Interviews

Exclusive conversations with Al-Monitor.

Ami Ayalon, a candidate for the Israeli Labor Party leadership, arrives to vote in the second and decisive round of party primaries on June 12, 2007, in Geva Carmel, northern Israel.

Ayalon: Netanyahu firing Shin Bet chief to shield inner circle from Qatar probe

Secretary-General of Fatah’s Central Committee Jibril Rajoub looks on during an interview in Paris on July 27, 2024.

Interview

Senior Palestinian official Jibril Rajoub calls for 'Marshall-like plan' to rebuild Gaza

Potential unity with Hamas represents a key dilemma for the Ramallah-based government, which would lose legitimacy with the Western world but gain legitimacy with the Palestinian people.

Jibril Rajoub

Jibril Rajoub

Fatah Central Committee Secretary-General

Syrian Democratic Forces commander-in-chief Mazloum Abdi speaks during an interview with AFP in Syria's northeastern city of Hasakeh on Oct. 26, 2024.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander: Turkey-PKK talks doomed if aimed at collapsing Kurds' self rule in Syria

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, the commander in chief of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazlum Kobane, denied PKK assailants who attacked a defense complex in Ankara had come from northeastern Syria.

Mazlum Kobane

Mazlum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Lieutenant General Lucas Schreurs of the Netherlands assumes command of the NATO Mission to Iraq (NMI) in Baghdad, May 24, 2024.

Interview

NATO deepens engagement with Iraq as US prepares to withdraw

In an exclusive Al-Monitor interview, Lucas Schreurs, commander of NATO Mission Iraq, explains the scope of his outfit's mandate.

Commander of NATO Mission Iraq

Commander of NATO Mission Iraq

Lucas Schreurs

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani speaks during the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on September 26, 2024.

Interview

Iraq's Sudani: US troop withdrawal does not mean end of security relationship

At an event hosted by Al-Monitor and the US Chamber of Commerce, the prime minister discussed Iraq’s plan to achieve energy independence by 2030 and his desire to drawdown the US military presence in the country.

Mohammed Shia al-Sudani

Mohammed Shia al-Sudani

Prime Minister of Iraq

Turkish-backed Syrian fighters from the Turkish-backed 1st Corps of the Samarkand Brigade take part in a military parade in the opposition-held Afrin region of northern Syria, on Nov. 23, 2022.

Interview

Syrian-Kurdish KNC leader decries abuse by Turkey-backed Sunni factions in Afrin

Kurdish National Council President Sleiman Oso told Al-Monitor that dialogue with his group's rivals, the PYD, is still possible.

Sleiman Oso

Sleiman Oso

Kurdish National Council President

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, attends the IAEA's Board of Governors meeting at the agency's headquarters in Vienna, Austria, on Sept. 9, 2024.

Interview

IAEA chief: Iran's nuclear program on 'turbocharge' without deal

Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, said he expects to discuss Iran's stonewalling an investigation into its past nuclear activities when he meets with President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran next month.

Rafael Grossi

Rafael Grossi

IAEA Director General

Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide holds a joint press conference with his Spanish and Irish counterparts at the the Permanent Representation of Spain to the European Union in Brussels on May 27, 2024.

Interview

Norway's FM: Our problem is not with Israelis but with Netanyahu's cabinet

In interview with Al-Monitor on the occasion of the Madrid conference for Palestinian statehood, Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide says he is in "deep disagreement with the Netanyahu government."

Espen Barth Eide

Espen Barth Eide

Norwegian Foreign Minister

Police officers stand guard outside Libya's Central Bank headquarters in Tripoli on Aug. 27, 2024.

Interview

From Turkey, exiled Libyan Central Bank governor decries 'coup d'etat'

Governor Sadiq al-Kabir spoke exclusively to Al-Monitor after he and other senior officials at the Libyan Central Bank fled to Istanbul at the end of last month, as militias linked to Libya's internationally recognized government threatened them.

Sadiq al-Kabir

Sadiq al-Kabir

Governor of the Central Bank of Libya

A man walks out of Bank Station, in The City financial district, in central London, on June 12, 2024. (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL / AFP) (Photo by BENJAMIN CREMEL/AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

Nomo Bank sees increasing appetite for Islamic investments, ETFs

Paul Szumilewicz, chief revenue officer at UK-based Nomo Bank, said there is a growing demand from the bank’s clients to invest in exchange-traded funds (ETFs) — a pre-defined group of bonds, stocks or commodities poured into a fund and listed on the stock exchange.

Paul Szumilewicz

Paul Szumilewicz

Nomo Bank Chief Revenue Officer

US Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign event at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, on Aug. 9, 2024.

Interview

Harris replacing Biden on ticket gave Democrats expected bump from Arab Americans

Abed Ayoub, Arab American ADC grassroots leader, discusses why the Harris bump was expected, whether Jill Stein could be a spoiler in Michigan, why Tim Walz was a positive VP pick, and more.

Abed Ayoub

Abed Ayoub

National Executive Director of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee

The protest movement leader Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan participates during the rally demanding the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's resignation over land transfer to neighboring Azerbaijan, outside the government building in central Yerevan on May 30, 2024.

Interview

Archbishop seeking Armenian PM’s ouster over concessions to Turkey, Azerbaijan down but not out

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Bagrat Galstanyan blasted Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for capitulating to Azerbaijan and claims the premier was lying to the Armenian people as to his true plans.

Bagrat Galstanyan

Bagrat Galstanyan

Armenian Archbishop

BERLIN, GERMANY - DECEMBER 15: Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib speaks to the media following talks with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on December 15, 2023 in Berlin, Germany. The two diplomats discussed mutual measures to prevent the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict from expanding to other regions, among other issues. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Interview

Lebanon FM warns of 'devastating’ regional war if Israel escalates campaign against Hezbollah

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Lebanon's top diplomat, Abdallah Bou Habib, adds that security in the south ultimately depends on a strong Lebanese army and an agreement on the border – not war.

Abdallah Bou Habib

Abdallah Bou Habib

Lebanon Foreign Minister

AL-MONITOR IS READ BY