Armed Militias and Extremist Groups

Edan Alexander

Breaking | Last Updated: May 12, 2025, 12:56 pm

Edan Alexander, last American hostage, released from Gaza after Trump-Hamas deal

American envoys are waiting to meet with released hostage Edan Alexander, released from Hamas captivity in a deal negotiated between Washington and Hamas without Israel involved.

A sign showing the face of Israeli-US hostage Edan Alexander (C), who has been held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, is pictured among portraits of other Israelis held captive in Gaza at Hostages Square, Tel Aviv, May 12, 2025.

Trump-Hamas deal secures release of Edan Alexander: What to know

Preparations have started for the release of Israeli-US hostage Edan Alexander from Hamas captivity in Gaza, though the group did not specify yet the exact hour.

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 06: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a swearing-in ceremony for Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff in the Oval Office at the White House on May 06, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump provided an update on the Houthi conflict in the Middle East. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Analysis

Why Trump agreed to ceasefire with Houthis that ignores Israel, root causes

Despite heavy bombardment, the Houthis retained significant missile and drone capabilities, adapted tactically, inflicted a $1 billion cost on US and emerged more strategically valuable to Iran.

Francesco Schiavi

By Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa upon arriving for a meeting at the Elysee presidential palace, Paris, May 7, 2025.

Exclusive

Skepticism shrouds Syria-Israel indirect talks with bets on Sharaa

Sources told Al-Monitor that shortly after Sharaa visited the UAE last month, an unofficial meeting between Syrian and Israeli delegations took place at an Abu Dhabi villa owned by an Emirati government official.

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

Latest News

Israel warns citizens traveling to Switzerland of Eurovision protests

Martin Sylvest Andersen/Getty Images

Macron after meeting Sharaa: Lifting Syria sanctions 'in everyone's interest'

Tom Nicholson/Getty Images

Analysis

As Trump heads to Gulf, Israeli security cabinet split over plan to 'conquer' Gaza

Israeli army tanks are deployed at a position near Israel's border with the Gaza Strip, on May 5, 2025. Israel was issuing orders to call up tens of thousands of reservists ahead of an expanded offensive in Gaza, Israeli media reported on May 3, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked truce mediator Qatar. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

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

Israel pounds Yemen after Houthi missile strike near Tel Aviv airport: What to know

JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

Two bank employees count dollars and Iraqi dinars in Baghdad on Sept. 28, 2000.

Why Iraq's dinar is trading below official dollar rate amid new restrictions

A top US official visited Iraqi officials last week to discuss countering illicit finance and strengthening Iraq’s financial system.

Fighters lift flags of Iraq and paramilitary groups, including al-Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah.

Analysis

Why did Kataib Hezbollah suspend attacks on US forces in Iraq?

The Iraqi militia’s announcement was the result of Iranian influence and Iraqi political developments, analysts say, ahead of a looming US military response to the killing of American soldiers in Jordan.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Defense Department spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder holds a press conference at the Pentagon on Aug. 31, 2023, in Arlington, Virginia.

Pentagon: US retaliation coming despite Kataib Hezbollah vow to suspend attacks

President Joe Biden on Tuesday said he had already decided how to respond to Sunday's drone attack at the Tower 22 base in Jordan, the deadliest attack on US forces since the 2021 Abbey Gate bombing in Kabul.

A man lifts a placard depicting slain Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani (L) and Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, as fighters bearing flags of Iraq and paramilitary groups, including al-Nujaba and Kataib Hezbollah, march during a funeral in Baghdad for five militants killed a day earlier in a US strike in northern Iraq, on December 4, 2023. Dozens of mourners gathered on December 4 for the funeral of the five militants killed the previous day near Kirkuk in what a US military official described as a "s

Breaking | Last Updated: January 31, 2024, 8:12 am

Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah announces suspension of attacks against US forces

The decision follows a deadly strike on US forces in Jordan and ahead of anticipated retaliation by Washington.

A US soldier takes part in the "Eager Lion" multinational military manuever, in the Al-Zarqa governorate, some 85km northeast of the Jordanian capital Amman, on Sept. 14, 2022.

After Jordan drone attack, US has few options to de-escalate with Iran

The Biden White House faces increasing pressure to respond to the deadliest attack on the US military since 2021 as Israel's war in Gaza thrusts some 30,000 troops in the Middle East closer toward war with Iran and its proxies.

OZAN KOSE/Afp/AFP via Getty Images

What does ISIS' church attack in Turkey say about rise of Tajikistani militants?

The shooting at a church in Istanbul marks the first Islamic State attack in Turkey since 2017 as the extremist offshoot ISIS-K seeks to expand.

Security and emergency personnel search the rubble of a building destroyed in a reported Israeli strike in Damascus on January 20, 2024. An Israeli strike on Damascus killed the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' intelligence chief for Syria and three other Guards members on January 20, Iran said, in an attack that tore into a multi-storey residential building. (Photo by Louai BESHARA / AFP) (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel carries out strikes in Syria targeting south Damascus: government

A number of Iranian IRGC members have been killed in strikes in Syria attributed to Israel in recent weeks.

David C. Mercil/US Navy/Getty Images

Two US Navy SEALs presumed dead after anti-Houthi raid: Pentagon

The two special operators are presumed dead after attempting to board a stateless boat off Somalia earlier this month.

Pakistan activists protest in Lahore on Jan. 19, 2024, after Iran launched an airstrike in Pakistan's southwest Baluchistan province.

What's behind Turkey's muted response to Iran-Pakistan escalation?

Two considerations stand out in Turkey’s muted response to recent Iranian strikes in Iraq and Pakistan.

The second stealth guided missile destroyer of Project 15B of the Indian navy is seen docked at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai.

India secures trade, power with new naval role in Middle East

Without aligning directly with the US-led mission against the Houthis in Yemen, the Indian navy's independent operations set a precedent for India's evolving military posture in West Asia and mark a departure from its traditional strategic restraint.

Mohammed Soliman

By Mohammed Soliman

In Washington, DC, reporting on Gulf politics

Pakistani police officers stand guard outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad on Jan. 18, 2024. Pakistan said on Jan. 18 it carried out strikes against militant targets in Iran, after Tehran launched attacks on Pakistani territory earlier this week.

How Iran miscalculated its gamble in the Pakistan strike

With its brief attack on Pakistani territory, Iran appears to have shot itself in the foot, inadvertently playing into the Western argument that Tehran is a destabilizing state in an already volatile region.

A Baloch militant (L) hands over his gun and surrenders to Baluchistan province Chief Minister Sardar Sanaullah Khan Zehri (R) in Quetta on April 21, 2017. Around 500 Baloch rebel militants on April 21 surrendered to Pakistan's government as Islamabad pursues its development agenda linked to the ambitious China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the southwest province. / AFP PHOTO / BANARAS KHAN (Photo credit should read BANARAS KHAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Across Baluchistan, who are the groups targeted by Iran, Pakistan?

The cross-border strikes have raised questions about the separatist groups operating in the border area between Iran and Pakistan.