August, 2021

• 22 August

  Hezbollah, America, and the race to supply Lebanon with power

  

  Amid typical governmental absenteeism, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah announced on Aug. 19 that the party had secured fuel shipments from Iran. He asserted that the first of many fuel tankers would set sail to Lebanon that same day. Hours later, U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Dorothy Shea declared that the U.S. …

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• 22 August

  Israel and Egypt top growth expectations in MENA: A tale of two divergent strategies

  

  The two countries in the Middle East with the highest growth expectations for 2022 are Israel and Egypt. Fitch Solutions estimates that MENA-wide GDP will grow by 3.6% in 2021, after a contraction of 4% in 2020. Egypt and Israel are the only countries within the region expected to grow …

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• 22 August

  The race to reset the Middle East’s maritime map

  

  One of the most consequential changes in the Middle East’s geopolitical map is happening at the water’s edge. Along the entire eastern rim of the Mediterranean basin, global and regional actors are engaging in a spate of port capacity expansions, new private port construction, and the sell-off of major state-owned …

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• 22 August

  A view from the Hill: Congressional actions targeting MENA, April-June 2021

  

  Introduction Six months into the 117th Congress, legislators continued to grapple with the complexities of a region in the midst of change. The reasons for this phenomenon were myriad. The Biden administration espoused a divergent worldview from that of its predecessor, the balance of power in Congress shifted, the international …

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• 22 August

  Iran Says Ready to Work With Russia, China on Afghanistan ‘Peace’

  Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi on Wednesday told his Russian and Chinese counterparts that Tehran is ready to cooperate with the two countries to establish “stability and peace” in Afghanistan. The Taliban have capped a staggeringly fast rout of Afghanistan’s major cities in just 10 days, achieved with relatively little bloodshed, …

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• 22 August

  Kinda Al Khatib: The ‘spy’ and Hezbollah critic Lebanon would rather forget

  The raid began at dawn. Dozens of armed men in black hoods stormed Kinda Al Khatib’s family home, arresting her and her brother, and starting a year-long ordeal for the 25-year-old Hezbollah critic. “I couldn’t see their faces. They had guns, as if they were coming to take a terrorist,” …

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• 22 August

  Afghanistan’s Silk Road jewel: experts fear for heritage in Herat

  With Herat now in the hands of the Taliban as the militant group consolidates power over the last outposts of government-held territory, protecting Afghanistan’s heritage has become a grave concern for many. Last month Unesco, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, accepted a request by the Afghan government …

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• 22 August

  Islamic State threat moves online, expands across Africa: Senior counter-terrorism expert

  Two decades after the 11 September terrorist attacks in New York, terror networks Al-Qaida and Islamic State – also known as Da’esh – continue to pose a grave threat to peace and security, adapting to new technologies and moving into some of the world’s most fragile regions, the top UN …

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• 22 August

  Hardline Haqqani Network Put in Charge of Kabul Security

  The Taliban has placed security for the Afghan capital, Kabul, in the hands of senior members of the Haqqani Network, which has close ties with foreign jihadist groups including a long-standing association with al-Qaida. Western intelligence officials say the assignment is alarming and undercuts Taliban promises to tread a more …

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• 22 August

  US Continues Diplomatic Outreach to Host At-risk Afghans

  The United States says it is engaging directly with the Taliban to secure safe passage for “everybody” who is trying to get to the Kabul airport. The U.S. is also reaching out to dozens of countries to host at-risk Afghans while accelerating the evacuation of American citizens, diplomats and Afghan …

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