Latest news with #Basharal-Assad
Spectator
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Why Muslim-majority countries have turned against Iran
Swift condemnations have poured in from the Muslim world castigating Israel for bombing Iran. The UAE condemned Israel 'in the strongest terms', Jordan spoke up against Israeli attacks 'threatening regional stability', Saudi Arabia denounced 'blatant Israeli aggressions', Turkey espoused 'an end to Israel's banditry', while various Muslim diplomatic groups, including the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), demanded 'international action' against the Jewish State. But cloaked underneath this predictably farcical rhetoric of 'Muslim unity' are the evolving interests of many of these states, which today align seamlessly with Israel. Saudi Arabia has described 'evil' Iran as the 'head of the snake' In Israel's immediate neighbourhood, Lebanese officials are blocking the depleted Iranian jihadist proxy Hezbollah from taking action against Israel. Meanwhile, the Ahmed al-Sharaa-led Syria, after toppling the pro-Iran Bashar al-Assad regime, has been negotiating a peace deal to recognise Israel and allow Syrian territory to be used to block Iranian attacks. Jordan, meanwhile, is directly intercepting Iranian missiles. This is similar to its downing of drones last year, as part of a regional military coalition featuring Saudi Arabia and the UAE that provided key intelligence against Iran. Turkey, too, reportedly had prior knowledge of Israeli strikes on Iran. Sunni Gulf states have seen Shia Iran as an imperial threat in the region since clerics took over Tehran following the Iranian revolution in 1979. They accuse Iran of backing Shia uprisings against Sunni rulers in countries like Bahrain, along with pushing militia in Iraq and Yemen to aspire to propel Shia regimes. Of course, these Sunni states, led by Saudi Arabia, have long used jihadist proxies to exploit the same Sunni–Shia fault-lines and thwart Iranian plans in order to maintain their own regional hegemony. Riyadh went a step further by formulating a military alliance of Sunni states, the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition, aimed at Iran and its Shia allies. But while the Sunni–Shia sectarian divide within Islam is 14 centuries old, in recent years the antagonism has crossed the weapons-grade threshold following the advent of a very modern threat: the nuclear bomb. When Israel struck Iranian nuclear sites and eliminated scientists along with key generals, it also inadvertently did so on behalf of leading Sunni regimes that have long been petrified by the prospect of Iran building a nuclear weapon. Saudi Arabia, which has described 'evil' Iran as the 'head of the snake', has repeatedly condemned the US nuclear deal with Iran in 2015. It has also regularly urged other Muslim-majority countries to reject 'Iranian terrorism'. Only a couple of weeks ago, Saudi defence minister Prince Khalid bin Salman warned Iranian officials to accept US president Donald Trump's offer of a new nuclear agreement or face the Israeli strikes that followed a little over a fortnight later. A similar message was delivered by the UAE to Iran in March. The Gulf states normalising relations with Israel are doing so as part of their modernising bids. This entails shunning violent Islamic laws and codes, from which their erstwhile antisemitic rhetoric against the Jewish State originates. This move is critical in order to diversify their petro-economies, which require regional stability to attract global investment. While sanctions-hit Iran has even more to gain financially by embracing moderation and peace in the region, it does not have a monarchy that could simply flip the switch on decades of spreading radical Islam and jihadist militancy. Self-identifying as 'resistance' against the West and Israel and flying the 'flag of Islam against infidels' is a matter of survival for the clerics in Tehran, even as the writing is on the wall for Iran's rulers following the fall of their proxies in Syria and Lebanon. If the Iranian regime is to go, it should ideally be toppled by the Iranians, who have lived under its brutalities for almost half a century, with local protests and attacks against the clergy increasing in recent years. While there are fears among the Iranian populace that the war could cause destruction similar to that seen in Gaza, there are millions of Muslims across the region who have suffered at the hands of Iran and its militias, and who would celebrate the demise of Iranian clerical rule – even if it is Israel that is to deal the final blow. And the Gulf states, led by Saudi Arabia, have already laid the groundwork to pose as the saviours and custodians of these Muslims in the aftermath of Israeli strikes they are officially condemning. Saudi Arabia has conveniently distanced itself from what is, in effect, the execution of its plans against Iran by officially normalising relations with Tehran following a China-brokered deal in 2023, after seven years of severed ties. This has allowed Riyadh to publicly pose as a mediator in Iran's nuclear talks with the US, while it covertly delivers Israeli threats to Tehran and continues to inform Washington of its intention to acquire nuclear arms. Like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Turkey have their own plans to lead the Muslim world once the only non-Sunni claimant for the same – Iran – is effectively sidelined. All of these states, however, need Israel to eliminate the Iranian regime so as not to completely alienate Shia populations. Public hostility towards Israel will continue to grow in these countries as they quietly celebrate the gains of the Jewish state.
