Iran

In March there was talk of armed Kurdish fighters opening a second front in Iran's north-west, but it never happened—for several very good reasons.

Beijing can help Washington find a way out of its Gulf quagmire, but it won't come cheap. Xi Jinping may wonder aloud if the Americans still plan to defend Taiwan.

Even when appeals to open the Hormuz Strait come from a close ally like Beijing, they fall on deaf ears in Tehran. But hope is not yet lost.

The IRGC doesn't just defend the state, it runs it. To wave the white flag wouldn't just mean giving up its arms; it would mean dismantling the organisation and its patronage networks.

Rising oil prices will boost the Kremlin's coffers as costs over Ukraine mount, but a total defeat of Iran could lead to the deployment of radar stations in the north, near Russia's border

From military spending to energy markets, the US-Israeli war on Iran is driving rising costs, with the Strait of Hormuz emerging as a central pressure point

Instead of taking down the Islamic Republic, what the assassinations have done is harden public support and accelerate the regime's militarisation

Al Majalla visits camps in northern Iraq hours after they were bombed by Iran or Iran-backed Iraqi militias. For many of the groups here, the hour has come for change.

If the Islamic Republic were to fall, there would be different implications for both Caucasus countries. Decision-makers in Baku and Yerevan have much to ponder.

European gas prices have jumped by 30% after some big GCC oil and gas producers cut supplies, and now a vital maritime trade route is being threatened. The stakes have seldom been higher.