Politics
For the first time, the Taliban announce the appointment of a Shia Hazara as district governor. Is this a strategic calculation or does it indicate an opening up of the group that has thus far dominated by Pashtuns?
Semi-authoritarian regimes throughout the Middle East are looking for ways to combine the fight against coronavirus, populism and crisis management – and to weaken their opponents. To that end, Iran and Turkey are treading a similar path.
For five whole months Iraq has waited for a new government – will Mustafa al-Kadhimi be the one to break the deadlock? The prime minister designate has limited room to manoeuvre. But Tehran is feeling the pressure, too.
Terror, organised crime, civil war over the border. A perfect storm is brewing over Chad and its much-praised army. The country’s president Idriss Déby now has to fight on several fronts – and seems poorly prepared.
Saudi Arabia wants to use the coronavirus pandemic to put the costly fiasco of the Yemen war behind it - and save face in the process. The Houthis, on the other hand, now feel their time has come.
The spread of coronavirus has shone light on the various alliances and conflicts throughout the region, but the unfolding pandemic seems only to be deepening divisions rather than healing them.
Peace with and within Iran may seem an outlandish prospect to many following recent events. Yet reaching an agreement is now not only vital for the stability of neighbouring countries, but also in the interests of the Iranian people themselves.
As recent events have deepened uncertainty in the Gulf, zenith asks former Saudi intelligence chief Turki al-Faisal for his thoughts on the death of Qassem Suleimani, Saudi support for Iraq and a possible rapprochement between the kingdom and Iran.