Israel

Syria

Turkey

Military & Security

Politics

The Turkish Ministry of National Defense announced that Syrian soldiers will be able to receive training at Turkish barracks and, beginning on Oct. 31, 49 Syrian students will enroll in Turkish military academies and later join the Syrian army, Reuters reported on Oct. 30.

Syria, Turkey: Turkey To Train Syrian Military

Palestinian Territories

Israel-Hamas Conflict

A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, announced that Israel would resume the ceasefire with Hamas after Israel conducted a series of large-scale airstrikes on Gaza, reportedly killing at least 100 people, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 29.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Resumes Ceasefire After Airstrikes in Gaza

United States

U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would withdraw "all of its support" from Israel should it carry out annexations in the West Bank, saying he had given his word to Arab countries that he would oppose such action, Time Magazine reported on Oct. 23. 

U.S., Israel: Trump Threatens U.S. Support Over Annexation

Israel resumed its truce with Hamas after a weekend of fighting in the Gaza Strip, saying it would resume humanitarian aid but would continue to react to provocations from militants, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 20. 

Israel, Gaza: Ceasefire Wobbles but Holds for Now

Indonesia

A U.S. defense official said Indonesia, Azerbaijan and Pakistan were leading contenders to contribute troops to a post-war Gaza stabilization force, as talks continued for the second phase of the Trump peace plan meant to permanently end the Israel-Hamas war, Politico reported on Oct. 15.

Indonesia, Gaza, U.S.: Trump Throwing Wide Net for Multinational Force in Gaza

amas has released all of the hostage bodies it can access, a spokesperson claimed after it handed over nine of 28 dead hostages, though Israel suspects the group has access to at least an additional six bodies, CNN reported Oct. 16.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Hamas Says It Has Released All the Hostage Bodies It Can

Israel is expected to reopen the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza and increase humanitarian aid inflows into the strip in a reversal of its Oct. 14 decision following Hamas' release of four additional deceased bodies, though one is reportedly not that of an Israeli hostage, Reuters reported on Oct. 15. 

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Reverses Course and Will Open Rafah Crossing, Increase Aid

Israel is refusing to reopen the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Oct. 15 in accordance with the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, which took effect on Oct. 10, due to Hamas' refusal to release the majority of the remaining 24 bodies of deceased hostages in Gaza, though four more are expected to be released on Oct. 14, The Times of Israel reported on Oct. 14.

Israel, Gaza: Israel Refuses To Reopen Rafah Border Crossing, Decreases Humanitarian Aid

Assessments

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participates in a state memorial ceremony for the fallen soldiers of the two-year Gaza war at the Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem on Oct. 16, 2025.

The Israeli prime minister is unlikely to call early elections and will likely increase military pressure on Hamas in an effort to reduce the likelihood that he is unseated in elections due by October 2026.


Gaza Ceasefire Hangs in Balance as Netanyahu Contemplates Political Survival

Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa (right) meets with U.S. envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, at the presidential palace in Damascus on July 9, 2025. 

The U.S. will leverage permanent sanctions relief to pressure Syria to finalize a security pact with Israel, but the Kurds will resist integrating with President Ahmad al-Sharaa's government. 

U.S. Engagement With Syria Will Promote Stability, but Kurdish Integration Will Continue To Lag

Australia

Ukraine

Russia

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Delegations from the United States and Russia, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov, respectively, will meet this week to resume conversations about their countries' bilateral relationship and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: U.S. and Russian Delegations Meet, a Still-Fragile Hamas-Israel Ceasefire 

Egypt

Iran

Lebanon

United Arab Emirates

Yemen

An Israeli military truck carries a tank in southern Israel on the border with the Gaza Strip, on Oct. 14, 2025.

The ceasefire will allow Israel to redirect resources away from Gaza toward other regional threats, particularly Iran, while temporarily easing diplomatic tensions with Egypt and the UAE.

