The king of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, spoke by phone with US President Joe Biden on Wednesday, “to discuss regional developments and issues of mutual concern, including Iranian-enabled attacks by the Houthis against civilian targets in Saudi Arabia,” according to a readout of the call by the …

Tunisia’s Supreme Judicial Council, the independent judicial watchdog set up in 2016 to ensure the independence of the country’s judiciary, will be reformed and not dissolved, the country’s justice minister announced on Wednesday, days after President Kais Saied ordered it abolished. Justice Minister Leila Jaffel made the announcement during an …

The Perils of Macron’s Shuttle Diplomacy Just two months before he stands for reelection, French President Emmanuel Macron has launched a bold effort to mediate between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the West over the standoff at the border with Ukraine. After meeting with Putin for five hours on February …

Even though the “almost imminent” war with Ukraine has been dominating the media in Russia, another important issue has been debated almost constantly: the recent actions of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, a person with the unique status in Russia’s political elite of not being subject to any laws existing in …

Israel’s Defense Ministry has taken multiple steps to control the exportation of spyware, but the Pegasus affair continues to grow in Israel and abroad. Pegasus developer NSO has warned the Israeli financial newspaper Calcalist today that it will take legal action if the outlet does not back away from reports …

Israel strikes military targets in Damascus amid increased concerns over Syria-Russia ties. Syria’s air defense systems were activated at 1 a.m. local time on Feb. 9 (2300 GMT, Feb. 8) and Syrian state media reported that the “Israeli enemy” had allegedly carried out an aerial strike on Syria from an …

Kosovo’s almost decade-long resistance to the creation of an ‘association’ of Serb municipalities might be about to end, analysts say. It was barely four years ago that Albin Kurti was setting off tear gas in Kosovo’s parliament to obstruct the creation of an ‘association’ of Serb municipalities. Today, as prime …

The statement comes amid a standoff between the Kremlin and the West over the list of security demands Russian authorities made last year, which Moscow says are needed to defuse the crisis in Ukraine and lower tensions in Europe. The potential delivery of US THAAD anti-ballistic missile systems to Ukraine …

French President Emmanuel Macron is pursuing a poisoned peace plan, say critics in Europe, who fear the outcome of his talks this week with Russian President Vladimir Putin could be to strengthen Moscow’s hand in the crisis over Ukraine. A backlash is building to Macron’s visits this week to Moscow …

Top Russian commanders arrived in neighboring Belarus on Wednesday, set to oversee 30,000 Russian troops as they train for 10 days with the Belarusian military in the latest show of Moscow’s force along the Ukrainian border. Russia has moved two battalions of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems and numerous fighter jets …