Middle Orient

BEHIND THE LINES: Around 20 attacks against US personnel and facilities have been carried out since President Joe Biden’s inauguration in January. But the slow build-up of attacks started earlier. A notable uptick in attacks on US personnel and facilities in Iraq has taken place in recent weeks. In the …

The discontent in the kingdom has reached the royals, and this is where changes can happen. April seems to be a month of ill-fortune in the annals of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. In the beginning of April 2021, Jordanian authorities reported foiling a plot against the regime of King …

This fascinating, disturbing book is relevant for Israel, which must be exceedingly agile to avoid being trampled even by accident by these huge adversaries. When elephants rumble, the mice at their feet tumble. Though we Israelis regard our country as an elephant, and act as if it were, Israel is …

“The Tehran of today poses a strategic threat to international security, to the entire Middle East and to the State of Israel.” Israeli intelligence sources were quoted by multiple media outlets as confirming that Israel was behind a cyberattack at the Natanz nuclear facility on April 11 that knocked out …

For the second consecutive day, the Turkish forces have imposed a curfew in the city of Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain), which is under their control, against the backdrop of bloody fighting between Turkish-backed armed opposition groups. The city of Sere Kaniye, on the Syrian-Turkish border, in northeastern Syria, witnessed intensive …

Syria and Russia have said that the US and its allies’ occupation of Syrian territories — which support terrorist organizations and plunder natural resources — leave huge damages to the Syrian economy. A joint statement by the Syrian and Russian coordination committees on the return of Syrian refugees called on …

Keeping Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in power is a “common interest” that Israel has with Iran, according to Israeli media. Israel is following the presidential elections in Syria, which will take place next month. It indicated that there is no campaign by the media nor in the streets until now, …

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) also recommended Egypt, Iraq and Turkey be added to the State Department’s special watchlist for religious freedom offenders. Religious groups remain under threat across Syria, a US watchdog group said Wednesday, calling on Secretary of State Antony Blinken to designate the war-torn …

Despite Israel’s extensive missile defense systems, a missile from Syria managed to reach the south of the country. Tensions between Israel and Syria are escalating. A missile launched early this morning from Syria reached the south of Israel, setting off air raid sirens near the Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research …

United States Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking on Wednesday accused Iran of providing “significant and lethal” support to the Shi’ite Houthi movement, which has been battling a Saudi-led coalition of states for control of Yemen for six years. In a hearing at the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Lenderking said …