Open Dialogue Research Journal
Israel’s defense minister stood before a map of southern Lebanon this week and described a fait accompli. More than 60 villages erased. Twenty-three thousand homes reduced to rubble. A 700-square-kilometer “security zone” carved into Lebanese territory, emptied of 200,000 Shiite residents, declared permanent until Hezbollah disarms. “We will not withdraw,” […]
Saudi Arabia might be losing a war it cannot afford to fight and cannot afford to quit. The Houthis have turned the kingdom’s greatest strengths—its vast geography and its oil wealth into liabilities. The question is no longer whether Riyadh can win. It is how long it would lose before […]
The Middle East’s strategic landscape is fracturing. As the US-led security architecture erodes, a volatile triangle emerges, defined by rivalry and exploitation. At its heart lies the turbulent Turkey-Israel relationship. For decades, it oscillated between cooperation and crisis. Today, it enters a more dangerous phase, and no actor benefits from […]
On September 30, 2026, the last US and coalition personnel departed Erbil Air Base in northern Iraq. Operation Inherent Resolve -the 12-year mission launched to defeat ISIS- was formally over. The next day, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi stood before the nation and declared October 1 “Sovereignty Day,” announcing […]
For years, a normalization deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel has been described as the ultimate prize in “Middle Eastern Diplomacy” — the keystone that would complete the Abraham Accords and reshape the region’s geopolitical architecture. Washington has pushed hard. Riyadh has signaled openness. Jerusalem has expressed eager anticipation. Yet […]
For decades, Iran has been considered one of the most influential and challenging powers in the Middle East. In fact, its geographical position, missile capabilities, drone industry, nuclear technology, and extended network of regional allies have given Tehran the ability to pressure its neighbors and change the whole scene in […]
For decades, the idea of Israeli forces advancing toward Damascus belonged mainly to the history books. Syria and Israel remained formally at war, but after 1974 their confrontation was largely contained. Israel bombed Iranian and Hezbollah targets inside Syria, sometimes very close to Damascus, yet occupying Syrian territory beyond the […]
Pakistan’s promise to defend Saudi Arabia is becoming harder to separate from Yemen’s war. On September 18, it was reported that army chief, Asim Munir, had urged Iran to restrain the Houthis amid attacks on Saudi cities and energy infrastructure. The intervention reveals Islamabad’s immediate and practical preference: using its […]
The latest confrontation around the Strait of Hormuz exposes a dangerous contradiction: measures intended to restore deterrence may be deepening the insecurity they promise to resolve. On September 8, Washington said it destroyed five Iranian oil tankers following missile attacks on an American warship. Tehran subsequently claimed attacks against ships […]
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed by Saudi Arabia, T+rkiye and Pakistan on 7 August 2026, is more than a reaction to immediate Middle Eastern instability. It represents an attempt by three influential regional powers to reduce their dependence on external security guarantees and exercise greater control over their strategic […]
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