Yemen Online
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Yemen Online
Yemen Seizes 1.5 Million Captagon Pills, Alleges Houthis Fueling War Through Drug Trade
Yemeni authorities said they seized 1.5 million Captagon pills hidden on the roof of a refrigerated truck traveling from the Houthi-controlled capital, Sanaa, to Saudi Arabia — a bust that officials allege reveals a shift in regional drug trafficking routes and highlights the Houthis' growing reliance on narcotics smuggling to fund their military operations. The seizure, announced by Yemen's Interior Ministry, suggests that Yemen may be emerging as a new hub in the Captagon trade following reported crackdowns in Syria, where the trade had flourished for years under the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. According to a statement from the ministry, the truck driver admitted the shipment belonged to drug dealers in Sanaa. Authorities believe the shipment is tied to the Iran-backed Houthi militia, and say it reflects the presence of extensive drug production and smuggling networks operating inside Houthi-controlled territory. Brig. Gen. Abdullah Lahmadi, director general of drug control at the ministry, said the discovery underscores the scale of trafficking allegedly supported by the Houthis. Information Minister Muammar al-Eryani of the internationally recognized Yemeni government wrote on X that this attempt comes at 'a sensitive time after the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria, which represented the main corridor for the Captagon trade to the Gulf states.' 'With the collapse of [the Assad] regime, the Houthis exploited the resulting vacuum to enhance their criminal activities and transform Yemen into a new starting point for drug smuggling, which deepens their security threats and further deteriorates the regional situation,' he added. Al-Eryani said the seizure 'highlights the malicious tactics that the Houthi militia relies on to finance its military operations and terrorist activities.' Abdulhamid Amer, head of the National Center for Strategic Studies, echoed the accusation, telling the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) that the Houthi group 'relies heavily on drugs to finance its ongoing wars.' A 2024 report by a U.N. Panel of Experts on Yemen also accused the Houthis of generating 'substantial illegal resources' through trafficking in drugs, arms and telecommunications equipment. Amer pointed to a rise in drug smuggling toward Saudi Arabia and the Gulf after the Assad regime's collapse and the weakening of Hezbollah in Syria — two groups previously linked to Captagon trafficking. He said the shift has been enabled by the Houthis' control over large areas in Yemen. Among the signs of increased smuggling, Amer cited a surge in land and maritime trafficking operations, a spike in drug volumes, the rise of commercial and agricultural fronts used for laundering, and growing domestic drug use, especially among youth. While the internationally recognized Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of spearheading the shift in the Captagon trade, the Houthi authorities have blamed Saudi Arabia. In 2021, Abdul Khaleq Al-Ajri, then-spokesman for the Houthi-run Interior Ministry, alleged that Riyadh was behind large-scale drug smuggling. He claimed Saudi Arabia released 3,000 Yemeni prisoners on the condition that they engage in trafficking within Yemen. Saudi Arabia backs Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), which leads the internationally recognized government and is tasked with uniting anti-Houthi factions. A Houthi government spokesperson was not immediately available for comment. Meanwhile, Syria's interim government has claimed to be cracking down on the Captagon trade. Transitional Interior Minister Anas Khattab recently said all production facilities in the country had been shut down. But evidence suggests smuggling continues: in a recent incident, authorities intercepted 200,000 Captagon pills being smuggled through Syria. Still, the Washington-based New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy noted that seizures have not led to significant arrests of traffickers. 'The technical knowledge to produce Captagon remains and could be redeployed elsewhere. Smuggling networks continue to operate, though likely on a diminishing scale, as regime-linked stockpiles dwindle,' the institute said in a recent report. The group also noted that Syria's interim government 'lacks the institutional capacity for effective counternarcotics operations,' with primitive disposal methods such as burning or dumping pills into waterways. Syria became the region's leading source of Captagon during the last decade, with the Assad regime accused of transforming the country into a narco-state. A 2023 joint investigation by OCCRP and the BBC found that members of the Assad family and Syrian Armed Forces were directly involved in the billion-dollar trade.
