Summary: roughly a quarter of countries in the Arab League, including currently suspended member Syria, are suffering from currency depreciation, a US dollar shortage and rising debt levels. Issues are being compounded by surging inflation, while in some countries (in)formal capital controls and sanctions are impacting trade and debt repayments.
Summary: Iraq has a deep and enormously rich history that was heavily damaged by the 2003 war and occupation, the insurgency that followed and by the brutal predations of ISIS; a new minister of culture is working to try and set things right but he faces daunting challenges.
Summary: with the JCPOA talks going nowhere and the Biden administration seemingly dismissive of the threat Iran poses to Middle East security whilst focussing on China and the war in Ukraine, the West may be sleepwalking towards a potentially disastrous conflagration in the region.
Summary: one year on from the military coup that halted Sudan’s quest for democracy, Putin’s war has provided one of the coup leaders with a golden opportunity.
Summary: a leading analyst offers pragmatic solutions to ending the stranglehold Lebanon’s kleptocratic elites have on the country: support independent parliamentarians, sanction the elites and challenge Iran’s backing of Hezbollah.
Summary: as the economy crashes irregular migration has surged to levels not seen since 2011 with new routes, methods and actors becoming involved.
Summary: Captagon use in the kingdom is on the up; critics blame Vision 2030 and anti-Islamic social engineering masterminded by MbS and his right hand man Saud al-Qahtani for causing widespread nihilism among young Saudis, driving up the demand for illicit drugs.
Summary: an end to the blockade of Qatar last year has, on the surface, eased tensions between Abu Dhabi and Doha but look a little deeper and the animosity remains.
Summary: the decision to bring Syria back into the Interpol fold has serious and long-term consequences as the battle to contain the captagon trade in the Gulf and the wider Middle East intensifies.
Summary: with EU authorities investing in deterrence and containment, while abandoning people in distress at sea, the central Mediterranean Sea remains deadly.
