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  • Politics
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  • United States

President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders establishing the  “Trump Gold Card” and introducing a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas on September 19, 2025, in Washington, DC. Andrew Harnik / AFP

Trump's steep H-1B visa fees will do more harm than good

The president has slapped a one-off six-figure fee on visa petitions for specialist occupations seeking to work in the US. This will have huge repercussions for both industries and countries.

Abdel-Rahman Ayas 28 September 2025
Qatar's Emir Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani (C) reviews a military honour guard with Chinese President Xi Jinping (L) during a welcoming ceremony in Beijing's Great Hall of the People on January 31, 2019. GREG BAKER / AFP

Pivot to China? Gulf states mull options after Doha strike

Israel's attack in Qatar erodes Gulf states' trust in the US and serves as a stark reminder that they cannot depend on American security guarantees

Xiaotong Yang 13 September 2025
Dela wa Monga, an artisanal miner, holds a cobalt stone at the Shabara artisanal mine near Kolwezi in the Democratic Republic of Congo on October 12, 2022. Junior KANNAH / AFP

Ending wars in exchange for minerals: a new US model?

Three decades of fighting in eastern Congo involving Rwanda and others was supposed to have come to an end in June. Is US economic engagement the magic wand its wielder says it is?

Sergey Eledinov 06 September 2025
Elon Musk (R) has laid down the gauntlet to US President Donald Trump (L) with a new political party formed in response to their disagreement over Trump's tax and spending plans, which will add $3tn to the national debt. Dave Murray

Elon Musk’s new political party: grand plans and a tall task

America's political duopoly seems ironclad, having last been broken by Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Several have tried since, but none have succeeded. Can America's richest man break the mould?

Christopher Phillips 11 July 2025
Troops from the US-led coalition against Islamic State (IS) training SDF fighters in Syria's north-eastern Hasakah province on 7 September 2022. Delil Souleiman/AFP

Exit signs: America’s full withdrawal from Syria seems imminent

A flurry of decisions suggests that the end is nigh for US troops in Syria, and that this may come sooner than expected. In laying the foundations for withdrawal, Donald Trump wants 'out' by Christmas

Caroline Rose 07 June 2025

Lifting the veil on secret US-Assad talks

Al Majalla reveals the covert talks over several years between the representatives of a reluctant Syrian president and successive White House administrations hoping find a missing American.

Ibrahim Hamidi 21 May 2025
Russia's President Vladimir Putin greets Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi prior to the Victory Day military parade in Moscow on May 9, 2025. Mikhail METZEL / AFP

As Trump visited the Gulf, Egypt was busy meeting with its new friends

These days, Cairo looks more to Beijing and Moscow than to Washington, a policy change with its roots in the toppling of Hosni Mubarak more than a decade ago.

Amr Emam 20 May 2025
A currency exchange shop in Moscow displays the Russian ruble to dollar exchange rate on November 27, 2024. AFP

Even if sanctions are eased, Russia's economy will be strained

While some indicators are positive, others are troubling. The arrival of Donald Trump in the White House has given the Kremlin a political boost, and lifting sanctions will help, but it is no panacea.

Nazareth Seferian 16 March 2025
Brian Stauffer

The effects of a Trump or Harris presidency on the Middle East

Donald Trump's previous administration offers clues as to how he would approach 2025-29, but Kamala Harris is more of an unknown quantity. Whoever wins, their policies would ripple through the region

Paul Salem 04 August 2024
US Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks at a campaign event on July 27, 2024. Stephanie Scarbrough/Reuters

Can Kamala Harris win?

Joe Biden's vice-president has an extraordinary opportunity. But she also has a mountain to climb

The Economist 30 July 2024
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Ahmed al-Sharaa, President of the Syrian Arab Republic, and General David H. Petraeus (US Army, Ret.) speak onstage during the 2025 Concordia Annual Summit at Sheraton New York Times Square on September 22, 2025. Riccardo Savi / AFP
Politics

Sharaa gets warm UN welcome. But can he break the ice in Congress?

30 September 2025

Facing a legitimacy crisis both at home and abroad, the new Syrian administration may find that the road to full acceptance and sanctions relief will be a long one

Caroline Rose
Opinion

Why more celebrities are speaking out on Gaza

30 September 2025

Fans increasingly expect their idols to speak up on issues that matter to them and are not afraid to boycott to get their point across, meaning celebrities can no longer hide behind neutrality

Samer Abou Hawwach
A woman walks past a mural depicting late former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela July 27, 2024. Maxwell Briceno / Reuters
Politics

From friends to foes: the unravelling of US-Venezuela ties

19 September 2025

From close military cooperation to coup attempts and now literal gunboat diplomacy under Trump, Al Majalla tracks the evolution of the relationship between Caracas and Washington over the decades

Stefanie Butendieck Hijerra
Ewan White
Business & Economy

Crypto crossroad: the Middle East faces a digital dilemma

29 September 2025

There are vastly different approaches to digital assets across the region, with some still reticent to embrace a $4tn industry

Sharif Mohammad
Supplied
Culture & Social Affairs

Artist Elias Izoli returns with an exploration of balance

29 September 2025

The Syrian painter's new exhibition shows how tragedies around the world have shaped him and his work

Mimoza Al-Arrawi

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OPINIONS

Trump's plan for Gaza shortchanges Palestinians

Fares Garabet
Fares Garabet

The self-sustaining economics of conflict in Africa

Sergey Eledinov
Sergey Eledinov

Jomana R. Alrashid becomes first Saudi named to TIME’s annual TIME100 Next list of the 100 leaders shaping the future

Al Majalla - London
Al Majalla - London

Moldovans choose Brussels over Moscow

Con Coughlin
Con Coughlin
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