The Regional Implications of the Oct. 8 Gaza Ceasefire

Cameroon

Japan

France

Palestinians on Oct. 10 on Al-Rashid road headed toward Gaza City. U.S. President Donald Trump said he might visit the Middle East just as 20 hostages are meant to be released by Hamas after surviving two years in captivity as the White House pushes for the solidification of a frail ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

The Weekly Rundown: Trump Tries To Solidify the Gaza Ceasefire, a Presidential Vote in Cameroon

Snapshots

Qatar

People react at Hostage Square in Tel Aviv on Oct. 9, 2025, following news of a new Gaza ceasefire deal.

Violence in Gaza will almost certainly decrease as both Israel and Hamas are pressured to comply with the first phase of the ceasefire, keeping the truce intact in the coming days and possibly weeks.

After Two Years of War, a Permanent Gaza Ceasefire?

Columns

On Geopolitics

An antique map showing the area around modern-day Israel and the Palestinian territories. 

Current conflict dynamics suggest an uneasy ''one-and-a-half-state'' solution may emerge, where Palestinians are granted limited autonomy in reservation-style territories under Israeli control, potentially mitigating violence but leaving Israel more internationally isolated.

A Palestinian 'Half-State' Could Reduce Violence, but Deepen Israel's Isolation

Bahrain

Kuwait

Saudi Arabia

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks to U.S. and Qatari military personnel at the Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar, on May 15, 2025.

The U.S. president's pledge to defend Qatar may deter future Israeli attacks, but it is unlikely to deter Iranian aggression or allay Gulf states' greater concerns about Washington's commitment to their security.

Trump's Security Guarantees for Qatar Unlikely To Offer Enough Reassurance

U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu participate in a press conference in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 29, 2025. 

The once-unshakable consensus on Israel within U.S. politics is fracturing under the weight of generational change, a growing values gap and a misalignment of geopolitical imperatives.

'A Little Sparta': Why the U.S.-Israeli Relationship Is Destined To Change 

Europe

Denmark

Moldova

Representatives are pictured ahead of a working session during the informal EU foreign ministers' meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Aug. 30, 2025.

Economics

The Weekly Rundown: EU Leaders Meet in Denmark, Moldova Elects a New Parliament

Israeli military vehicles drive along a border fence, near the town of Majdal Shams, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, on July 17, 2025. 

Syria and Israel will likely ink a security pact to ease border tensions before the end of the year, but the deal's likely narrow scope and other unresolved disputes will keep it fragile.

The Implications of a Syria-Israel De-Escalation Agreement

United Kingdom

Dignitaries attend a U.N. Security Council meeting on the situation in the Middle East, including the question of Palestinian statehood, during the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 23, 2025, in New York City. 

Western countries' growing recognition of Palestinian statehood is largely symbolic and will likely galvanize Israel's push for West Bank annexation, risking further Israeli diplomatic isolation abroad and sporadic violence at home.

The West's Growing Support for Palestinian Statehood Will Have Limited Concrete Impacts

Israel lives under difficult geopolitical circumstances. A small country with limited resources and surrounded by potentially hostile neighbors, Israel survives by allying with powers that do have the resources to manage the balance of power in the Middle East — namely, the United States. Its geographic position also means that Israel must manage complex relations with its Muslim neighbors by quiet collaboration, by exploiting divisions, and by parlaying its technological and economic advantages into create strategic dependencies. To navigate all the challenges presented by the Middle East, Israel will remain agile in its diplomacy and, when the situation warrants, steadfast in its pre-emptive strikes, its covert activities and its economic relationships.

SITUATION REPORTS

Syria, Turkey: Turkey To Train Syrian Military

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Resumes Ceasefire After Airstrikes in Gaza

U.S., Israel: Trump Threatens U.S. Support Over Annexation

Israel, Gaza: Ceasefire Wobbles but Holds for Now

Indonesia, Gaza, U.S.: Trump Throwing Wide Net for Multinational Force in Gaza

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Hamas Says It Has Released All the Hostage Bodies It Can

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Reverses Course and Will Open Rafah Crossing, Increase Aid

Israel, Gaza: Israel Refuses To Reopen Rafah Border Crossing, Decreases Humanitarian Aid

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