Middle EastAnalysis: Five Key Failures in the US-Israel Conduct of the Iran War
Times of Israel diplomatic correspondent Lazar Berman outlines five points of apparent failure in the Iran war, focusing on diverging US-Israeli priorities, disagreements over Lebanon policy, and the IDF's difficulties i...
Middle EastIran Turns Back Tankers at Strait of Hormuz, Claims Faster Missile Replenishment
Iran's armed forces turned back two tankers attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday after issuing warnings, according to semi-official Tasnim news agency. Separately, an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official ...
Middle EastUN Condemns Killing of French UNIFIL Peacekeeper in Southern Lebanon
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the killing of a French peacekeeper and the wounding of three others in an attack on southern Lebanon. The incident prompted an official statement from a UN spokesperson ca...
Middle EastUK PM Starmer Fights for His Job as Mandelson-Epstein Scandal Deepens
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is under mounting pressure as a scandal surrounding envoy Peter Mandelson's links to Jeffrey Epstein roils the Labour government. Senior allies have rallied to Starmer's defence, descr...
Middle EastGCC States Urged to Move Beyond Peace Support to Joint Defence and Development
An Al Jazeera analysis argues that Gulf Cooperation Council states, while demonstrating growing unity, must now translate that cohesion into concrete joint defence arrangements, energy security cooperation, and coordinat...
Middle EastDeclaration of Independence Read Aloud at the Egalitarian Kotel in Israel
Jews from Israel and around the world gathered at the egalitarian section of the Western Wall for a live reading of Israel's Declaration of Independence, an event framed as an affirmation of shared values and Jewish peop...
Middle EastFrench Petition Urges Macron to Prevent Lebanon Becoming 'the Next Gaza'
Civil society groups and French public figures have signed a petition titled 'Lebanon will not be the next Gaza', calling on President Macron to act as a guarantor of the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire. The Avaaz Foundation's ...
Middle EastProlonged Conflict Consolidates Iran's Regime Domestically, Analyst Says
Analyst Mehran Kamrava of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies argues that Iran's government is leveraging three key pressure points against the United States: sanctions, its nuclear programme, and control ove...
Middle EastArson Attack on London Synagogue; Iran-Linked Group Claims Separate Attack on Jewish Building
An arson attempt targeted a London synagogue, while an Iran-linked group separately claimed responsibility for an attack on a Jewish-associated building. No injuries were reported in either incident. UK Chief Rabbi Mirvi...
Middle EastOpinion: Why Israel and the US Are the Losers in the Iran War
An opinion piece by Hisham Bustani argues that despite their military superiority, Israel and the United States are the strategic losers of the war on Iran, citing long-term geopolitical and reputational costs....
Middle EastFamilies of Missing Gaza Children Face Agonising Uncertainty
A report highlights the ordeal of Palestinian families whose children have gone missing during the conflict in Gaza, with relatives describing the psychological toll of not knowing whether loved ones are alive, dead, or ...
Middle EastFrench UNIFIL Peacekeeper Killed in Southern Lebanon, Hezbollah Blamed
A French soldier serving with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) was killed and three others wounded in an ambush in southern Lebanon. French President Emmanuel Macron blamed Hezbollah for the attack, which Hezboll...
Middle EastBennett, Eisenkot, and Lapid Reportedly in Talks to Form Joint Israeli Opposition Party
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, and opposition leader Yair Lapid are said to be in contact about forming a joint political party called 'New Israel,' according to I...
Middle EastNew Shin Bet Chief Sparked Uproar by Setting Temple Mount as Agency PC Wallpaper on First Day
New Shin Bet director David Zini reportedly changed the desktop background on all agency computers to an image of the Temple Mount on his first day, an act a source described as signalling a 'messianic' direction for the...
Middle EastIran Closes Strait of Hormuz; Trump, UAE Condemn 'Blackmail'; India Protests Attack on Vessels
Iran's IRGC declared the Strait of Hormuz 'fully closed,' including a previously open corridor, until the US lifts what Tehran calls a blockade on Iranian ports. Trump warned Iran cannot 'blackmail' the US over the strai...
Middle EastIran-US Ceasefire Talks Stall; Tehran Warns Fighting Could Resume 'Any Moment'
Iran's Supreme National Security Council said negotiations with Washington ended without concrete results after the US introduced new conditions, and Iran's parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghaliba...
Middle EastLebanese Army Reopens Key Southern Roads as Infrastructure Repairs Continue
Lebanon's Armed Forces announced that specialised units have fully reopened the Khardali-Nabatieh road and partially reopened the Burj Rahal-Tyre bridge in the south, signalling continued progress in post-conflict infras...
Middle EastThousands Rally in Tel Aviv Against Netanyahu Government
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday night to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, AFP reported. The rally reflects sustained domestic pressure on Netanyahu amid th...
Middle EastCash Shortages Persist in Yemen Despite Partial Currency Stabilisation
Yemenis continue to face severe cash shortages as exchange firms limit currency conversion, fuelling public frustration despite some recent stabilisation in exchange rates. The liquidity crisis reflects the broader econo...
Middle EastIran Reports 'Progress' in US Talks as Strait of Hormuz Remains Closed
Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (identified as parliamentary speaker in France 24) reported progress in talks with the United States to end the war, but said a 'big distance' remains between the two sides....