Iranians will go to the polls this Friday to choose the successor to centrist President Hassan Rouhani, who is winding down his second four-year term and cannot run for reelection. The polls will take place in an atmosphere of widespread public apathy, as voters choose from a list of presidential …

Since early May, Iran has been rocked by protests over a precipitous rise in food prices, triggered by the government’s decision to cut existing subsidies on food products. Since then, prices have gone up dramatically, with staples such as imported wheat increasing by up to 300 percent and cooking oil …

Tribes loyal to former rebel Khalifa Hifter shut down oil fields and ports in eastern Libya recently over a dispute with the transitional government. Libyan Minister of Oil Mohamed Oun said Wednesday that oil production will return to normal soon in the North African country. In an interview with the …

Erdogan fails to enlist Russian and Iranian support for a fresh Turkish military operation in Syria, but he remains bent on maintaining the pressure. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan returned without any concrete results from talks with his Russian and Iranian counterparts in Tehran, to which he went with a …

Jerusalem is concerned that internal pressures in Lebanon on Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah could be translated into more violence against Israel. Since the surprise eruption of the 2006 Second Lebanon War, Israel has invested a major effort in trying to read Hezbollaz leader Hassan Nasrallah and understand the way he …

Sudan has a longstanding strategic partnership with Turkey, forged on the basis of shared ideology and fostered by growing economic and political ties, that has proven resilient to regime change. Khartoum has not abandoned its relationship with Ankara despite the ouster of former President Omar al-Bashir in 2019 or the …

On June 17, the European Union (EU) signed a memorandum of understanding with both Egypt and Israel that creates a framework for Israel to expand its natural gas exports to Europe via Egypt. The EU also agreed with Egypt to increase collaboration on renewable energy, hydrogen, energy efficiency, and the …

The main objective of President Joe Biden’s trip to the Middle East last week was to signal to both partners and adversaries that the United States was serious about restoring its strategic position in the region, which has taken considerable hits in recent years. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the visit …

Turkey’s economic problems continue to go from bad to worse. Its foreign trade deficit has reached a monthly average of $8 billion this year. Amid the sharp rise in global energy prices this spring following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the country’s average gross energy imports shot up from $3-4 billion …

President Joe Biden on Friday approved a new $270 million military aid package that will send Ukraine additional rocket systems, ammunition and tactical drones to help that country’s troops combat invading Russian forces, defense officials said Friday. The aid will include four High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and accompanying ammunition, …