Middle Orient

Like a wounded animal, vicious but aimless, Israel is lashing out at Lebanon. But, as Emad Moussa writes, Hezbollah won’t be deterred by wider regional war. The prospect of an all-out war between Israel and Lebanon reached new heights on July 3 after the Israeli army assassinated senior Hezbollah commander, …

In-depth: Over 20,000 children in Gaza are lost, detained, disappeared, or buried in mass graves or under rubble amid Israel’s relentless war. A report published by British aid group Save the Children last week found that up to 21,000 children are estimated to be missing in Gaza, with at least …

In-depth: A quiet move to transfer power over the West Bank from military to civilian officials amounts to a formal annexation of the Palestinian territory. Israel’s Civil Administration, the governing military body in the West Bank, quietly transferred power in May to a civilian official under far-right minister Bezalel Smotrich …

Recent Iranian polls show that moderate Masoud Pezeshkian is leading over ultraconservative hardliner Saeed Jalili in the Iranian presidential race.[i] The runoff election will occur on July 5. The Iranian Students Polling Agency (ISPA) published a poll on July 4 showing that Pezeshkian has a 5.6 percent lead over Jalili.[ii] …

Russia announced that an American “Typhoon” fighter jet approached one of its aircraft “dangerously” over the skies of Syria, marking the first incident Russia has announced since halting air traffic coordination with the United States. The Deputy Head of the Russian Reconciliation Center in Syria, Major General Yuri Popov, stated …

There seems to be a hidden hand that pushes the players, and not anyone you would think of at first. Over the last few months, we are witnessing a long line of assassinations of mainly top operatives, allegedly performed by Israeli units, acting in Lebanon, Syria and Iran. This should …

Acting Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri spoke with foreign ministers in the region andaround the world aiming to bring an end to the war in the Gaza Strip. He warned against thepossibility of an Israeli offensive initiative against Hezbollah, which would lead to an expansionof the war. Meanwhile, Iran is …

Amid the tension between Hizbullah and Israel, which has been growing in recent weeks, and amid the mutual threats they are exchanging to expand the scope of the war, the Iran-backed Shi’ite militias in Iraq are threatening that, if this happens, they will renew their attacks on U.S. interests in …

Moscow’s anger over Turkish arms supplies to Kyiv and compliance with U.S. sanctions threatens a rift between the on-off allies. The ever-turbulent relationship between Russia and Türkiye is on the brink of a new crisis. In early June, Russian President Vladimir Putin openly reproached Ankara for providing military aid to …

Iranian reformist presidential candidate Masoud Pezeshkian appears to be gaining momentum ahead of the runoff presidential elections on July 2. Several recent polls demonstrate that Pezeshkian is maintaining his lead over hardline candidate Saeed Jalili.[i] Pezeshkian received 10.4 million votes and Jalili received around 9.5 million during the first round …