Search results

Omani officials told GSN that the failure to achieve a settlement to the Israel/Palestinian conflict was nurturing radicalisation and undermining the prospects for resolving other political problems across the Middle East.

An explosion at the Jabal Attan military site in southern Sanaa on 30 November remains unexplained, with pictures of smoke and fire at the base being shared on social media.

The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy (Nedaja)’s newest vessel, the frigate Deylaman, officially joined its Caspian Sea fleet in late November. The ship is the seventh Moudge-class vessel, a design of light frigate based on the British-built Vosper Thorneycroft Mk5 Alvand.

A United States-led taskforce has been launched to protect commercial shipping in the Red Sea, after Houthi rebels launched more than 100 drone and ballistic missile attacks over the past month. However, most Gulf countries have declined to join, with just Bahrain signing up to date.

Fincantieri delivered the fourth and final Al-Zubarah class corvette to Qatar's Ministry of Defence. The Al-Zubarah class corvettes are 107 meters long and capable of a maximum speed of 28 knots. The flight deck can accommodate one NH90 helicopter.

Protestors have refused to stand down in the face of sometimes overwhelming state force in the seven weeks since Mahsa Amini died in custody. The movement’s support base has spread across the country and into parts of society not usually associated with political demonstrations, putting Ayatollah Ali Khamenei under unprecedented pressure. His regime is not yet facing the end, but the challenge to the clerical/military leadership will not fade easily or quickly.

A tougher US stance on Hormuz may usher in a period of greater risk – especially if mounting economic pressures make Iran feel it has little to lose by picking a fight at sea. The USS Abraham Lincoln, one of the US Navy’s flagship aircraft carriers, left the Gulf on 14 February following a 20-day “freedom of navigation” exercise.

The 'Axis of Resistance' bloc of state and non-state actors, Shia and Sunni militias, has been long in the making, as Iran's revolutionary elite has sought to project its influence via a disparate group of organisations ranged across the Middle East. Its components are of differing sizes and capabilities, and their links to Iran also vary.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) Navy has inaugurated a new naval base at Sirik, on the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz, adding to its network in and around the strategic channel. It covers a 31ha area and has taken six years to build, according to local media. IRGC commander Major General Hossein Salami inaugurated the base on 24 September, saying it would further develop Iran’s “combat operations, ship operations, reconnaissance as well as defensive and offensive operations in the Persian Gulf.”

Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces chief of staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri inaugurated a drone factory in Dushanbe, Tajikistan on 17 May. Bagheri had arrived the previous day, to be greeted on arrival in the Tajik capital by chief of the general staff Lieutenant General Imomali Sobirzoda.

Saudi Prince Abdulrahman Bin Mohammed Bin Abdelaziz Bin Ayyaf Al-Muqrin was appointed deputy defence minister in June. He had previously been cabinet secretary-general from spring 2017 to July 2022, when he was appointed an advisor at the Royal Court.

Edge’s radar venture will target non-Nato customers, in a similar arrangement to a recent agreement between Edge and Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri to manufacture frigates in Abu Dhabi

The US and UK have announced sanctions on four senior Houthi figures linked to the campaign against commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. GSN’s latest map of the Yemen/Red Sea conflict zone shows a conflict zone where more than 30 ships have been targeted by Houthi missiles and drones since mid-November, forcing hundreds more vessels to divert around the southern tip of Africa – adding costs and delays to global trade.

Saudi deputy defence minister Prince Khalid Bin Salman’s virtual meeting with Chinese national defence minister General Wei Fenghe points to shifting alignments as – reports from Beijing concluded – US influence in the region wanes and Riyadh builds on missile technology links with Beijing

Bahrain’s new order, approved by the US State Department, includes 50 Abrams main battle tanks, as well as tank munitions, machine guns and smoke grenade launchers