ARTICLES
Longer reads on major developments, with sources and clear limits on what is known.
A deadly attack in Shabwa and the UN envoy’s warning of full-scale war mark a sharp deterioration. The latest official casualty count, the scale of displacement and the wider conflict picture each rest on different kinds of evidence.
Read article →A Syrian ministry announcement describes a shared financing mechanism. World Bank documents explain the potential role of pooled support—and why reconstruction estimates, donor receipts and project results are different measures.
Read article →Iraq's opening proposal spans energy, transport and digital commerce. The distinction now is between a national initiative, collective decisions and evidence of delivery.
Read article →Reported IMF projections pair a steep 2026 contraction with rapid growth in 2027. The figures need reading together, alongside the Fund's warning that further disruption could delay recovery.
Read article →A new UN briefing places livelihoods, services and protection at the centre of Syria's return policy. Government promises and separate rights reporting explain why fewer camps would not, by itself, demonstrate a lasting recovery.
Read article →New memoranda with Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt cover different parts of the energy economy. The announced cooperation is significant, but its scope should not be confused with funded projects, additional supplies or lower bills.
Read article →A new central-bank statement addresses some older import transfers. It does not undo the rate change, while early market interviews and proposed relief measures leave important questions about delivery and household costs.
Read article →Jordan has approved an export strategy for 2026–2029, with growth and diversification targets. Its importance lies in who gains access to overseas markets—and whether announced support becomes measurable business activity.
Read article →The World Bank's October update estimates potential for AI to assist workers, not observed productivity gains. A separate ILO study helps explain why technological exposure is not a count of jobs lost.
Read article →September's non-oil surveys show improving business conditions, but weaker Saudi export orders and rising UAE selling prices complicate the picture. The IMF's wider Gulf forecast remains conditional.
Read article →Opinion · Historical persecution does not excuse present prejudice. Assyrian advocacy should demand accountable institutions and equal rights without withholding those principles from others.
Read article →WHO's October 2 warning about delayed medical supplies adds urgency to Gaza's recovery needs. EU-funded water and waste projects illustrate why financing, an access pledge and functioning services must be assessed separately.
Read article →Opinion · Tom Barrack has diagnosed the Levant correctly and then prescribed the cure that has failed it for a century.
Read article →Iraqi officials have announced an inquiry and compensation after a disputed raid near Kirkuk. Families challenge the account of two Kurdish teenagers' deaths, while responsibility and the inquiry's outcome remain unresolved.
Read article →Selected speeches during the September 2026 General Assembly week highlighted different approaches to security, sovereignty and humanitarian support. Their significance lies in the positions expressed—not in evidence of a new regional settlement.
Read article →Both sides describe mediated contact in New York. Iran has set out conditions, while reported disagreements over the Strait of Hormuz underline the distance between talking and agreeing.
Read article →The IMF's September assessment welcomes legal changes but leaves deposit recovery unresolved. Official repayment projections are not guarantees for individual savers.
Read article →A UN fact-finding mission says there are reasonable grounds to believe two US strikes in Iran were war crimes. That is a serious legal assessment, but it is not a court judgment and it does not settle every disputed fact.
Read article →Save the Children says at least 19 children were killed and 49 injured in Yemen between 1 August and 9 September. The organisation’s assessment is an urgent warning, not a final independently audited account of the violence.
Read article →Separate reporting supports that a fatal fire occurred. Conflicting casualty accounts and an announced investigation leave important questions about the deaths unanswered.
Read article →Opinion | From Iraqi autonomy to negotiations and recognition elsewhere, Kurdish political gains deserve a longer view. Setbacks are real—but they do not amount to the defeat of a people.
Read article →Reports describe a route into government schools for holders of Autonomous Administration documents. Questions about Kurdish-language teaching and implementation remain separate.
Read article →Jordan has approved a gas-supply arrangement intended to support Lebanon’s electricity generation. Published terms remain incomplete, and an energy analyst warns that extra fuel would not resolve the wider electricity crisis.
Read article →Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz’s programme projects 28.4% inflation for the end of 2026. Here is what the reported figures say—and what they cannot establish.
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