The New Arab

December 31, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Jordan carries out airstrikes in Syria against drug smugglers

The Kingdom of Jordan conducted airstrikes in Syria that targeted drug smugglers between December 23 and 25. The strikes came days after reports at the Jordan News Agency, a state media...

December 8, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iraq investigation concludes drones struck Khor Mor gas field, Kurdistan Region requests air defenses

An Iraqi government investigation concluded that two drones attacked the Khor Mor gas field in the country’s autonomous Kurdistan Region on November 26. The attack on the vital gas...

November 3, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

PKK announcement of withdrawal from Turkey has ramifications for Iraq, Syria

On October 26, the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) said it was withdrawing its fighters from Turkey. The withdrawal is part of a peace process that has seen the group say it will disarm...

July 25, 2025 | Bridget Toomey |

US expresses concern over Iraqi legislation enshrining militias as independent security force

Iraq has revived legislation regarding the Popular Mobilization Authority (PMA), the government agency that oversees the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). The PMF, while legally an Iraqi government...

June 24, 2025 | Bridget Toomey, Joe Truzman, Bill Roggio

Iraqi military bases targeted in overnight strikes

As Israel and Iran exchanged final volleys of fire in the early hours of June 24 after US President Donald Trump brokered a still-uncertain ceasefire, unknown actors, strongly thought to be Iran-backed...

June 20, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iranian-backed militias threaten US amid rising tensions in Iraq over Iran-Israel conflict

The Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia in Iraq has threatened to target “US interests” in the Middle East if the US intervenes in the Israel-Iran conflict, according to several regional Arabic reports. The...

June 9, 2025 | David Daoud |

Lebanon Is Conceding to Hezbollah’s Post-War Reconstruction Demands

Hezbollah has rejected calls to disarm, and now, Lebanon is conceding its best — if not only — leverage. On June 3, Lebanese television station Al Jadeedrevealed that President Joseph Aoun appointed...

April 22, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Syria detains two members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad

The transitional Syrian government’s security forces detained two members of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), according to numerous media reports. As of April 22, the Syrian government has not released...

April 15, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Syrian government, SDF, and other factions move to end tensions over strategic dam

The transitional Syrian government and the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have reached an agreement regarding the handover of the strategic Tishrin Dam from SDF’s control to Damascus’s control....

April 8, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iraq’s Kataib Hezbollah militia denies report it will disarm

Kataib Hezbollah has denied a recent Reuters report that stated it was considering disarming, according to numerous reports quoting the group’s statement. Kataib Hezbollah is one of the Iranian-backed...

April 3, 2025 | Ahmad Sharawi |

Turkey reportedly plans to take control of airbases in Syria

Media reports indicate that Turkish forces are planning on deploying to the Tiyas Airbase, also known as the T4, and the Palmyra military airport in Syria’s Homs province—two sites recently...

March 9, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Israeli defense chief assesses military readiness along Israel’s border with Syria

The new chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, visited northern Israel on March 9 and met with IDF commanders along the border with Syria. According...

February 27, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Israel strikes southern Syria amid continued demands for demilitarization

On the evening of February 25, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out airstrikes in Syria. The strikes came two days after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for south Syria...

February 25, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Netanyahu calls for the demilitarization of southern Syria

On February 23, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for southern Syria to remain demilitarized in the wake of the collapse of the Bashar al Assad regime. “We will not allow forces from the...

February 13, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

US pushes countries to repatriate nationals in Syria’s displaced-persons camps

The US is urging countries to repatriate their nationals who reside in displaced-persons camps in eastern Syria. The potential change comes at a critical juncture in Syria after the fall of the Bashar...

February 3, 2025 | |

‘Not Accurate’: Jordan Denies Reports of Ordering Deportation of Notorious Terrorist Ahlam Tamimi

Parliament Speaker Denies Deportation Claims: Jordanian Parliament Speaker Ahmed al-Safadi denied February 2 reports that Jordan had demanded Hamas immediately transfer convicted...

January 8, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iran-Backed Militias Face Crisis After Assad’s Fall in Syria

Four years ago, in January 2020, a US drone carried out a strike in Iraq near Baghdad International Airport, killing Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force leader Qasem...

December 29, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Pro-Iran militias in Iraq may move away from Syria border

The point of the report is that the Iraqis want to show that the militias who played a role in Syria will now not just be in Iraq, but will be moved away from the border.

August 29, 2024 | |

Israel, Hamas Agree to Reduce Clashes in Gaza to Enable Polio Vaccine Rollout

Israel agreed to implement temporary humanitarian pauses in the fighting in Gaza to facilitate an upcoming polio vaccination campaign in the enclave. Citing a senior State Department...

July 31, 2024 | |

Israel SitRep: July 31, 2024

Today’s Issue: | Hamas Leader Ismail Haniyeh Assassinated in Tehran; Iranian Officials ‘in Utter Shock’ | Defense Minister on Elimination of Fuad Shukr: ‘No Place Out of Reach for Our Forces’...