New Lines Magazine

“We Saudis love coffee. But we love it more when we are surrounded by friends and family, chatting and discussing life and the world.”
@soumyagayatri.bsky.social  reports on Saudi Arabia’s coffee culture boom. https://newlinesmag.com/spotlight/saudi-arabias-coffee-renaissance/

Israel Can’t Maintain a Long War With Iran, and the US Isn’t Interested I’m writing from the bomb shelter in my apartment building, which is just outside Tel Aviv. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the Israeli military, was just interviewed for a domestic media outlet. Zamir was barely able to contain his glee at the “unprecedented cooperation with the American military” and the “pioneering spirit […]

Writing from a bomb shelter in Israel, @origoldberg.bsky.social  explains why the Trump-Netanyahu alliance over attacking Iran is almost certainly not going to last more than a few days,

Why the US-Israel Intelligence Campaign Matters Even More Than Bombs Falling on Iran Joint U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran got underway last night, bringing enormous military assets into a fight that, by all accounts, will last weeks, not days, in pursuit of “regime change.”Israel’s opening salvo included decapitation strikes, reportedly against the Iranian defense ministe...

"The U.S. strategy appears to be one of fomenting glasnost and perestroika at gunpoint, prompting internal elements to seize power amid the hollowing out of the security apparatus and under the cover of unrivaled airpower." @michaeldweiss.bsky.social

Iran's Supreme Leader Is Dead, but Its People Remain in Peril The series of strikes began in broad daylight just before 10 a.m. in Iran. Videos posted to social media showed that the Ministry of Intelligence building in Tehran was hit, along with a potential mis...

NEW: "The murderer of our dreams died." Iran is at a crossroads as it grapples with the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. @ntabrizy.bsky.social reports for @newlinesmag.bsky.social . newlinesmag.com/running-note...

Life Returns to Aleppo’s Old Town Reconstruction is revitalizing the ancient city, but residents remain cautious after years of devastation and recent fighting

Despite the ancient city reopening and displaced Syrians from all over the country settling in it, "Aleppo’s cohesion and sense of unity, built over generations, will take longer to heal," writes Jahan de Bellaigue.

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The Jewish Woman Who Was the Love of Palestine’s Most Famous Poet Died This Week “Rita is an erotic poem. … Rita in all my poems is a Jewish woman.” – Mahmoud Darwish, in a 1996 interview with Israeli literary critic Helit Yeshurun. On Feb. 24, Tamar Ben-Ami, a Jewish-Israeli woman who inspired some of Mahmoud Darwish’s most famous poems, died at 79. She was an acclaimed choreographer but would […]

🧵The Jewish Israeli woman who loved and was loved by Palestine’s most famous poet died this week. Their romance couldn’t survive politics, but the poetry it inspired is loved by millions

Everything About Bad Bunny Is Political, Even His Choice of Perfume Just when we thought Bad Bunny’s popularity couldn’t reach new heights, we were proved wrong. The most streamed artist of all time made global news after his stunning Super Bowl performance on Feb. 8, when he became the first artist to headline a halftime show performed primarily in Spanish. A new wave of fascination with […]

🧵Everything about Bad Bunny is political, even his choice of perfume, writes @olasalem.bsky.social

Iran Strikes Back at the Gulf as the US Pursues a Regime Change It Cannot Force The new round of attacks on Iran by the United States embodies a paradox. It is the highest-stakes campaign at least since Israel’s targeting of high-level Iranian and Hezbollah officials in early 2024. The current operation, involving B-2 bombers and naval strikes, dwarfs the June 2025 strikes on Fordow and Natanz, which already set Iran’s […]

🧵The strikes on Iran will wound the leadership of the Islamic republic, but regime change requires a counterforce that the U.S. and Israel simply do not have | @hhassan.bsky.social

Israel Can’t Maintain a Long War With Iran, and the US Isn’t Interested I’m writing from the bomb shelter in my apartment building, which is just outside Tel Aviv. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the Israeli military, was just interviewed for a domestic media outlet. Zamir was barely able to contain his glee at the “unprecedented cooperation with the American military” and the “pioneering spirit […]

🧵Writing from a bomb shelter in Israel, @origoldberg.bsky.social explains why the Trump-Netanyahu alliance over attacking Iran is almost certainly not going to last more than a few days,

Syrian Government Shakeup Expected To Diffuse Presidential Power and Integrate Minorities In Syria, a significant government reshuffle is anticipated in the coming weeks, primarily aimed at integrating minority groups and distributing the myriad roles currently held by President Ahmad al-Sharaa. The reshuffle is poised to be narrow in scope, affecting only a handful of key portfolios, be...

