AL-Monitor

12/17/2025

BREAKING: Senate vote paves way for Trump to repeal Syria’s Caesar sanctions

President Trump is poised to sign bipartisan legislation scrapping the sanctions that were seen as a major obstacle to Syria's economic recovery.

President Trump is poised to sign bipartisan legislation scrapping the sanctions that were seen as a major obstacle to Syria's economic recovery.

12/17/2025

NEW: Over 600 Israeli ex-security chiefs urge Trump to disarm Hamas, back PA in Gaza

Former Israeli security and diplomatic officials, members of Commanders for Israel’s Security, sent a letter to President Trump urging him to disarm Hamas and involve the Palestinian Authority in the second phase of his Gaza peace plan.

12/17/2025

NEW: Syria foils major arms smuggling attempt to Lebanon: What we know

Syrian authorities have stepped up operations targeting smuggling attempts mainly destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon since the fall of President Bashar al‑Assad’s regime last year.

Syrian authorities have stepped up operations targeting smuggling attempts mainly destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon since the fall of President Bashar al‑Assad’s regime last year.

12/17/2025

Iran boxer sentenced to death at 'imminent' risk of ex*****on: rights groups

An Iranian boxer sentenced to death on charges of membership of an outlawed group is at imminent risk of ex*****on after his request for a retrial was rejected, rights groups and the exiled opposition said on Wednesday.The World Boxing Council and sporting luminaries including former tennis star Mar...

12/17/2025

Explainer- What's next for the Gaza ceasefire and will the truce last?

Dec 17 - More than two months after Israel and Hamas agreed a ceasefire halting two years of devastating warfare in Gaza, most fighting has stopped.However, both ​sides accuse each other of major breaches of the deal and look no closer ​to accepting the much more difficult steps envisaged for th...

12/17/2025

Supporters of Tunisia’s Saied rally amid deepening political divisions

By Tarek AmaraTUNIS, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Tunisian President Kais Saied's ​supporters rallied in the capital on ​Wednesday calling the opposition "traitors", following mounting street protests in recent ⁠weeks that have highlighted widening political divisions.The rival rallies come amid a deepe...

12/17/2025

Morocco’s markets rise as World Cup spending fuels largest IPO in decades
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2025/12/moroccos-markets-rise-world-cup-spending-fuels-largest-ipo-decades

12/17/2025

Iran’s FM Araghchi in Moscow as biting sanctions drive closer Russia ties

The economic agenda of the meetings in Moscow and Tehran reflected a deliberate effort by both governments to signal momentum in a partnership increasingly shaped by isolation from the West.

12/17/2025

Iran refusing to allow independent medical examination of Nobel winner: family

Iranian authorities are refusing to allow an independent medical examination of Nobel peace prize winner Narges Mohammadi after she was beaten during her arrest last week, her family said on Tuesday.Her brother Hamid Reza Mohammadi, who lives in Norway, told reporters in Paris via video link that sh...

12/17/2025

Six members of Canada's parliament travelling from Jordan were denied entry to the occupied West Bank on Tuesday by Israeli authorities who accused the delegation of being sponsored by "a terror entity."

Six members of Canada's parliament travelling from Jordan were denied entry to the occupied West Bank on Tuesday by Israeli authorities who accused the delegation of being sponsored by "a terror entity."Jenny Kwan, an opposition lawmaker with Canada's left-wing New Democratic Party, told AFP that on...

12/17/2025

No news on whereabouts or health of Iranian Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi, supporters say

By John IrishPARIS, Dec 16 (Reuters) - The brother and lawyer of ​Iranian human rights activist and Nobel ​Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi said on Tuesday they have no information ⁠on her whereabouts or health, four days after her arrest.Mohammadi was arrested on Friday after denouncing ...

12/16/2025

President Donald Trump on Tuesday expanded a US travel ban by barring nationals of seven more countries including Syria, as well as Palestinian Authority passport holders, from entering the United States.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday expanded a US travel ban by barring nationals of seven more countries including Syria, as well as Palestinian Authority passport holders, from entering the United States.Trump, who has long campaigned to restrict immigration and has spoken in increasingly strident t...