MIDDLE EAST CENTER FOR REPORTING AND ANALYSIS

IranThe daily updates are compiled by Seth J. Frantzman, Executive Director of MECRA. For the previous installment which covers March 2021 to July 2021, click here. July 1, 2021 Arash solid propellent test. July 3 Ship targeted allegedly by Iran making its way from Gulf to India, rumored to be owned by Israeli firm, but this is denied in Israel. July 4 US denies reports of attack in Syria by pro-Iran groups. Bennett meets cabinet to discuss possible US return to Iran Deal, ph

IranThe daily updates are compiled by Seth J. Frantzman, Executive Director of MECRA. For the previous installment which covers December 2020 to March 2021, click here. March 1 PMU says US targeted its forces in Iraq during Feb. 26 airstrike. Houthis say they've used 15 UAVs, 9 of which were Samad-3 and an [#Iran-ian] Zolfaghar ballistic missile. Iraqi Fatah Coalition on US airstrike against PMF (Hashd) on Iraqi-Syrian: The mission of the International Coalition has changed f

For the previous installment of our daily Iran-US tensions blog, click here. For the next installment click here. December 1 Brodsky: Al Arabiya is reporting November 30 an Iran IRGC commander Muslim Shahdan (not familiar with this name) was killed overnight Sunday in a drone strike on the border between #Syria and #Iraq. Nothing confirmed to date, but Al Mayadeen is apparently denying report. Badr Organization's (Iraq) al-Ghadeer TV page has been seized by the U.S. governme

For our previous digest of daily incidents from July to September, compiled by Seth J. Frantzman, click this link. We have begun to include more details about Turkey tensions as well because we assess that Turkey's relations are more entwined with the wider regional tensions. This includes Turkey-Qatar relations and Israel-UAE-Bahrain-Saudi Arabia-Cyprus-Greece-Egypt relations and Iran and its allies. September 22 Explosion in Ain Qana Lebanon. Abrams interview with al-Arabiy

For our last installment (June 4 to July 19) see this link. July 19 Zarif's visit to Iraq part of strategic work. Iran-China document. After pressure from around the world, and Trump Farsi tweet, Iran reviews death sentences for three people. Zarif meets Fatah head Hadi al-Amiri in Baghdad. "This should be seen as IR‘s attempt to reaffirm support for its allied groups & factions within the Iraqi state." Iran accuses "Zionist regime" in making Iran-China deal controversial. Ar

By SETH J. FRANTZMAN On the night of June 25-26 Iraqi security forces raided an Iranian-backed group. This is an unprecedented incident and has led to a variety of claims and rumors about how it unfolded. We have decided to put in one place documents and details about the developing incident on June 26, 2020. The Iraqi Joint Operations Command statement, circulated in translated English and attributed to official sources: The incident began around midnight between June 25-26.

Our daily updates on US-Iran tensions. For the previous installment see this link. June 4 US-led Coalition meeting. "U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo looks forward to co-hosting, with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, a virtual meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS on June 4 to review next steps in the campaign to achieve a lasting defeat of ISIS. The D-ISIS Coalition remains critically important to our efforts and united in it

For the previous edition of our coverage of US-Iran tensions daily updates, see this link March 22-May 1, 2020. May 1 Rocket fire from Israel into Syria near Quneitra reports. Israeli helicopters allegedly carried out the strikes. Mysterious explosion during the day also blamed on Israel. ImageSat International later releases photos fo warehouse completely destroyed. Satellite photos of April 20 strike near Palmyra and April 27 strike at Mazzeh Airport in Damascus. May 2 Afte

Read our previous installment March 12-21, 2020 of the daily updates of US-Iran tensions at this link. March 22 A look at the satellite photos of Albukamal airstrikes which allegedly took place on March 12. Politics of coronavirus central to Iran narrative: Rouhani calls US offer of assistance "biggest lie," while Foreign Minister pushes for sanctions relief. Pakistan calls on US to end sanctions. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Newroz speech accuses US of creating coronavirus: “I do

Coronavirus threatens the Middle East

By SETH J. FRANTZMAN A rocket attack on Camp Taji Iraq on march 11 has killed Americans and has led to tensions in Iraq. CENTCOM says "Three Coalition personnel were killed during a rocket attack on Camp Taji, Iraq, March 11. Approximately 12 additional personnel were wounded during the attack. The attack is under investigation by the Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces. Camp Taji is an Iraqi base that hosts Coalition personnel for training and advising missions. Approximatel

This timeline is the second part of a timeline that goes back to 2017, see the first part here. It seeks to include details about rising US-Iran tensions and also Israel-Iran tensions. 2020 January 1 US deploys 100 Marines to Baghdad and sends 750 paratroopers to Middle East. Trump condemns attack on embassy and Pompeo says US will secure its personnel, "The attack today was orchestrated by terrorists – Abu Mahdi al Muhandis and Qays al-Khazali – and abetted by Iranian proxie

Middle East Coronavirus Daily Update (MECDU) * This live blog is being updated daily as best we can. Seth J. Frantzman and other members of are staff are contributing, including sources from the region. We have researchers in Iraq, Syria, Turkey and Iran. For details or interviews email: mecra@mideastcenter.org. Feb 21: Total cases COVID-19 coronavirus worldwide: More than 76,700 and 2,249 deaths Hashtags in Arabic (#كورونا) and Farsi (کرونا) Israel’s Ministry of Health on Fr

Four days of protests in Iraq, in which dozens had been killed by October 4 and thousands injured, have brought only limited reactions from Iraqi politicians. This is due to their reticence to take sides, lest they choose the wrong side, and also their concern over the path the protests may take. Iraq's Prime Minister, Adel Abdul Mahdi, waited until the evening of Thursday to give a speech. He, or those around him, had already ordered the internet shut down to stop protests s