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The Kurds of northeast Syria have suffered a series of humiliating setbacks over the past month, losing more than 80% of the territory they once controlled to central government forces. A US-mediated truce averted a potential bloodbath. Meghan Bodette of the Kurdish Peace Institute says new opportunities may be emerging, but ordinary Kurds expect their leaders to acknowledge the mistakes that led them here. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

UK historian Christopher de Bellaige says Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, will fight till the bitter end as will the formidable Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp. But their success is no longer guaranteed amid threats of US intervention and a new generation of young and fearless protestors bent on their fall. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A fifth round of US-brokered talks between Israel and Syria began in Paris on Jan. 5. Elizabeth Tsurkov, a senior fellow at the New Lines Institute, explains why Israel may finally yield to US pressure and sign a security agreement with Syria’s new Islamist government — while remaining unlikely to extend the same protections to Syria’s Kurds as it does to the Druze. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tensions between Saudi Arabia and the UAE are escalating anew in Yemen. Al-Monitor senior editor Joyce Karam says the clash is real, leaving the Trump administration torn between its top regional allies. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Murad Ismael, a prominent Yazidi activist who has worked tirelessly to draw attention to his people’s ongoing plight following one of the first genocides of the 21st century, is vowing to change the way politics are practiced in Iraq. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chatham House senior fellow Renad Mansour explains why Iraq remains even more vital for Iran in the wake of its humiliating 12-day conflict with Israel, and how renewed US interest in Iraq with the appointment of a new envoy is adding to the heat. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On the eve of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's historic meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington on Nov. 10, Al-Monitor spoke with former US Ambassador Barbara Leaf, the first senior US official to formally meet with him after the fall of the Assad regime. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The fall of el-Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces, amid renewed allegations of UAE backing, raises fears of further civilian massacres in a regional struggle for Sudan’s gold and Red Sea ports. Sudanese analyst Kholood Khair examines the forces — and the toll — behind the violence. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Vittorio Maresca di Serracapriola, lead sanctions expert at Karam Shaar Advisory, unpacks the current status of international sanctions over Syria and what they mean for its people after 14 years of civil war and 60 years of repression by the Assad regime. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Weam Fadul, a Sudanese feminist and activist, blames outside forces for fueling the conflict and says the Sudanese people should be left to decide their own fate.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

US President Donald Trump's foray into the Caucasus is among his most successful so far, says analyst Eric Hacopian of Armenia's CivilNet. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Turkey and the interim Syrian government fiercely oppose Kurdish self-rule. Researcher Meghan Bodette argues that the current dynamics will force them into changing tack, with all sides reaping the benefits of compromise. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Saudi Arabia has emerged as a critical ally for Syria's new interim government. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman played a key role in getting the United States to lift many sanctions on Syria. Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa has made it clear that he wants the kingdom to have a big say in his country's affairs that would go beyond helping it finance its reconstruction. However, as Saudi researcher Aziz Algahashian explains, Saudi Arabia is not giving him a carte blanche. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last week’s arrest of Lahur Talabani in a violent raid that left four dead set a dangerous precedent, one that could undermine PUK leader Bafel Talabani and the Kurdistan region as a whole, says independent analyst Shayan Talabany. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jalel Harchaoui, an expert on Gulf and North African power dynamics, unpacks the evolving relationship between the two regional rivals. While ties have improved dramatically since 2021, he warns that lingering rivalries across Africa could reignite tensions. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.