Iran’s June 23, 2025 strike on a U.S. base in the Gulf immediately brought to mind the retaliation for Qassem Soleimani’s assassination; a move that reshuffled the strategic balance.

As the “conflict” between “Israel” and Iran continues, Gulf countries are increasingly alarmed and calling for calm, especially amid U.S. hints at entering the war.

Tensions are mounting between longtime rivals and uneasy neighbors, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as Addis Ababa’s renewed push for Red Sea access raises fears of a new war in the Horn of Africa, just seven years after the restoration of diplomatic ties.

As the Trump administration hesitates to re-engage with Syria, a group of U.S. lawmakers, encouraged by the Syrian-American lobby, has started building quiet bridges between Washington and Damascus.

While Iran warned several regional countries that any support for a potential U.S. strike would be seen as a “hostile act” with “serious consequences,” one country was notably absent from the list: Saudi Arabia.