By Fuad SHAHBAZOV, Baku-based independent regional security and defence analyst

Amid the escalating Gaza war, a striking absence marks the regional conflict landscape: the non-involvement of the ‘Axis of Resistance,’ including Iran and its proxies. Nearly six weeks into the war, these forces have consistently communicated their decision to remain on the sidelines. This inaction comes into sharp focus against the backdrop of Iran’s strategy to leverage non-state actors like Hezbollah and Hamas in its proxy warfare. While Hezbollah’s leader, Hassan Nasrallah, clarified their stance in a much-anticipated speech a month into the conflict, the impact of this abstention is profound. Israel, grappling with internal divisions and security vulnerabilities heightened by Hamas’s attacks, finds itself in a precarious position not seen in decades. READ MORE

• December 5, 2023

The Houthis seem to have made a strategic shift towards maritime operations to ramp up pressure on the US and Israel.

• December 4, 2023

China says that the United States has undermined ‘regional peace and stability’.

• December 4, 2023

Concern is growing over Ukraine’s ability to continue its defence against Russia should delays of Western funds persist.

• December 4, 2023

Israel has issued an evacuation map asking Palestinians to move south as it intensifies attacks on the besieged enclave.

• December 4, 2023

Ministers of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania say presence of Sergey Lavrov risks legitimising Russian war in Ukraine.

• November 29, 2023

Helsinki accuses Moscow of funnelling asylum seekers to the border in retaliation for its decision to join NATO.

• November 29, 2023

Member states are at odds, some supporting Israel and others opposing its war against Hamas in Gaza.

• November 29, 2023