President Donald Trump set demands for Iran Monday as the rogue nation continues to challenge the United States and raise tensions in the region. “The U.S. request for Iran is very simple – No Nuclear Weapons and No Further Sponsoring
Libyan military commander Khalifa Haftar, who has conquered well over half the country despite the international community formally recognizing an entirely different government as legitimate, was a guest of Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz in Riyadh on Wednesday. Details of their conversation are scarce, but Haftar’s first visit to Saudi Arabia seems like a significant event.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Saudi King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) in Riyadh on Monday to discuss the civil wars in Yemen and Syria, threats posed by Iran, the dispute with Qatar, and the murder of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi.
King Salman bin Abdulaziz ordered an overhaul of government posts and shook up the cabinet on Thursday, most notably replacing Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir.
Jamal Khashoggi’s sons Salah and Abdullah asked Saudi authorities to release the murdered journalist’s remains on Sunday, while 82-year-old Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz planned an unprecedented “domestic tour” to shore up support for the monarchy.
Contents: Egypt’s president al-Sisi hands contested Red Sea islands over to Saudi Arabia; US troops in Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) not affected by island handover
Contents: Selection of new Saudi crown prince portends rapid changes in Mideast; Mohammed bin Salman expected to follow a belligerent foreign policy; Iran’s ballistic missile launch on Syria said to be a flop
Contents: Trump’s Mideast visit triggers renewal of sharp split between Saudi Arabia and Qatar; Qatar claims that it was cyber-attacked after media reports supporting Iran; Vitriolic Saudi-Qatari fault line reopened this week by Trump’s visit; Some useful information that’s good to know
Contents: Iran’s younger generations propel Rouhani to decisive presidential win; Brief generational history of Iran and Saudi Arabia; Donald Trump gets royal treatment visiting Saudi Arabia
Contents: Migrant Indian workers in Saudi Arabia face starvation; India and Saudi Arabia move to warm relations with each other
Contents: Arab League in chaos as it fails to address Arab existential threats; ASEAN in chaos as it fails to address South China Sea threats; France’s François Hollande declares war on ISIS after terror attack kills priest; Turkey fears that Gulen will flee the United States
Contents: Saudi King Salman snubs Obama – again – as he arrives for Saudi Arabia summit; President Obama to ‘clean up leftover messes’ in the Mideast
Contents: Egypt, Saudi Arabia to build a huge bridge where Moses parted the Red Sea; Saudi Arabia will no longer provide ‘free money’ to Egypt
Contents: China signs nuclear deals with Saudi Arabia and Iran; China signals support for Saudis in Yemen, and for Palestinian state
Contents: Mideast trends: Sunni-Shia countries align along predicted lines; Saudi Arabia faces increased social unrest with sudden austerity budget
The Saudi King has added to his list of outlandish demands on locals as he takes a brief holiday on the French Riviera. His Royal Highness has reportedly demanded that no female police officers be stationed near the beach where he
Contents: Car bombs target Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza; Possible rapprochement in the works between Hamas and Saudi Arabia; Greece’s banks to reopen at start of another stormy week
Contents: Behind the scenes in the Iran nuclear deal; The Arab world is disintegrating into war; Saudi Arabia conducts major anti-terrorism sweep against ISIS; Massive bomb attack in Iraq market kills over 130
Contents: Greece’s Tsipras shows up at Brussels empty-handed; Greece’s finance minister tells himself not to gloat; Report on Obama’s plans for the Mideast strategy into total fantasy; China halts trading on 1,000 companies as stock bloodbath continues
Contents: ISIS claims responsibility for major terrorist attack in Saudi Arabia; As ISIS grows, Saudis face conflict between stability and reforms
Iran attempts to seize Singapore-flagged ship in Persian Gulf; Obama concludes bizarre meeting with GCC at Camp David; The Truman Doctrine and the Carter Doctrine
War in Syria turns more and more against al-Assad; Economy falters, surprising economists, while stock market bubble explodes; Financial firm analyst told to shut up about over-valued assets
Saudi Arabia declares that it’s met its military objectives in Yemen; Patriotism and nationalism surge in Saudi Arabia, but not in Iran
Yemen crisis continues growth into major war and humanitarian crisis; Pakistan debates Saudi Arabia’s call for help
Syria’s al-Assad regime suffers major military setback in Idlib; Arab League positions harden against Houthis and Iran
Libya’s two rival governments in unity talks to fight ISIS; UAE may replace Saudis as Egypt’s most important Arab ally; Boko Haram kills 58 in multiple bombings in Maiduguri, Nigeria; Boko Haram declares allegiance to ISIS
Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan seek ‘Sunni unity’ versus Iran; Turkey’s Erdogan shuts out Al-Sisi and Egypt from discussions; After a year, experts still guessing about Malaysia Airlines 370
After almost $1 billion development costs, Healthcare.gov is still a disaster; Anthem health insurance data breach puts even non-customers at risk; Al-Sisi and Erdogan miss in Riyadh, signaling stormy times ahead
Reports indicate Egypt, Italy, Russia planning military action in Libya; Egypt court declares Hamas to be a terrorist organization; Egypt and Turkey may try to create a ‘Sunni front’ with Saudi Arabia
