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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted the third meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on the margins of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on April 17, 2026.

Analysis

Why Saudi Arabia, Egypt are wary of Turkey’s proposed 4-way defense pact with Pakistan

The proposed framework faces major hurdles and fault lines, ranging from NATO constraints to Israeli opposition and weak military integration.

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A view of Dubai Marina in Dubai on March 3, 2026.

UAE’s cash request tests US ties as Iran war strains Gulf financial muscle

Amid growing economic fallout from the regional war, Abu Dhabi’s bombshell request for a war-time financial lifeline from the United States is less about cash and more about clout — for now.

United Arab Emirates

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to journalists as he arrives for an informal meeting of the European Council in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026.

Why US, Israel are freezing France out of Lebanon talks

With talks between Israel and Lebanon being held in Washington, Paris still insists that it must be involved to balance possible American bias and to protect Beirut’s interests.

Israel

FILE PHOTO: President Donald Trump arrives from the Blue Room to speak about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington. Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Trump says he canceled US negotiators' trip to Pakistan for Iran talks, Fox News reports

Reuters

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan (L) disembarks from an airplane upon his arrival at the Rafic Hariri International Airport in Beirut on Jan. 23, 2025.

In Lebanon, Saudi Arabia pursues quiet diplomacy as Trump pushes Israel normalization

Saudi Arabia has been engaged in intense diplomacy in Lebanon in recent days, leading up to the extension of a ceasefire with Israel.

Lebanon

Latest News

Analysis

Araghchi’s Russia, regional tour tests path to breaking US-Iran deadlock

TEHRAN, IRAN - APRIL 23: A police officer stands holding a flag in Valiasr Square beneath a mural of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on April 23, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump announced an extension of the current ceasefire between his country and Iran, despite Iran declining to attend the latest proposed round of peace talks in Islamabad. The focus of the war has shifted largely to the Strait of Hormuz, where both sides are trying to assert control over the critical m

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Feature

Gazans show cautious hope ahead of first local elections in 20 years

An elections employee tapes a poster with instructions to voters ahead of the upcoming municipal elections in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on April 21, 2026.

By Rasha Abou Jalal

In Gaza City, reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Why did the Met Opera lose its Saudi funding deal?

A person walks past the closed Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center on Jan. 7, 2021, in New York City.

Saudi Arabia

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (R) holds a signed "Make America Great Again" hat while (L-R) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh Moawad listen to US President Donald Trump speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the US and Israel Ambassador to the US, at the White House in Washington, DC on April 23, 2026. US President Donald Trump met Lebanese and Israeli envoys at a new round of peace talks Thursday, with Beirut seeking a one-month extension of a

By Ben Caspit

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

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Yusra Qwaider, 97, is bedridden and helpless: within days, bulldozers from Jerusalem municipality will tear down the home she's lived in for over 50 years

East Jerusalem residents anguished as homes demolished to make way for biblical park

Agence France-Presse

The badge of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is embroidered on a polo shirt of an ICE employee, in Arlington, Texas, U.S. August 26, 2025. REUTERS/Shelby Tauber/File Photo

ICE detains family less than two days after court ordered their release, lawyers say

Reuters

Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, Special Envoy for Peace Missions listen as Vice President JD Vance speaks during a news conference after meeting with representatives from Pakistan and Iran, Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Islamabad, Pakistan. Jacquelyn Martin/Pool via REUTERS

US-Iran peace hopes fade as Trump scraps talks

Reuters

Israel says it will attack Hezbollah 'forcefully' as four killed in strikes on southern Lebanon

Reuters

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The AL-MONITOR Brief

Israel-Hezbollah clashes test US-backed Lebanon ceasefire

Elizabeth Hagedorn joins Adam Lucente

24 April, 2:41 PM ET

11:28

On the Middle East with Amberin Zaman

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei ‘running the show’ despite public absence, says academic Hassan Ahmadian

Hassan Ahmadian joins Amberin Zaman

23 April, 4:30 PM ET

27:34

The AL-MONITOR Brief

What to make of Pakistan’s increased defense ties with Saudi Arabia

Sabena Siddiqui joins Adam Lucente

21 April, 3:38 PM ET

14:11

Interviews

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Interview

UAE official says opening Hormuz integral to any Iran deal, describes infrastructure damage 'manageable'

Abdulla Balalaa, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability, United Arab Emirates

Interview

Minister warns aid cuts to Lebanon risk empowering Hezbollah

Haneen Sayyed

Lebanese Minister of Social Affairs

Interview

Despite Trump’s U-turns, US may still support Iran’s Kurds, says Komala’s Mohtadi

A armed Kurdish Peshmerga of the Komala party waves the Komala flag in a ceremony held in memory of Komala Martyrs' Day in Sidakan, Kurdistan Region of Iraq, on March 17, 2021.

Abdulla Mohtadi

Leader of Komala

Interview

Olmert: Only Israel-Lebanon deal can curb Hezbollah, occupation 'unviable'

Analysis

Stay a step ahead of your colleagues.

Analysis

Araghchi’s Russia, regional tour tests path to breaking US-Iran deadlock

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

By Ben Caspit

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Analysis

China gets around Iran blockade as Gulf courts Beijing

US forces patrol the Arabian Sea near M/V Touska on April 20, 2026, after firing upon the Iranian-flagged vessel. (Handout Photo by the U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

By Joyce Karam

Analysis

Why Saudi Arabia, Egypt are wary of Turkey’s proposed 4-way defense pact with Pakistan

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Joyce Karam, Randa Slim, Hamidreza Azizi, Hasan Alhasan

Iran War at One Month: Outlook and Implications

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sits across from Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy capitalizes on Iran war to ink security deal with Saudi Arabia

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Joe Snell appears on a street wearing a black jacket; in the frame next to it, a woman with blonde hair, glasses, and a black blazer appears on a laptop screen from a Zoom meeting.

French ISIS Member Convicted of Genocide Against Yazidis

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Ezgi Akin at Turkey's Kapikoy border crossing

AL-MONITOR's Ezgi Akin at Turkey-Iran Border Crossing

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Past

AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosts food security forum with Dr. Conrad Rein

On October 16, 2025, the AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosted Dr. Conrad Rein, Secretary of the Global Flagship Initiative for Food Security, alongside representatives from multilateral development banks and the private sector for a discussion on food security in the Middle East and Africa.

Washington, DC

October 16, 2025 11:00 EDT

Past

AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosts Digital Cooperation Organization Secretary-General Deemah AlYahya

On Sept. 21, 2025, the AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosted Deemah AlYahya, Secretary-General of the Digital Cooperation Organization, for a discussion on digital inclusion and economic empowerment in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

New York, NY

September 21, 2025 17:00 EDT

Past

Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Masrour Barzani at AL-Monitor Global Institute

AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosts Iraqi Kurdistan Prime Minister Masrour Barzani and US Energy Secretary Chris Wright

On May 22, 2025, the AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosted Prime Minister Masrour Barzani of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq and US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright in Washington DC to discuss the future of power and energy in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.

Washington, DC

May 22, 2025 10:30 EDT

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