Middle Orient

Israel revealed on Friday the name of a Syrian officer who is assisting the Syrian Army in the Golan Heights and is offering aid to Hezbollah’s activities inside a demilitarized zone near the border. “Bashar al-Hussein, a resident of Homs, is the commanding officer of the Syrian Arab Army 90th …

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is preparing to release over 850 detainees arrested on charges of “belonging to ISIS,” mainly from Deir Ezzor and al-Hasakah, after mediation by tribal elders. It is still unknown if all the prisoners will be released at once or in stages. On September 22, the …

In Europe and the US, there used to be a tradition of pragmatic and often harshly realist statecraft. It went back at least as far as the 5th century B.C. Greek historian Thucydides, whose influential history of the war between Athens and Sparta was essentially an account of the coercive …

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian told EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell that there must be a serious and sufficient guarantee that the United States will not leave JCPOA again. Amirabdollahian told Borrell in a phone conversation on Friday that a good and even quick agreement was possible if other …

Soon after entering office, US President Joe Biden instructed his Defense Department to carry out a detailed and comprehensive assessment of America’s military presence around the world. In the words of Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, this appraisal, known as the Global Posture Review, will “help inform the secretary’s advice to …

Thousands of Orthodox Jews buy premium olive oil ahead of Hanukah because very observant Israelis increasingly like to use olive oil in their Hanukkah candelabras, instead of wax candles, because of its significance in the Hanukah story. Hanukah, which this year begins on Sunday evening, is a celebration of how …

ISRAELI-IRANIAN AFFAIRS: As Washington and Tehran start a new round of chicken, how should Jerusalem position itself? With nuclear negotiations in Vienna set to start on Monday of next week, the open conflict between Israel and the US over Iran policy almost seemed to overtake the conflict between Jerusalem and …

Russia has planned to destabilize the northern and eastern parts of Syria in order to expand its influence there, according to al-Hal Net. Russia has planned to control areas in northern and eastern Syria for several months, coinciding with Turkey scaling back its military operation in that region. At a …

The deputy head of the Iranian Chamber of Commerce regretted that while Turkey controls 30% of the Syrian economy, his country only accounts for 3% of trade, according to Baladi News. “Iran accounts for only 3 percent of the Syrian economy, but Turkey accounts for 30 percent of the country’s …

Julani, the leader of the HTS, is trying to improve his image to gain credibility in the eyes of the local community as well as in those of the west, according to al-Hal. Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani is constantly trying to present himself in a positive image …