palace said on Sunday in what officials said was the first such communication since the start of the conflict in Syria a decade ago. The conversation was the latest step in thawing relations between leaders who …

Saudi Arabia confirmed on Sunday it had held its first round of direct talks with Iran’s new government last month, part of a process begun earlier this year to reduce tension between the Gulf’s rival Sunni and Shi’ite Muslim powers. The longtime foes who severed ties in 2016 began talks …

The Iranian Minister of Intelligence, Esmail Khatib, warned the US and Israeli bases in the Kurdistan region of Iraq against attempting to disrupt Iranian security because they “will face an agressive and effective response.” “Let the counter-revolutionary sides and their supporters in the region know that by trying to breach …

Turkish media has raised concerns that a spy cell has leaked technology projects to Israeli companies at a time when the country’s public prosecutor has charged 11 people with leaking information about Turkey’s defence industries to international companies. Yeni Safak said Turkey’s defence industries have developed significantly over the past …

Domestic quarrels and fears of a fractured nation are formidable hurdles on the path to KRG self-rule. What does Massoud Barzani want? The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) announced that it would hold an independence referendum on September 25. This isn’t the first time that the prospect of independence has been …

Fighting intensified this week in the strategically important city of Marib in central Yemen, believed to be a key access point to the northern part of the country. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan traveled to the Middle East earlier this week, meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. …

Hezbollah’s importation of Iranian fuel supplies demonstrates its willingness and ability to act independently of Lebanon’s official leadership. Easing Lebanon’s fuel shortages, even if marginally, enhances the position and popularity of both Hezbollah and Iran within Lebanon. The Biden administration is not likely to impose penalties on the fuel deliveries …

Spain is part of the international coalition to defeat ISIS, through which it had provided training to Peshmerga forces. Spain is preparing to open a consulate general in the Kurdistan Region’s capital Erbil, the country’s newly inaugurated ambassador, Pedro Martinez-Avial, told Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Thursday.

While Iraq is no longer the central power in the region, its history and geography make it an important player in the new Middle East. The Constitution of The Republic of Iraq, formulated in 2005 and approved in a referendum by more than three-quarters of the people, stated that “Iraq …

The Iranian regime should be brought to the “bomb or regime survival” dilemma. In his article, “Looking Straight in the Eyes of the Iranian Reality,” former prime minister Ehud Barak correctly analyzes the status of the Iranian nuclear project. His conclusion, however, according to which we have reached the point …