Israeli-Palestinian conflict

This photograph taken on April 3, 2024, shows the House of Swiss Parliament under heavy clouds in Swiss capital Bern.

Switzerland to ban Hamas on May 15, allowing expulsions: What we know

Historically neutral Switzerland moved to ban Hamas after the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, mirroring actions taken by others on the continent.

Secretary General of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Hussein al-Sheikh, gestures as he arrives for the 32nd Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) Central Council session in Ramallah on April 23, 2025. Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on April 23 urged Hamas to free all hostages in Gaza, saying their captivity provided Israel with "excuses" to attack the territory, as rescuers recovered charred bodies from an Israeli strike. (Photo by Zain JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by

Analysis

Hussein Sheikh as PLO's first vice president: Palestinian reform or Abbas gesture?

Mahmoud Abbas' move to create a vice chairman position within the PLO may signal potential plans for succession, but the decision is clouded by the PLO's waning influence and uncertainty over Palestinian governance in Gaza.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) and French President Emmanuel Macron take part in a joint press conference at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on July 20, 2022. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / POOL / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Macron’s Palestine gamble: Can recognition plan jump-start peace talks?

French President Emmanuel Macron said he may recognize a Palestinian state in June when he will cohost a peace summit with Saudi Arabia, but has not committed to such a move.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Amid differences, Trump and Netanyahu hold call, discuss Iran nuclear talks

It was their first conversation since the prime minister's visit to the White House two weeks ago, when the US president announced direct talks with Iran.

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Analysis

As Witkoff hints US won't dismantle Iran nuclear program, Israel fears Trump may settle for 'bad deal'

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 07: U.S. President Donald Trump bids farewell to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he leaves the White House after a meeting on April 07, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump was meeting with Netanyahu to discuss ongoing efforts to release Israeli hostages from Gaza and newly imposed U.S. tariffs. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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

Israel arrests 6 over Turkey money transfer scheme: What we know

An Israeli military vehicle moves through a street in Balata refugee camp, east of Nablus, West Bank, Oct. 1, 2024.

Israel expands Gaza buffer zone to 20% as humanitarian situation deteriorates

Palestinians gather for a communal iftar.

UK lawyers accuse 10 nationals of war crimes in Gaza: What to know

London Gaza protest

Nasser al-Kidwa, former minister for foreign affairs of the Palestinian Authority, ex-member of the Fatah movement's central committee, and nephew of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, gives an interview in Gaza City on Sept. 24, 2022.

Exclusive

A way forward, ex-Palestinian FM Nasser Kidwa calls for Arab security presence in Gaza

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, former Palestinian Foreign Minister Nasser al-Kidwa said that Palestinians must be serious and practical in order to reach an agreement to end the war in Gaza and establish a Palestinian state.

Daoud Kuttab

By Daoud Kuttab

In Amman, reporting on Palestinian politics

The flags of Israel, United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain are projected on the ramparts of Jerusalem's Old City on September 15, 2020 in a show of support for Israeli normalisation deals with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed landmark accords normalizing the Jewish state's relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as part of a peace push brokered by US President Donald Trump. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty

Analysis

Israel-UAE trade to hit $3.3B in 2024 as wars in Lebanon, Gaza continue

Despite a growing Arab public backlash against economic ties with Israel, and politically strained ties between the UAE and Israel since the Gaza war, bilateral trade has continued across the technology, tourism and agriculture sectors.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

TOPSHOT - US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and former US Representative Liz Cheney (R) arrive for a campaign event at Ripon College in Ripon, Wisconsin, October 3, 2024. (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / AFP) (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Arab Americans are evenly split between Harris and Trump. Will it matter?

As the US weighs its response to escalations in the Middle East, a new poll finds Arab American support for Harris and Trump virtually tied.

Megan Mineiro

By Megan Mineiro

In Washington, DC, reporting on US Congress

People inspect the remains of an Iranian missile that fell into the home of a Bedouin family in the Negev desert near Arad on October 2, 2024, in the aftermath of an overnight Iranian missile attack on Israel.

Analysis

As world awaits Israel's response to Iran, can US help stave off ‘all-out war’?

Benjamin Netanyahu mulls four options to respond to Iran, the US moves goalposts on containing the war, the Gulf looks for assurances on oil assets and more.

Andrew Parasiliti

By Andrew Parasiliti

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, national security

In this handout image provided by the Iranian Leader's Press Office, Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei (C) is seen alongside Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian (L), Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (2L), Judiciary Chief Mohsen Ejeie (2R) and Hezbollah representative in Iran Abdallah Safieddine reading the Koran during the Friday prayer ceremony on October 04, 2024 in Tehran, Iran.

Analysis

Iran's Khamenei seeks to navigate between defiance, de-escalation after missile salvo

In his first public Friday sermon in over four years, the Iranian leader demonstrated defiance yet seemed keen to avoid further escalation by signaling to Israel that Tehran has no appetite for a direct confrontation and prefers its regional proxies to wage the limited battle on its behalf.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian meets with regional leaders at the Asia Cooperation Dialogue in Doha on Oct. 2, 2024.

As Iran, Israel lurch toward war, Saudi Arabia seeks rapprochement with Tehran

Riyadh seeks assurances from Tehran that energy infrastructure in the region is spared amid talks of Israeli retaliation targeting Iranian oil and gas assets.

An armed man sits in front of a car damaged in a reported Israeli strike in Damascus on Oct. 2, 2024.

As Israel steps up attacks on Syria, is Bashar al-Assad next?

While targeting Assad and his brother would destabilize the regime and potentially deprive Hezbollah of its rear base, an Israeli source has denied any such plans.

Smoke billows at the site of Israeli airstrikes in a south Beirut suburb, early on Oct. 2, 2024.

Analysis

Biden moves goalposts on containing war as Israel invades Lebanon

Preventing the spread of war between Israel and militant groups to fronts beyond Gaza has been the Biden administration’s top Middle East policy priority for nearly a year, but Israeli forces have now pushed into Lebanon with Washington’s green light.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

A man walks across from a raging fire at oil storage tanks a day after Israeli strikes on the port of Yemen's Houthi-held city of Hodeidah on July 21, 2024.

Analysis

How an Israeli retaliation on Iran could impact Gulf energy flow

Energy facilities along the east and west of the Arabian Peninsula brace for possible Israeli attacks against Iran and its proxies.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

A man checks the damages at a restaurant in the aftermath of an Iranian missile attack on Israel, on Oct. 2, 2024 in Tel Aviv.

Damage from Iran’s attack on Israel: What we know

Some Israeli bases sustained light damage, according to reports, while Iran hailed the attack as a success.

Defence Secretary John Healey visits RAF Akrotiri, during a visit to Cyprus to meet troops as the government steps up efforts for a potential evacuation of Lebanon.

US, China, France, others weigh Lebanon evacuation plans for nationals

The situation in Lebanon and the region has quickly deteriorated, prompting several countries to come up with plans to secure the safe evacuation of their nationals from the country.

A Middle East Airlines commercial aircraft taking off from Beirut's international airport flies amid smoke billowing above the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs, in the aftermath of overnight Israeli airstrikes, on Sept. 28,2024.

Middle East airlines alter, axe flights following Iran missile attack on Israel

Late on Tuesday, Iran launched more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel in what it said was in retaliation for last Friday’s assassination of Hassan Nasrallah, the chief of Lebanon-based militia Hezbollah.