Politics & Diplomacy

Nile Basin’s GERD dispute creates risks for Egypt, Sudan, and beyond

By Amal Kandeel

Competition for the Nile Basin’s freshwater has been growing markedly for three decades. In 2011, it intensified after Ethiopia started building the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD).

A series of unusual events in Iran point to sabotage. How will Tehran respond?

By Borzou Daragahi

A spate of explosions has struck highly secure and sensitive sites, as well as regular industrial locales, including factories and gas pipelines, and even a clinic in a fancy part of north Tehran.

Lebanon’s economic recovery plan will only repeat past failures

By David Daoud and Paul Gadalla

Decades of corruption, waste of public funds, and financial mismanagement have ruined Lebanon’s economy. Rather than create productive sectors, successive Lebanese governments have bet on high-end tourism, luxury real estate, and expatriate remittances to remain afloat since 1990.

Ambassador Fried testifies to House Committee on Foreign Affairs on exposing and demanding accountability for Kremlin crimes abroad

Exposing and demanding accountability for Kremlin crimes abroad

How Jordan responded to Israel’s annexation plans

By Seth J. Frantzman

King Abdullah II of Jordan has repeatedly warned that Israel’s and the Trump administration’s actions are fueling potential instability.

New report assesses Israel’s warming ties with Arab Gulf states

By Larry Luxner

Common fear of Iran’s nuclear ambitions, growing uncertainty about the US commitment to the Gulf region, a desire by oil-rich Arab nations to access Israeli know-how, and the worsening COVID-19 pandemic have given momentum to a rapprochement between Israel and the six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council.