🧵Syria’s president is poised to cede authority over a handful of government portfolios, reinstating the previously abolished prime minister position and integrating minority figures into key Cabinet roles, reports @hhassan.bsky.social

Why the US-Israel Intelligence Campaign Matters Even More Than Bombs Falling on Iran Joint U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran got underway last night, bringing enormous military assets into a fight that, by all accounts, will last weeks, not days, in pursuit of “regime change.”Israel’s opening salvo included decapitation strikes, reportedly against the Iranian defense minister, the head of the Islamic Republican Guards Corps (IRGC) and even the […]

🧵As bombs fall on Iran, the intelligence campaign by the U.S. and Israel likely matters even more to the outcome of the conflict, argues @michaeldweiss.bsky.social

The US-Israel Attack on Iran Is a Wake-Up Call for the Gulf The retaliatory Iranian strikes on the Gulf after the joint U.S.-Israeli bombardment are surreal to behold, though not unprecedented, following the few limited attacks in response to the Israeli campaign against Iran and its leadership last year. The bewilderment of residents of the United Arab Emir...

🧵The security architecture America built up in the Gulf was meant to protect them from Iran. Now they’re being hit by Iranian missiles because of America. Washington is breaking the Gulf’s identity as an island of stability, writes @kshaheen.bsky.social

Yemen's ‘Dismantled’ Separatists Are Still Causing Chaos For Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC), a single social media post can still set events in motion. On paper, the pro-independence group was dismantled in January after losing control of much of southern Yemen, territory it had dominated for years, following an offensive by Saudi-backed go...

🧵On paper, Yemen's Southern Transitional Council was dismantled in January. In practice, its social media accounts still send people into the streets, exposing an ongoing Saudi-UAE rift, as the Houthis watch closely

Why Israelis Are OK With Another Iran War Why do Israelis, who seemed so stricken by last June’s 12-day war with Iran, appear to be eagerly supporting a second round led by the U.S.? There are two possible answers to this question. The first, which is a common response from members of the liberal, or anti-Netanyahu, camp, is that they are...

🧵Israelis were terrified when Iran launched missiles at them last June. So why do they now support a U.S.-led attack that could put them at risk again? The answer lies in Israel’s founding narrative, writes @origoldberg.bsky.social

🧵#ICYMI
We've just added a new way for you to engage with the stories that matter out of the Middle East — a shorter, easier to digest format that’ll let us respond to developments in the moment and without delay.
Read Running Notes now:
https://newlinesmag.com/running-notes/all/

How ‘Stand Your Ground’ Erodes a Homicide Probe The relaxed definition of self-defense in dozens of state laws helps shooters get away with otherwise avoidable killing

From the @newlinesmag archives:
“Stand Your Ground” laws tip the scale in favor of shoot first, ask questions later. These “self-defense” laws can also hamper a homicide investigation before it even gets to trial. | @robinblackburn.bsky.social  and @rashaelass.bsky.social 

Saudi Arabia’s Break With Interventionism The kingdom’s recent ‘zero-conflict’ approach to its neighbors follows decades of shifting alliances that failed to bring stability

Essential reading:
In this recent piece, @alamer.bsky.social explores how, after decades of unstable alliances, Saudi Arabia has adopted a “zero-conflict” regional policy — a shift now straining ties with the UAE and Israel.
newlinesmag.com/essays/saudi...

