Saudi Arabia
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War in the Middle East
What's China's stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict?
Beijing is seeking to mediate in the war between Israel and Hamas. China has condemned both parties' violence. Despite this, public hostility towards Israel prevails
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Hamas-Israel conflict
What happens after Gaza?
Following Hamas's terrorist attack on 7 October, the world affirmed Israel’s right to defend itself. But political leaders on the front lines – and the international community more broadly – must start thinking about how to put the region on a path towards lasting peace and stability. By Carl Bildt
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Hamas-Israel conflict
Hamas violently forces detour from Saudi-Israel momentum
With its surprise attack against Israel, Hamas has violently shifted the world's eyes back to the Palestinians and dealt a severe blow to momentum to secure a landmark U.S.-brokered deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia
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Human rights and Islamism in the Gulf
This Barbie can't go to Kuwait
The recent ban of the Barbie film is part of a growing crackdown on feminism and freedom of expression in Kuwait. Hind Al Ansari argues that instead of tightening controls, the government should focus on developing spaces for open dialogue
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Saudi Arabia and the Khashoggi murder
Still no justice
Far from a pariah state after the assassination of the Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabia features ever more prominently on the world stage. How do Saudi activists keep fighting when the world is looking away? By Cathrin Schaer
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Saudi-Israeli relations
US-Saudi defence pact tied to Israel deal, Palestinian demands put aside
Saudi Arabia is seeking binding assurances of US protection in the event of an attack in return for normalisation with Israel – even if Israel does not agree to make major concessions to the Palestinians. Although such a deal could reshape the Middle East, it would mean that the Palestinian demand for statehood would take a back seat once again
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Bashar al-Assad in China
Will Xi Jinping help to end Syria's isolation?
Largely isolated since Syria's civil war began in 2011, President Bashar Assad will return home from a trip to China with a new "strategic partnership" in the works. Fu Yue reports
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Connecting the Gulf with Turkey
Iraq's Transport Corridors – no place for Kurdistan?
Excluding Kurdistan from a new infrastructure project in Iraq, designed to connect the Gulf with Turkey via road and rail, is purely political – despite the economic unfeasibility argument. Commentary by Sardar Aziz
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Iran-Saudi deal
The Islamic Republic's dilemma
Iran's deal last spring with Saudi Arabia, brokered by China, highlighted the emergence of an unstable equilibrium in the Islamic Republic's foreign policy. Amin Naeni and Ali Fathollah-Nejad explore the inherent tensions
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Halal Food
Financial Times: How to make lab-grown meat halal
Meat grown in a lab could be considered halal, according to advice from Islamic scholars in Saudi Arabia to a U.S. food start-up, as the industry starts to explore certification for products to fit religious dietary rules.
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Turkey's realpolitik in the Gulf
Dropping long-held convictions to seek deeper ties
Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to the Gulf states in July was his most productive so far, signing defence cooperation and other deals worth billions of dollars. But is a strategic partnership really possible while Turkey and the UAE continue to back conflicting sides in various regional crises? By Leyla Egeli
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Transnational repression
Why a friendlier Middle East is more dangerous for activists
Authoritarian governments often harass and hinder their critics, even if those people are outside the country. As former enemies become friends in the Middle East, will they cooperate to shut down opposition voices? By Cathrin Schaer