On June 3 in Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi met with delegations from Asaib Ahl al Haq and Kataib Imam Ali, two Iranian-backed Iraqi militias. He thanked the group’s leadership for supporting...
Promises from Iran-backed militias in Iraq can never be taken at face value. Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH), an Iran-backed militia in Iraq designated by Washington as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO)...
The Lebanese government, which has voted three times to disarm Hezbollah since the summer of 2025, now faces an inescapable choice. If the cabinet decides to finish off Iran’s proxy militia, Israel will...
On May 27, Muqtada al Sadr, the well-known Iraqi Shiite cleric and popular leader, announced the dissolution of his militia, Saraya al Salam (the Peace Brigades). “It has become necessary for...
Iran carried out a new attack on a Kurdish Iranian opposition group in northern Iraq on the evening of May 25, one of several over the past weeks that Kurdish groups have blamed on Iran. Despite...
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates said that recent drone attacks against their countries originated from Iraq. “The United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday that six drones had been launched...
After six months of internal discord against the background of competing foreign interests, Iraq has formed its new government, ending the stasis that followed the November 2025 election. Prime Minister...
Israel’s Alma Center is wrong about Lebanon’s Shia population. In a recent article, the institute claimed that Hezbollah’s Shia constituency is a “captive audience” chained by dependency, fear,...
On May 12, the United Arab Emirates’ official news agency, Emirates News Agency, announced that Abu Dhabi had designated 16 Lebanese nationals and five Lebanon-based entities to its terrorism...
With a final offer – and a final warning – to Tehran
Iraqi politicians and security forces have responded to a May 9 report in The Wall Street Journal claiming that “Israel built and defended a secret Iran war base in Iraq.” The news provoked...
Iran-backed militias work through politicians, front companies, and oil smugglers to siphon billions of dollars from the Iraqi people each year in schemes to enrich both themselves and the Islamic Republic...
A security zone in southern Lebanon could help Israel degrade Hezbollah faster than it can recover.
That’s why they’re so difficult to deter or constrain
Iraq’s latest prime minister designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is an embodiment of the corruption that has held Iraq hostage for over 20 years.
More than five months after its national elections, Iraq may finally have a new leader. On April 27, Iraqi President Nizar Amedi named Ali al-Zaidi,...
Washington is working on establishing a system “where vetted units within the Lebanese Armed Forces [LAF] have the training, the equipment, and the capability to go after elements of Hezbollah and dismantle...
The Coordination Framework (CF), a coalition of Iraqi Shiite parties that is the largest bloc in the country’s parliament, announced on April 27 that it is nominating Ali al Zaidi for prime...
Hezbollah is not just Israel’s enemy
Iraqi Shiite political parties are seeking to appoint a new prime minister amid significant internal and external pressures. The Coordination Framework (CF), a coalition of Iraqi Shiite parties, was working...