Israel

Palestinian Territories

Military & Security

Politics

Far-right Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich approved the long-frozen E1 settlement project, which would see the construction of more than 3,000 homes in the West Bank, BBC reported on Aug. 14.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Advances E1 Settlement Plan in West Bank

Israel-Hamas Conflict

After vocal opposition, Israel Defense Forces Chief Gen. Eyal Zamir approved military plans for the conquest of Gaza City, and local sources in Gaza reported increased fighting ahead of the operation, The Times of Israel reported on Aug. 13.

Israel, Gaza: IDF Greenlights Conquest of Gaza City, Hamas Chief in Cairo for Talks

Syria

Turkey

Turkish and Syrian defense ministers signed a memorandum of understanding for military cooperation, including training and consultancy, and support to combat the Islamic State in Syria, The Washington Post reported on Aug. 13.

Turkey, Syria: Turkey and Syria Ink Military Cooperation Deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's expanded war plan to take control of Gaza City includes dismantling Hamas' presence in refugee camps in central Gaza, The Wall Street Journal reported on Aug. 10.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: IDF To Expand Operations Against Hamas in Central Gaza Refugee Camps

United States

Australia

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that Australia will formally recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming U.N. General Assembly in September, joining the United Kingdom, Canada and France, The Australian Financial Review reported on Aug. 11.

Australia, Palestinian Territories: Canberra Offers Qualified Recognition of Palestine

Germany

The Israeli security cabinet approved a plan to take control over Gaza City on Aug. 8, but the full cabinet will still need to approve the plan, Reuters reported the same day.

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israeli Security Cabinet Approves Gaza City Takeover Plan

Hamas has said that it is willing to deliver aid to the Israeli hostages remaining in the Gaza Strip in coordination with the Red Cross if Israel establishes permanent humanitarian corridors within Gaza and stops conducting airstrikes while aid is being distributed, Reuters reported Aug. 3.

Palestinian Territories, Israel: Hamas Conditions Disarmament on Palestinian State

Somalia

Economics

Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland offered the United States access to a military base in its territory as well as critical mineral deals in exchange for recognition of its independence, Bloomberg reported on July 30. 

Somalia, U.S.: Somaliland Offers Access to Military Base, Mineral Deals in Return for U.S. Recognition

Assessments

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

While the two countries may engage in limited security cooperation, Israel's continued military interventions in Syria and the lack of U.S. economic pressure on Damascus will make full normalization nearly impossible.

Despite Recent Talks, Syria-Israel Normalization Remains Highly Unlikely

China

Russia

India

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) looks at Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Nov. 30, 2018, during the G20 Leaders' Summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina. U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to meet in the coming days.

Energy

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

U.S.-China Relations

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

The Weekly Rundown: A Trump-Putin Summit, the Deadline for a U.S.-China Tariff Pause

Lebanon

Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem speaks from a stage surrounded by flags in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, on July 6, 2025. 

Lebanon's new push to disarm Hezbollah will prove challenging amid U.S. pressure, Israel's military assertiveness and Hezbollah's hardening stance, potentially leading to government instability and increased violence.

Can Lebanon Navigate the Minefield of Disarming Hezbollah?

The new flag of Syria's interim government.

Parliamentary elections in September will cement Syrian leaders' power at the expense of many minority groups, deepening national fragmentation and heightening risks of violent unrest, particularly amid Israeli military intervention.

In Syria, Parliamentary Elections Will Deepen Political and Sectarian Divides

Israeli troops are seen deployed at the border with the Gaza Strip on July 23, 2025.

Reoccupying the Strip would be expensive and stir controversy at home and abroad, making the strategy politically difficult to sustain in the likely case that a new Israeli government is elected next year. 

The Fallout From an Israeli Reoccupation of Gaza

Media

Bahrain

Iran

Kuwait

Oman

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

Podcasts

How have Gulf Arab states' positions on the Israel-Iran conflict evolved?

Essential Geopolitics: The Future of Gulf-Iranian Relations

Columns

On Geopolitics

U.S. Army soldiers prepare to go out on patrol from a remote combat outpost in northeastern Syria on May 25, 2021. 

The U.S. is shifting its Syria strategy from isolation to limited engagement to stabilize the country and protect American interests there, but Turkey and Israel's competing influence campaigns could complicate Washington's approach.

In Post-Assad Syria, the U.S. Struggles to Find a New Strategy

Vehicles drive along a main thoroughfare past a billboard that reads in Farsi and Hebrew: "A severe blow... The vile and villainous Zionist regime (Israel) has made a grave mistake,” in central Tehran on June 24, 2025. 

The war has weakened Iran, but has also shifted regional perceptions of Israel as a destabilizing force, prompting Gulf states to reassess alliances, Turkey to emerge as a rival, and raising the risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.

Assessing the Regional Impact of the Israel-Iran War, Part 2

A collapsed water tank painted with the Lebanese flag is seen in the ruins of a village in southern Lebanon, located near the border with Israel, on Jan. 7, 2025.

Ahead of Lebanon's 2026 election, Hezbollah will try to portray itself as a nationalist resistance movement rather than an Iranian proxy, but the risk of renewed conflict with Israel will persist unless the group disarms. 

To Ease Pressure to Disarm, Hezbollah Pursues a Rebrand 

Iraq

Yemen

An Iranian flag is draped from a building damaged during a recent attack by Israel is seen in the Gisha neighborhood of Tehran, Iran, on June 25, 2025. 

The brief war with Israel has significantly weakened Iran's regional influence and military capabilities, forcing it and the members of its Axis of Resistance to recalibrate their strategies and focus on recovery.

The Impact of the 12-Day War on Iran and Its Allies, Part 1

Brazil

France

United Kingdom

U.S.-Iran Relations

The Weekly Rundown: Netanyahu's U.S. Visit, a Franco-British Summit

Japan

Europe

A photo taken in Tehran, Iran, on June 26, 2025, shows an Iranian political banner hanging near the remains of a residential building struck by an Israeli attack. 

Global Trade

The Weekly Rundown: Fragile Iran-Israel Ceasefire Holds, U.S. Tariff Deadline Approaches

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

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israel Advances E1 Settlement Plan in West Bank

Israel, Gaza: IDF Greenlights Conquest of Gaza City, Hamas Chief in Cairo for Talks

Turkey, Syria: Turkey and Syria Ink Military Cooperation Deal

Israel, Palestinian Territories: IDF To Expand Operations Against Hamas in Central Gaza Refugee Camps

Australia, Palestinian Territories: Canberra Offers Qualified Recognition of Palestine

Israel, Palestinian Territories: Israeli Security Cabinet Approves Gaza City Takeover Plan

Palestinian Territories, Israel: Hamas Conditions Disarmament on Palestinian State

Somalia, U.S.: Somaliland Offers Access to Military Base, Mineral Deals in Return for U.S. Recognition

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