India.com
21 hours ago
- Politics
- India.com
What Happens To Russia If Iran Weakens? Putin's Dilemma In West Asia
New Delhi: As fighting between Israel and Iran intensifies, questions are being raised over what a weakened Iran might mean for Russia – both strategically and geopolitically. With Iran under direct military assault from Israel and facing increasing international isolation, many analysts believe that a shift in power dynamics could leave Russia more vulnerable in West Asia – a region where it has long struggled to maintain influence. The backdrop to this concern lies in the end of 2024, when Syria's President Bashar al-Assad was forced to step down and seek refuge in Moscow. Assad had been a key ally for Russia in West Asia for over a decade. His departure not only marked the collapse of one of Russia's closest partnerships in the region but also raised concerns over the future of Russian influence, particularly in the face of growing Israeli-American alignment. Now, with Iran facing sustained Israeli attacks and no direct military support from Moscow, some observers are asking, 'Why is Russia staying on the sidelines?' Russia officially has taken a cautious and neutral stance. President Vladimir Putin condemned Israel's strikes on Iran but also urged diplomacy when speaking to both Israeli and Iranian leaders shortly after the conflict erupted on June 13. According to Kremlin readouts, Putin emphasised that the Iranian nuclear issue must be resolved through dialogue, not force. Putin later told the UAE's President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan that Russia was willing to mediate between the warring sides. While these efforts suggest Russia wants to be seen as a peacemaker, its lack of concrete support for Iran has raised eyebrows – especially since Tehran is considered a strategic partner in Moscow's broader regional ambitions. Analysts said the answer lies in Moscow's own limitations. Russia is deeply entangled in the Ukraine conflict and cannot afford to open another front. It also does not want to push the United States into taking a harder line. They pointed out that if Russia were not bogged down in Ukraine, it might have taken a stronger stand with Iran. But the situation today is reversed. Iran, which previously supplied drones to Russia, is now the one in need of weapons. Moscow is unlikely to supply advanced military aid when it is struggling to replenish its own stockpiles. In addition, backchannel negotiations between Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump may also be shaping Russia's muted response. 'Russia is trying to preserve its ability to talk to Washington. Openly siding with Iran could shut that door,' they explained. A Strategic, Economic Risk for Moscow Despite its neutral posture, Russia has a lot to lose if Iran falls. If Iran is weakened, the experts warned, the United States and Israel could consolidate their dominance over West Asia. 'That is not a scenario Russia, China, Turkey or many Islamic nations would be comfortable with,' they argued. Iran's loss could mark the end of multipolar influence in West Asia. Moscow has already lost Assad in Syria. If Iran's government were to collapse under military pressure, Russia would lose another key regional ally. The prospect raises further complications for the balance of power in the Middle East and for Russia's long-term ambitions in the region. There are, however, some potential benefits. A prolonged conflict in West Asia could spike global oil prices, giving a boost to Russian revenues. Still, economic gain cannot compensate for the loss of strategic depth in the Middle East. Moscow is also reportedly trying to position itself as a potential peacemaker in the region, but Trump's recent comments suggest the United States may be uninterested in any diplomatic role for Russia. 'Trump's strategy appears to be one of maximum pressure. That leaves little room for Russia to mediate,' said the analysts. The Limitations of BRICS and SCO Iran is a member of both the BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), but these groupings have remained silent. The observers say that is because these are economic and political alliances, not military ones. 'These platforms are not designed to provide collective security. Also, many of their members, like India and China, do not want to antagonize the West,' they said. Countries like China and Russia are also wary of U.S. secondary sanctions. If Washington imposes punitive measures, it could hurt their economies and force them to rethink how far they can go in supporting Iran. The analysts have warned that a defeat for Iran would tip the scales further in Israel's favour. They highlighted that with Assad gone, Hamas and Hezbollah weakened and Gaza devastated, Iran is the last significant counterweight to Israeli power in the region. If Iran is neutralised, Russia's remaining influence in West Asia could collapse. China, too, would become more reliant on pro-U.S. Gulf states for energy. This would also deal a blow to the idea of a 'multipolar world', an idea frequently promoted by Russia, China and India. A unipolar dominance led by the United States could again become the defining feature of global geopolitics. However, the observers add a note of caution – 'Even if Iran falls, it does not guarantee U.S. victory. Look at Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria – Western interventions often produce instability, not resolution.' The fear is that Iran's defeat could trigger a repeat of the cycle – regime change, refugee crises, rising extremism and a prolonged state of chaos. Russia's silence may be a tactical choice, but it could come at a significant strategic cost.
