Middle East
Regional security, proxy networks, escalation risk, and conflict diplomacy across the Middle East.
181 Dispatches
The Houthis Enter the Iran War: Bab al-Mandeb, a Failed Kurdish Plan, and a Regime Fracturing
The Houthis open a new front in the Iran war, raising the specter of a Bab al-Mandeb closure as a secret Kurdish ground plan collapses and Tehran fractures.
Who's Winning the Iran War? Tactical Dominance, Strategic Deadlock
The US and Israel dominate the battlefield against Iran, yet the Islamic Republic still stands. Why neither side is winning the war.
Starting the Iran War Was Easy. Stopping It Will Be Hard
Why Washington, the Gulf states, and Israel cannot agree on an off-ramp from the Iran war, and why Tehran may end up deciding when the fighting stops.
Could Iran Become a Failed State? The War's Darkest Endgame
Why a collapsed Iran—divided among warlords, separatists, and proxies—may be the one war outcome the US and Israel could quietly live with.
Pakistan and Afghanistan Are Still at War: The Cross-Border Conflict the World Stopped Watching
As the Iran war dominates headlines, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban have descended into open conflict, with airstrikes on Kabul, daily border skirmishes, and tens of thousands displaced.
Iran's New Supreme Leader: Mojtaba Khamenei and the War's Second Week
Mojtaba Khamenei is named Iran's next Supreme Leader as the Iran-Israel-US war enters its second week, with strikes spreading across the Gulf.
The Middle East Agrees: Iran Must Fall
Nineteen days into the Iran war, Israeli strikes have killed two repression chiefs, the Gulf has turned on Tehran, and a second front rages in Lebanon.
Why Russia and China Abandoned Iran in Its Hour of Need
Iran expected its partners to rally when the US and Israel struck. Instead, Russia and China stood aside—and the reasons reveal a hard strategic logic.
The Iran Ceasefire: What We Know and What We Don't
A two-week ceasefire pauses the Iran war as competing US and Iranian peace plans, immense pressure, and an open question over whether it holds.
Why Hasn't America Attacked Iran Yet? Reading the Buildup Behind the Pause
The US massed overwhelming force around Iran, then held fire. Reading the military movements and back-channel talks to explain Washington's pause.
Assad Loyalists Are Plotting a Comeback in Syria — and It's Falling Apart
Exiled Assad loyalists in Russia and Lebanon are competing to revive the old Syrian regime, but money, rivalry, and a stabilizing Syria are sinking the plot.
How Powerful Is Turkey? Inside Ankara's Military and Geopolitical Rise
A deep assessment of Turkey's modernizing military, its control of the Bosporus, and its bid to become an autonomous middle power.