Not-deciding factor: Iran’s supreme leader

In the daily tea leaves one might read that President Donald Trump would prefer a deal with Iran to a continuing military campaign. Where would that leave Israel and its goals? Cryptocurrencies have gained a particular foothold in Asian economies; will they become real financial ...  Show more

Air strikes and border raids have turned cross-border tensions into hot conflict. We ask what raised the temperature, and whether the Iran war may act to lower it. Meanwhile that war’s oil shock brings with it fears of rising inflation; we examine how recent disruptions might inf ...  Show more

We examine the path of <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/06/21/ayatollah-ali-khamenei-irans-great-survivor?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&u ...

A sudden war made Iran’s leaders look unprepared. And many Iranians loathe the regime. But there are <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/06/16/will-irans-hated-regime-implode?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&ut ...

Horrifying attacks on Alawites, the sect of deposed leader Bashar al-Assad, throw into question the power—or the will—of Ahmed al-Sharaa, the country’s leader, to <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2025/03/10/a-horrific-killing-spree-shakes-syria?utm_cam ...

America’s most prominent young conservative was assassinated while conducting one of his signature campus events. His death might only widen political divides. In Asia a broad trend of deflation points to lower prices but unhealthy economies. And what happens when spiritual leade ...  Show more