Reuters

January 8, 2025 | Natalie Ecanow |

Syria’s New Authorities Vow to Shutter Captagon Trade

Narcotraffickers who attempted to flood Jordan with over 27 million illicit captagon pills in 2024 may now be out of business. “When it comes to captagon and drug smuggling, we promise it is over and...

December 17, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

New Syrian transitional government meets with European, UN officials

The EU is also moving to reopen its mission in Syria, according to EU Foreign Policy head Kaja Kallas, France 24 reported.

December 16, 2024 | Natalie Ecanow, Ahmad Sharawi

A new window into the Assad regime’s narcotrafficking operations

In the wake of Bashar al-Assad’s ouster, footage began circulating that allegedly showed production hubs in Syria for the amphetamine-like drug fenethylline, now commonly known by one of its former brand...

December 13, 2024 | Janatan Sayeh |

Iran never gave up on Assad; it simply failed to protect him

The sudden collapse of the Islamic Republic’s closest state-actor ally stunned the world, as Syrian rebels captured Damascus just 11 days after launching a new wave of insurgency. To deflect this humiliating...

December 9, 2024 | |

Israel Denies Qatari Report That Hamas Provided Hostage Release List

Reports of Hamas Presenting Hostage List False: Israel denied a December 9 report that the Iran-backed terrorist organization Hamas had provided a list of Israeli hostages seized...

December 7, 2024 | David Daoud |

Naim Qassem on Hezbollah’s post-ceasefire posture

Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem delivered two speeches—one on November 29 and another on December 5— after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that took effect on November 27. Most...

December 5, 2024 | Mariam Wahba |

Egyptian Satirist Jailed Over Political Cartoons, Spotlighting Cairo’s Abuse of Pretrial Detention

The case of Egyptian translator and political cartoonist Ashraf Omar casts a spotlight on Egypt’s abuse of pretrial detention laws, which enable the state to incarcerate detainees without evidence or...

December 4, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iran faces setbacks in Syria as proxies weaken, struggles to support Assad regime

Iran is clearly trying to shore up support for the Assad regime after the regime suffered setbacks at the hands of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an opposition group.

December 2, 2024 | Janatan Sayeh |

Tehran on the back foot: Proxy struggles and Assad’s dilemma

Just a year ago, the Islamic Republic was on the offensive as it used its proxies to launch coordinated attacks on Israel from six fronts to demonstrate the extent of its regional influence. Now, the momentum...

November 21, 2024 | Dmitriy Shapiro |

Eyeing Turkey, Greece Seeks Deal With Israel to Develop Iron Dome-like Air Defenses

Israeli military technology has showcased its effectiveness during more than a year of conflict, and other countries have taken notice. On November 14, Greek officials revealed that Athens was seeking...

November 21, 2024 | Jack Burnham |

Chinese Support for Russia Gives U.S. Opening to Seek EU Collaboration on Countering Beijing

In the wake of a September report that Russia is producing long-range attack drones in China for use in its aggression against Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated on November 18 that he would...

November 9, 2024 | Natalie Ecanow |

Qatar Will Reportedly Oust Hamas After Months of Failed Gaza Hostage Talks

October 29, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iran’s military budget is growing: What does that mean for the Middle East?

Iran wants to increase the accuracy of its range and the overall number of its ballistic missiles.

October 28, 2024 | |

Egypt Proposes Two-Day Gaza Ceasefire Deal

Egypt proposed a two-day Gaza ceasefire on October 27 that would see Hamas free four hostages in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails...

October 28, 2024 | Andrea Stricker |

Israel Likely Eliminated Key Iranian Weaponization Site

Israel likely destroyed an Iranian site that played a key role in the Islamic Republic’s past nuclear weapons program, known as the Amad Plan. The potential elimination of the facility sends a strong...

October 26, 2024 | |

Russia Provides Targeting Support to Houthi Attacks on Commercial Shipping

Latest Developments Houthi rebels in Yemen are receiving intelligence from Russia, assisting the Iran-backed terrorist group in targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea, The Wall Street Journal...

October 20, 2024 | Behnam Ben Taleblu, John Hardie

Iran’s Ballistic Missile Gift to Russia—And Vice Versa

Iran's missile transfers to Russia could make its missile program a more potent threat to U.S. forces, Israel, and other targets in the Middle East.

October 15, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman in Cairo to discuss Gaza, Lebanon, Red Sea

Historically, Saudi Arabia and Egypt were the two pillars of stability for the region, and both are friends of the United States.

October 11, 2024 | Ben Cohen |

War fatigue settles among Palestinians

For the first time, the majority of Gaza civilians—some 57%—now believe that the Oct. 7 atrocities were a mistake, a recent survey reveals.

October 10, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Will Hezbollah and Palestinian factions be open to a ceasefire?

Iranian state media presents a more moderate tone, reflecting on Israel's ceasefire conditions with Lebanon, amid concerns about Hezbollah's setbacks.