Recent Posts

Iran Update, May 15, 2025

An Iranian vessel may have harassed a commercial vessel in the Persian Gulf on May 10. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that a small craft collided with a merchant vessel and attempted to collide with other vessels about 80 nautical miles northwest of Jebel Ali, the United …

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Spotlight on Syria May 7 – 14 May, 2025

The president of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa (Abu Muhammad al-Julani), confirmed that indirectcontacts were being held by Syria and Israel to achieve calm and prevent escalation, and heexpressed commitment to the 1974 disengagement agreement. IDF forces continued operatingin the buffer zone in the Golan Heights and supporting the Druze in southern …

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Spotlight on Iran and the Shiite Axis

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei re-emphasized the importance of the Palestinian issuefor the Muslim world and called for not ignoring the “crimes of the Zionist regime.” The Iranianforeign minister emphasized in discussions with his Arab counterparts the need forcooperation between regional countries to stop Israel’s attacks in the Gaza Strip. …

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Iran Update, May 16, 2025

Israel targeted Houthi-controlled al Salif and Hudaydah ports on May 16 as part of an Israeli campaign to disrupt the Houthi ability to enable attacks targeting Israel.[i] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated after the airstrikes on May 16 that Israel will continue to strike Houthi targets “including [Houthi] leadership …

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Reading Tripoli’s Tea Leaves

Municipal elections in the city may be a harbinger of developments in the Sunni community. In a Lebanon teetering between old patterns and new possibilities, a local election in one of the country’s most marginalized cities might seem like a footnote. It isn’t. The May 11, 2025, municipal elections in …

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Edi Rama tightens grip on Albania

In the May 11 parliamentary elections, Socialist Prime Minister Edi Rama secured another decisive victory, reinforcing a dominance built over three consecutive terms. His machinery of consensus is stronger than ever, but the lines between the state and the party appear increasingly blurred After three consecutive terms in power, Albanian …

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