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Saudi Arabia

February 21, 2026

Riyadh 9:09 am

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Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images

How did FIFA become part of Trump’s Gaza reconstruction effort?

FIFA signed a deal on Thursday that marks the global soccer association's most significant postwar intervention in the Middle East yet.

Outbound passengers arrive with their luggage at the Emirates check-in counter at the Iranian capital Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport, on July 17, 2020.

Airlines cancel flights amid fears of US military action in Iran: What to know

Arrivals at Tehran's airport this week mainly indicated Iranian and Middle Eastern airlines were flying to the Persian country amid heightened tensions with Washington.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, US President Donald Trump's nominee to be ambassador to Israel, testifies during his Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, March 25, 2025.

Interview

Huckabee confirms US-Israel alignment on Iran, says Hamas will disarm 'sooner or later'

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Al-Monitor in an interview that the 2025 strike on Iranian nuclear sites was only a preview of what the US military is capable of.

Latest News

Unfazed by Saudi pressure, UAE unveils solar investment in Somaliland

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

UAE’s MBZ appears with Lindsey Graham, dismissing health rumors

UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan today received Lindsey Graham, member of the US Senate. During the meeting at Qasr Al Shati in Abu Dhabi,

United Arab Emirates

Saudi-UAE rift complicates Israel's counter-Iran efforts, normalization

This photograph taken on Jan. 20, 2026, organized by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government, shows Saudi-backed Yemeni forces in the city of Mukalla in Yemen's coastal southern Hadhramaut province.

Analysis

Turkey courts Saudi Arabia on Kaan, but stealth fighter deal faces hurdles

Photo of a waving Turkish flag in the sky with a jet flyover behind, and a crowd below holding flags, captured on Izmir's liberation anniversary.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

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

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Francesco Schiavi

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

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser speaks during the annual Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh on Oct. 29, 2024.

Saudi Aramco expects oil demand to average 104.5 million bpd in 2024

The CEO of the world's largest oil-exporting company sounded more bullish on oil demand compared with OPEC and the IEA.

BEIJING, CHINA - MARCH 17: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (2nd-L) meets with Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (2nd-R) at Great Hall of the People on March 17, 2017 in Beijing, China. At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, King Salman Bin Abdul-Aaziz Al-Saud of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will pay a state visit to China from March 15 to 18, 2017. (Photo by Lintao Zhang - Pool/Getty Images)

In first, Saudi Arabia to begin trading China-focused ETF: What we know

The ETF, which will begin trading on the Saudi Stock Exchange, has raised more than $1.2 billion.

FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images

Saudi's PIF downsizes foreign investment, turns to AI, domestic priorities

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund is looking to invest in tourism, real estate and sustainability as its Vision 2030 deadline draws closer.

Attendees arrive for the yearly Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Oct. 24, 2023.

Saudi Arabia pushes for Africa debt relief as private investments set to reach $25B

Saudi Arabia is pushing for debt relief for African nations burdened with more than $1 trillion in liabilities.

A Saudi navy ship is pictured docked at King Faisal navy base in Jeddah before the departure of a team to Port Sudan to help with the evacuation efforts of people fleeing Sudan, on April 29, 2023. - Warplanes on bombing raids drew heavy anti-aircraft fire over Khartoum as fierce fighting between Sudan's army and paramilitaries entered a third week, despite a renewed truce. (Photo by Fayez NURELDINE / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Saudi naval ambitions get a boost after joint Greece, France exercise

The kingdom is modernizing its navy under Vision 2030, replacing outdated vessels while seeking to diversify its military partnerships beyond traditional US reliance — but operational gaps remain.

Francesco Schiavi

By Francesco Schiavi

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

Attendees take part in the annual Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, Oct. 25, 2022.

What to expect at Saudi Arabia's eighth Davos in the Desert

This year's Future Investment Initiative focuses on tech, energy and investment as Saudi Arabia steps up efforts to diversify its economy away from hydrocarbons.

US President Joe Biden and UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan walk to the Oval Office for a meeting, where the two discussed AI and ending the war in Gaza on Sept. 23, 2024, in Washington.

Analysis

How new US AI framework could impact UAE, Saudi ambitions

The framework comes as the UAE has deepened its AI ties with the United States in recent months over a series of visits to Washington by senior Emirati officials.

Samuel Wendel

By Jack Dutton , Samuel Wendel

Attendees take part in the annual Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh on October 25, 2022. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

What to make of Saudi Arabia's $96B in foreign direct investment in 2023

Driving foreign investment into key sectors is part of Saudi Arabia's efforts to diversify away from an oil-dependent revenue model.

An Iranian Navy warship takes part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019.

Iran eyes naval drills with Saudi Arabia, Egypt amid simmering regional tensions

The planned drills come on the heels of a recent joint exercise that Iran hosted in the Indian Ocean, as Tehran seeks to counterbalance Israel and curb US influence in the region's strategic waters.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin meets with the heads of leading media outlets from the BRICS member countries in the Moscow region, on Oct. 18, 2024.

Russia's BRICS summit: Gulf states seek influence as Iran, UAE debut as members

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince will not be in attendance but has sent his foreign minister. Expansion of the group and adoption of a new currency are on the three-day agenda.

United Arab Emirates

Palestinian security forces close off the entrance of a building housing the offices of Saudi broadcasters MBC, Al-Arabiya, and Al-Hadath in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on October 21, 2024, during a protest calling for their closure against the backdrop of their descriptions of Hamas leadership which the protesters reject. (Photo by Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP) (Photo by JAAFAR ASHTIYEH/AFP via Getty Images)

What's behind Algeria's suspension of Saudi-owned Al Arabiya?

Algeria suspended the press license of Saudi state-owned Al Arabiya news channel just one day after Iraq suspended the license of Saudi-owned TV channel MBC.

JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images

Gulf governments silent as Iran, proxies mourn Hamas' Yahya Sinwar

Regional governments have not commented on Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar’s killing by Israeli forces in Gaza, but Iran and its proxy groups mourned his death, vowing that the resistance against Israel will continue.