A thaw in Turkey’s relations with Egypt? Gulf Cooperation Council reconciliation may have set in motion Ankara’s desire for a reset with Cairo. Egypt
Biden's deputy secretary of state nominee OK'd by Senate committee The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved moving Wendy Sherman's nomination to the full Senate, with some Democrats and Republicans who had disagreed with her on the Iran deal voting to confirm her anyway. United States
Biden's CIA nominee stresses China over Iran during Senate hearing Ambassador William Burns said that China is the biggest challenge for the United States, but that Iran and Russia cannot be overlooked. Regional
Post-COVID Mideast economies look to the Gulf and Egypt The region took a hard hit from the pandemic, and it’s far from over, but Egypt and Saudi Arabia are managing better than expected. Regional
Shimon Peres outlines his vision for Israel, the region in 2048 Former President Shimon Peres argues that despite the current dire situation, Israel's future is not bleak. Palestine
Israel should support Syrian 'Druzistan' In an interview with Al-Monitor, former Cabinet secretary Zvi Hauser argues that if and when the Assad regime falls in Syria, Israel should support self-rule by the local Druze population. Israel
US, Russia face off in Middle East US-Russian relations involving the Middle East could be affected by the new US National Military Strategy, which sees a low but growing risk of an "interstate war with a major power." Russia
Khamenei adviser: IS warned about Iraq shrines The military adviser for Iran's supreme leader said the Islamic State was warned about approaching Shiite shrines. Regional
Did Moscow’s 'air defense' diplomacy land Saudi deal? After decades of disappointment, it appears Russia might finally become an arms supplier to Saudi Arabia, after also reaching deals with Iran and Egypt. Gulf
Will new Turkish government pursue Armenian opening? Opening the Turkey-Armenia border would benefit both countries economically, but ongoing tensions and the results of the June 7 elections in Turkey do not bode well for such a move. Turkey
How Morocco plans to contain its Salafists Several prominent Salafists in Morocco have surprised the nation by joining mainstream political parties. Syria
Extremist groups transform concept of jihad Extremist Islamic groups have transformed the spiritual concept of jihad, including turning it into a military instrument for implementing political agendas. Iraq
Overhauling Iraq’s intelligence services The political quota system and subsequent appointment of incompetent intelligence services leaders have severely hampered Iraq's ability to fight terrorist forces despite an abundance of confrontations and episodes from which to learn. Iraq
Hamas working to lower tensions in Lebanese camps With security tensions escalating in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon, Hamas and Lebanese officials are discussing ways to avoid the camps being turned into arenas for settling regional scores. Palestine
Russia and the nuclear-free zone While Russia blames the US, the UK and Canada for not supporting a recent international agreement on a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East, Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy firm is said to be exploring the options of providing Saudi Arabia with a nuclear power plant. Russia
Al-Qaeda theorist calls for infiltrating political systems Abdullah bin Mohammed, an al-Qaeda theorist, believes jihadists need to adopt a new strategy of attaining legitimacy by rebranding themselves and working from within political systems, an idea that might already have taken root in Syria. Iraq