Toplines The Russian military command appears to be prioritizing the seizure of Pokrovsk over efforts to close the wider Ukrainian pocket in the Pokrovsk-Myrnohrad area. Russian advances in and around Pokrovsk over the last several days suggest that Russian forces in Pokrovsk are prioritizing the seizure of the settlement itself. …

Toplines Three small Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) vessels intercepted a Marshall Islands-flagged oil products tanker, Talara, and moved it into Iranian waters in the Strait of Hormuz on November 14.[1] The vessel is operated by Cyprus-based, German- and British-owned Columbia Ship Management. The vessel is owned by Pasha Finance, …

In recent comments to CNN, Qatar’s prime minister reflected on his country’s unique ability to “convene between conflicted parties and understand the grievances.” Of course, Qatar’s ability to perform that job rests on a hefty rolodex of international contacts, including some of the world’s most notorious terrorist groups. At first …

Executive Summary Syrian Transitional President Ahmed al Shara and his political allies are building a new Syrian army as part of their effort to unite Syria under their Damascus-based government. The establishment of a professional army that both responds to civil control and protects all of the Syrian people, regardless …

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Since the start of Israel’s ongoing Rafah invasion in early May, humanitarian workers have been displaced alongside over one million Palestinians, with movement within the Gaza Strip virtually impossible. Telecommunications are frequently down, and many humanitarian activities have been halted. Aid organisations are reporting that most Gazans are unsure where …

Syrian President Ahmed al Shara met with US President Donald Trump at the White House on November 10. Shara’s visit marked the first visit of any Syrian president to the White House. Shara and Foreign Affairs Minister Asaad al Shaibani met with Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Secretary of …

Gilles Bertrand, the European Union’s special envoy for Afghanistan, in an exclusive interview with Amu described Russia’s recognition of the Taliban as an “unhelpful” move, warning it could undermine international consensus and embolden unilateral actions. Bertrand said that engagement with the Taliban should be conditional on respect for Afghanistan’s international …

This is a man who up until only a few months ago still had a $10M FBI reward for his arrest and capture as ex-head of the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda. Some might ask, why the double standards in not highlighting Jolani’s welcome by Putin a month earlier? One must …

Damascus has registered clear gains on arresting and deporting Palestinian militants and cooperating against the Islamic State, though its progress on addressing foreign fighters is mixed, and it has stalled on the more politically complex tracks of normalizing with Israel and controlling IS detention facilities. On November 10, Syrian President …