Middle East

Trump Signals Push for Broader Middle East Deal After Announcing 10-Day Israel–Hezbollah Ceasefire
Trump Signals Push for Broader Middle East Deal After Announcing 10-Day Israel–Hezbollah Ceasefire

U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in a series of Truth Social posts set to take effect at 5 p.m. EST, following what he described as “excellent conversations” with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump presented the deal as an initial step ...

Aoun Thanks U.S. for Ceasefire Efforts After Calls with Trump and Rubio
Aoun Thanks U.S. for Ceasefire Efforts After Calls with Trump and Rubio

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Thursday thanked the United States for its efforts to reach a ceasefire in Lebanon, following separate phone calls with President Donald Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to an official statement. Aoun received a call from Rubio earlier in the day, during which he expressed appreciation for ...

Unified Message from Beirut MPs: Exclusive State Control and \
Unified Message from Beirut MPs: Exclusive State Control and "weapons-Free" City

  In a show of cross-sectarian unity, Beirut MPs on Wednesday called for the capital to be placed fully under state control and declared a “weapons-free city” under the exclusive authority of the Lebanese Armed Forces and security agencies. “Beirut must be free of weapons, and we want to see the Lebanese army deployed in all the streets ...

White House: U.S. Ready to Sustain Indefinite Naval Blockade on Iran
White House: U.S. Ready to Sustain Indefinite Naval Blockade on Iran

The White House said Thursday that the United States is prepared to maintain its naval blockade on Iran indefinitely, signaling a sharp escalation in economic pressure despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to reach a broader agreement. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller confirmed that all options remain on the table in dealing with ...

Iran Arrests 4 Alleged Israeli Spies
Iran Arrests 4 Alleged Israeli Spies

Iran arrested four suspected Israeli spies, state media reported on Thursday. It came as U.S. officials discuss possible peace talks with Iran after U.S.-Israeli strikes on Tehran on February 28 engulfed the Middle East in war. "The four agents linked to the Mossad were apprehended in Gilan governorate" in northern Iran, IRNA reported, ...

Iran Supreme Leader's Adviser Threatens to Sink U.S. Ships in Hormuz Strait
Iran Supreme Leader's Adviser Threatens to Sink U.S. Ships in Hormuz Strait

The military adviser to Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Wednesday warned that Iran would sink American ships in the Strait of Hormuz if the United States decided to "police" the key shipping bottleneck. The U.S. is imposing a military blockade of the Strait of Hormuz after Iran blocked shipping during over six weeks of war in a conflict ...

Iran Says Exchanges with U.S. Via Pakistan Continue After Failed Talks
Iran Says Exchanges with U.S. Via Pakistan Continue After Failed Talks

Iran said Wednesday that exchanges with the United States via Pakistan had continued following failed negotiations over the weekend. "Since Sunday, when the Iranian delegation returned to Tehran, several messages have been exchanged through Pakistan," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei in a weekly press briefing. "Today, we are very ...

What Went Wrong for the Shia
Op-edWhat Went Wrong for the Shia

The Shia have a problem. While many Sunni-majority states, from the Gulf states to Turkey, have achieved varying degrees of governance success and economic growth, Shia-led political projects have little to show for themselves. Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, they have been at the center of wars, terrorist networks, and state failure even as ...