Seth J. Frantzman

Iran’s diplomatic moves, not calling for assistance or reaching out to its allies, seem to be intended to show that Tehran believes everything is going to turn out all right.

Clashes grew in the first days of January 2026, and now Syrian security forces have taken over most of the Kurdish neighborhoods, causing many Kurds to flee and also leading to abuses against Kurds.

Is it possible that Riyadh’s decision to move quickly to stop the STC in late December was linked to larger strategy issues in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden?

The US president is a man of action, as Rubio has characterized him. "If you don't know, now you know.” Now Madruo knows. Iran, Russia, China, and other countries will be watching. 

Flights were halted on Thursday at Yemen’s Aden international airport, the main international gateway for regions of the country outside Houthi control.

Assad's base was one of the few places the US remained, until Iran targeted the base with ballistic missiles in 2020 in response to the US killing Soleimani.

A shutdown of Aden airport was ordered by the transportation minister in the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) that runs southern Yemen, a Saudi source told Reuters on Thursday.

With 2025 coming to a close, many of Israel's issues remain unresolved. It’s worth examining 2026's challenges one at a time and assessing the hurdles Israel still faces.

Multiple vehicles were torched in Negev towns overnight, with police linking the incidents to reprisals following ongoing operations in nearby Bedouin communities.

A rare dispute between Saudi Arabia and the UAE erupted after Riyadh launched airstrikes in Yemen, accusing Abu Dhabi-backed forces of threatening stability by seizing territory.