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Israel Can’t Maintain a Long War With Iran, and the US Isn’t Interested I’m writing from the bomb shelter in my apartment building, which is just outside Tel Aviv. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the Israeli military, was just interviewed for a domestic media outle...

NEW: Writing from a bomb shelter in Israel, @origoldberg.bsky.social explains why the Trump-Netanyahu alliance over attacking Iran is almost certainly not going to last more than a few days. newlinesmag.com/running-note...

Why the US-Israel Intelligence Campaign Matters Even More Than Bombs Falling on Iran Joint U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran got underway last night, bringing enormous military assets into a fight that, by all accounts, will last weeks, not days, in pursuit of “regime change.”Israel...

NEW: As bombs fall on Iran, the intelligence campaign by the U.S. and Israel likely matters even more to the outcome of the conflict, argues @michaeldweiss.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/running-note...

The US-Israel Attack on Iran Is a Wake-Up Call for the Gulf The retaliatory Iranian strikes on the Gulf after the joint U.S.-Israeli bombardment are surreal to behold, though not unprecedented, following the few limited attacks in response to the Israeli campa...

NEW: The security architecture America built up in the Gulf was meant to protect them from Iran. Now they’re being hit by Iranian missiles because of America. Washington is breaking the Gulf’s identity as an island of stability, writes @kshaheen.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/running-note...

Iran Strikes Back at the Gulf as the US Pursues a Regime Change It Cannot Force The new round of attacks on Iran by the United States embodies a paradox. It is the highest-stakes campaign at least since Israel’s targeting of high-level Iranian and Hezbollah officials in early 202...

NEW: The strikes on Iran will wound the leadership of the Islamic republic, but regime change requires a counterforce that the U.S. and Israel simply do not have, writes @hhassan.bsky.social . newlinesmag.com/running-note...

Israel Can’t Maintain a Long War With Iran, and the US Isn’t Interested I’m writing from the bomb shelter in my apartment building, which is just outside Tel Aviv. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the chief of staff of the Israeli military, was just interviewed for a domestic media outle...

Israel doesn't have the capability to pursue a long war with Iran and the Trump isn't interested, so this will probably end in a few days. Strong analysis from Ori Goldberg for @newlinesmag.bsky.social newlinesmag.com/running-note...

Iran Is Not on the Brink of Revolution, It Has Entered a Long Decline Those who view current events in the Islamic republic through the lens of 1979 fail to understand the circumstances that lead to political rupture

"Iran can appear simultaneously defiant abroad and brittle at home. The regime projects strength externally to compensate for internal erosion. It clings to symbols of sovereignty because it has lost control over symbols of meaning."

Trump Comes to Africa Zachariah Mampilly and Ebenezer Obadare join Kwangu Liwewe Agyei to examine Donald Trump's surprisingly hands-on approach to Africa.

“We live in the age of what experts call transactionalism. It’s the age of America First,” Ebenezer Obadare tells @kayliwewe.bsky.social on this week's podcast. With @raskarya.bsky.social they discuss the Trump admin’s policy changes in Africa.

Chicago, join our own @dannypostel.bsky.social on March 7 as he chats Lisandro Claudio, author of the new book “The Profligate Colonial: How the U.S. Exported Austerity to the Philippines.” 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/how-the-us-exported-austerity-to-the-philippines-tickets-1983643038727

War, Emigration and the Search for Love in Lebanon As the country’s crises leave its dating scene feeling like a dust bowl, young people are turning to niche apps or blind date parties

“I’m struggling to report a story about love, flirting and dating at this moment. As I write these words, Israel is still bombing parts of Lebanon daily despite a ceasefire deal more than a year ago that was supposed to end the war." 

The Lasting Legacy of Bayard Rustin Why does the influential African-American organizer and strategist continue to speak to us, three and a half decades after his death?

Why does the complex African-American activist Bayard Rustin continue to speak to us? A 2024 Oscar-nominated Netflix film provides hints, but there are more layers to the story, writes
Michael Weinman.

As if @newlinesmag.bsky.social wasn't cool enough already! Our new section is a game-changer on multiple levels. Behold the first batch of Running Notes, fresh out of the oven 🥧