Doha

Akram Afif: Fair Play Needed On and Off the Pitch

Qatar’s Akram Afif sparks controversy in World Cup qualifier vs UAE, raising questions on fair play and Middle Eastern football ethics.

New Alliances, Old Tensions: Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and the Future of Middle East Security

Israeli jets bomb Doha, killing six during ceasefire talks. Riyadh signs defense pact with Pakistan as Europe eyes stability for the India–Middle East–Europe Corridor and Qatari LNG supplies.

Slicing Up the Alliance: NATO’s Eastern Challenge  

As Russian drones crossed into Poland and Israel threatened Türkiye, the Atlantic Alliance found itself caught between its founding principles and geopolitical reality.

Trump May Have Found His Match in the UAE

Donald Trump visits Abu Dhabi in a new era of US-Gulf diplomacy, blending business with diplomacy in the Middle East, as the UAE redefines U.S.-GCC ties.

Popular

STC Take Hadhramaut: Fragmentation Leaves No Winners 

Clashes in Hadramout expose Yemen’s deep fractures as tribes, the STC, and oil interests battle over autonomy, power, and survival.

Thailand-Cambodia Fighting Raises Questions for Winter Travellers

Airstrikes on the Thai-Cambodian border look alarming from afar, yet tourism ads still show turquoise bays. How should travellers read this contradiction?

National Security Strategy: The Era of Investment Power

Washington has stopped acting like a global policeman and started operating like a hedge fund, trading lectures for massive sovereign wealth deposits.

Moscow’s Calculus: Guns Fall Silent, Commerce Speaks

As Moscow sheds the weight of defunct military pacts, it ruthlessly prioritizes the economic engines that bind it to Europe.

Italy’s UNESCO Victory: Shared Mediterranean Food Gets a National Label

UNESCO has crowned Italian cooking an intangible treasure, but in a shared Mediterranean kitchen it raises a question: how far can one country claim what ends up on the plate?