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Middle East

Middle East

The latest news, analysis and opinion on Middle East. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.

Illustration: Craig Stephens

Opinion | US precedent in Venezuela raises Asia’s fears of ‘rule of jungle’

Middle powers fear a return to ‘rules of the jungle’ geopolitics as rival powers carve out spheres of influence.

2 hours agovideocam

China-Middle East relations

China denounces use of force in Middle East as Trump threatens Iran strikes

4 hours agovideocam

China’s oil risks worsen as Trump threatens Iran

5 hours ago

Video | Iran steps up response to country’s largest protests in years

Iranian authorities warned the US and Israel they would retaliate if Washington follows through on threat to intervene.

12 Jan 2026 - 1:01PM

Iran protests

Trump says Iran wants to negotiate after reports of hundreds killed in unrest

Amidst unrest, Trump claims Iran seeks talks, but warns of strong action. Tehran blames the US and Israel, but signals openness to diplomacy.

2 hours agovideocam

Israel-Gaza war

Hamas says will dissolve its Gaza government when Palestinian body takes over

Militant group agrees to cede power to technocratic committee under Trump-brokered plan, but silence remains over disarmament.

12 Jan 2026 - 11:17AM

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Israel-Gaza war

Gaza clings to Medecins Sans Frontieres following Israeli aid ban

Israel announced it would ban 37 aid groups, including MSF, from operating in Gaza from for failing to provide information on Palestinian staff.

11 Jan 2026 - 5:58PM

A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza City on new year’s eve. Photo: AFP

Hong Kong economy

Hong Kong firm aims to build 30,000 modular flats a year with Saudi partner

AluHouse and Saudi Arabian partner will build factory to produce prefabricated flats and meet rising demand for homes in the Middle East.

11 Jan 2026 - 5:45PM

US says it carried out new ‘large-scale’ strikes against Isis in Syria

The attack is the latest response to a shooting by a lone militant that killed two American soldiers and a US civilian interpreter.

11 Jan 2026 - 5:54AMvideocam

‘Tools of repression’: crackdown fears grow as Iran rocked by new rallies

Activists warn authorities could intensify suppression of the protests under cover of the internet blackout.

10 Jan 2026 - 9:50PM

A frame grab from video shows a fire as people protest in Tehran, Iran, on Friday. Photo: UGC via AP

‘Something has to give’: Iran on the brink as protest fury mounts

Weakened by conflict with Israel and a plummeting currency, analysts say the regime faces a choice between radical reform or collapse.

10 Jan 2026 - 1:30PMvideocam

Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Kermanshah, Iran, on Thursday. Photo: TNS

Trump says protest-hit Iran in ‘big trouble’, again threatens military strike

The US president warned that ‘we’ll start shooting too’, if the authorities kill demonstrators.

10 Jan 2026 - 7:55AMvideocam

Protests sweep Iran amid internet blackout and state TV warning of casualties

Iranian state media breaks silence on protests as internet and phone access is restricted amid widening unrest.

9 Jan 2026 - 7:44PMvideocam

Video | Iran shuts down internet amid growing protests

The latest unrest, sparked by Iran’s worsening economy, has led to the deaths of at least 35 people.

9 Jan 2026 - 3:00PM

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Kurdish fighters refuse to leave Syria’s Aleppo after truce

Kurdish fighters defy Aleppo truce, sparking fears of wider conflict amid civilian evacuations and international pressure.

9 Jan 2026 - 8:41PM

Columns of smoke rise from Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyah neighbourhoods amid intense clashes between government forces and the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces. Photo: AFP

Israel-Gaza war

Israel says Bulgarian diplomat to direct Trump’s Board of Peace for Gaza

The Board of Peace is meant to oversee the implementation of the second and far more complicated phase of the Gaza ceasefire.

9 Jan 2026 - 1:12PM

Israel-Gaza war

‘Where is the ceasefire?’: Israeli gunfire kills 11-year-old in Gaza ‘safe zone’

Despite the agreement, Israel has killed 424 people since the ceasefire started nearly three months ago.

8 Jan 2026 - 8:06PM

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Ankara anchor: Malaysia finds Turkey ‘reliable friend’ in stormy global waters

Trump’s tariffs and actions in Venezuela are causing the Global South to look for less mercurial partners, analysts say.

8 Jan 2026 - 5:33PM

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (right) and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim exchange a signed agreement in Ankara on Wednesday. Photo: Turkish Presidency/Xinhua

Deadly clashes in Aleppo shatter Syria’s fragile peace as thousands flee

Fierce fighting between Syrian government forces and the Kurdish-led SDF exposes the failure of a year-long plan to merge the two militaries.

8 Jan 2026 - 2:49PM

US allies Saudi Arabia, UAE risk a split in Middle East over competing visions

A ‘new order’ is emerging as Abu Dhabi-backed separatist allies clash with pro-Riyadh governments in the region.

8 Jan 2026 - 5:21PM

UN accuses Israel of subjecting Palestinians in West Bank to ‘apartheid’

For first time, UN rights chief labels situation in occupied Palestinian territories ‘apartheid’, a term previously used only by UN experts.

7 Jan 2026 - 7:06PM

Israeli security forces check Palestinians’ IDs as they line up to return to Jenin through a gap in a security fence in September 2021. Photo: EPA-EFE

Opinion | Why Asia should be concerned about the US attack on Venezuela

Venezuela matters less as a case in itself than as a signal of how energy is being repositioned amid intensifying US-China competition.

7 Jan 2026 - 6:22PMvideocam

A man walks past a sculpture outside a building of Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA in Caracas, Venezuela, on May 17, 2019. Photo: Reuters

Electric & new energy vehicles

Tesla hits record sales; China carmakers eye third of global market: 7 EV reads

From automakers doubling down on discounts to Chinese robotaxis in the Middle East, here are seven EV stories you may have missed.

7 Jan 2026 - 12:28PM

US-Venezuela conflict

Why Iran may not be the next Venezuela despite twin threat of protests and Trump

The volatile situation in the Middle East and the greater role played by China in the region may give the US pause for thought.

6 Jan 2026 - 8:02PMvideocam

Iran protests death toll hits 35 and 1,200 detained, activists say

Iran’s judiciary vows ‘no leniency’ for rioters as nationwide unrest enters its second week.

6 Jan 2026 - 8:14PM

Protestors attacking a government building in Fasa, in southern Iran on December 31. Photo: Photo: UGC via AFP

Palestinian embassy in UK officially inaugurated

Ambassador Husam Zomlot hails upgrade from a mission to full embassy status as an ‘historic moment’.

6 Jan 2026 - 1:00PM

Palestinian Ambassador to the UK Dr Husam Zomlot delivers a speech during the inauguration ceremony of the Palestinian embassy in London on Monday. Photo: EPA

At least 16 dead in Iran during week of protests: rights groups

Rights groups report rising fatalities and hundreds of arrests in the biggest Iran protests in three years.

5 Jan 2026 - 10:01AM

Britain, France bombed suspected Isis arms dump in Syria: UK defence ministry

Intelligence analysis identified an underground facility believed ‍to contain weapons and explosives in mountains ‍near Palmyra, the UK said.

4 Jan 2026 - 1:38PM

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