Newsweek
a day ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Putin is Close to Losing His Grip on the Middle East
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered himself as a Middle East mediator to end Israel's "Operation Rising Lion" against Iran, but for Moscow the escalating conflict could also see another instalment of what could be termed "Operation Falling Influence." Six months after the ousting of his Syrian ally Bashar al-Assad, Putin now sees another Moscow friendly regime teetering, as Donald Trump weighs up joining Israel's targeting of the Islamic Republic's nuclear capabilities. "If the Assad regime was like an appetizer, the loss of the Iran regime in the Russian orbit would be the main course," Andrew Borene, a former senior staff officer at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) told Newsweek. Six months after the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, Vladimir Putin now sees another Moscow friendly regime teetering, as Donald Trump weighs up joining Israel's targeting of Iran's nuclear capabilities. Six months after the ousting of Bashar al-Assad, Vladimir Putin now sees another Moscow friendly regime teetering, as Donald Trump weighs up joining Israel's targeting of Iran's nuclear capabilities. Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty/Canva "We're not going to have clarity until the chaos settles, but if the Iranian regime were to collapse, I have a hard time seeing a future in which Russia is not diminished in its influence in the Middle East," Borene said. That process of Moscow's waning regional clout comes even as state media in Russia accentuated the positives in the current situation, like the rise in the price of its key commodity oil. But an op-ed in Russian newspaper Kommersant by political scientist Andrei Kortunov acknowledged Israel's military operation presents "serious risks" for Russia. "Russian Middle East policy has been put on its head," Gregg Roman, executive director of the Middle East Forum told Newsweek. As well as Syria and Iraq, Russia is losing any influence it had in Iran, he said. "Regarding traditional actors in the Middle East, where the Russians have tried to cast their eye and get their influence—that era has ended," Roman said. Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on January 17, 2025. Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin in Moscow on January 17, Cold War Clout During the Cold War, Moscow funded and armed Arab states like Egypt, Syria and Iraq while the U.S. held sway in NATO member Turkey, Israel and other parts of the Middle East region. But the U.S. stole a march on Russia's regional clout following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. By 2010, every country in the Middle East had a positive relationship with the United States, except for Iran and Syria, the Center for Strategic and International Studies noted in 2017. The Syrian civil war that started in 2011 saw Putin's forces intervening in the following years, reinforcing Moscow's military foothold in the country centered on the naval facility at Tartus and the air base at Khmeimim. However, after Assad fled to Moscow after being overthrown by opposition groups led by Sunni Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, Moscow's grip on the region, which included naval access to the Mediterranean, has weakened. Borene, executive director for global security at private threat intelligence firm Flashpoint, said the consequences of the Israel-Iran conflict will be more far-reaching than if it had taken place during the bipolar Cold War era of Moscow and Washington's spheres of influence. "It is a constellation of regional powers," he said. "If Russia is eroding and the European bloc stay united and start investing in defense capacity as themselves, not as NATO proper, then we will see a reduced Russia and an increasing European base." Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin are seen on a poster in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 8, 2022. Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin are seen on a poster in the Syrian capital Damascus on March 8, Treaty Russia has turned to Iran for help in the invasion of Ukraine, using its Shahed "kamikaze" drones in repeated strikes that have devastated Ukrainian infrastructure. Moscow has now used this know-how to produce many of the Iranian drones domestically, but the countries' security and defense relationship was cemented by the Russian-Iranian Treaty on Comprehensive Strategic Partnership signed on January 17 and touted by Putin. Absent from the deal was a mutual defense clause which Roman said showed how Moscow had made it clear that it would never defend the Iranians militarily. This leaves the diplomatic option but Putin is struggling to be heard. The Russian foreign ministry's denunciation of Israel's attacks as "unprovoked military strikes on a sovereign UN member state" could describe Moscow's own actions in Ukraine. Trump suggested as much in referring to the conflict Putin started in its neighbor rebuffing the Russian leader's peacemaker offer, saying he should end his own war first. Smoke billows in the distance from an oil refinery following an Israeli strike on the Iranian capital Tehran on June 17, 2025. Smoke billows in the distance from an oil refinery following an Israeli strike on the Iranian capital Tehran on June 17, has been taken by surprise by Israel's strikes on Iran whose exiled crown prince, Reza Pahlavi, called for a revolution to oust the regime of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who he said had gone into hiding "like a frightened rat." Even if the regime remains, Moscow faces the prospect of having a strategic partnership with the conflict's loser. Roman said that while Russia still has its interests in the Middle East, there is a new phase in its engagement in the region with Moscow selling arms to Egypt and stepping up its activities in Libya and further afield in North Africa. "But in terms of strategic partnerships and state-to-state relations it can rely on for military aid or for the deployment of Russian military assets— that chapter is on its way to close."
New Straits Times
a day ago
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Two million Syrians returned home since Assad's fall
BEIRUT, Lebanon: Over two million Syrians who had fled their homes during their country's war have returned since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad, UN refugee agency chief Filippo Grandi said Thursday, ahead of a visit to Syria. The Syrian civil war, which erupted in 2011 with Assad's brutal repression of anti-government protests, displaced half of the population internally or abroad. But Assad's December 8 ouster at the hands of Islamist forces sparked hopes of return. "Over two million Syrian refugees and displaced have returned home since December," Grandi wrote on X during a visit to neighbouring Lebanon, which hosts about 1.5 million Syrian refugees, according to official estimates. It is "a sign of hope amid rising regional tensions," he said. "This proves that we need political solutions -- not another wave of instability and displacement." After 14 years of war, many returnees face the reality of finding their homes and property badly damaged or destroyed. But with the recent lifting of Western sanctions on Syria, new authorities hope for international support to launch reconstruction, which the UN estimates could cost more than $400 billion. Earlier this month, UNHCR estimated that up to 1.5 million Syrians from abroad and two million internally displaced persons may return by the end of 2025. - AFP
