Thomas Seibert

Thomas Seibert is an Arab Weekly contributor in Istanbul.

Author Articles

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers a sermon during Friday prayers in Tehran, January 17. (AP)
Iran sends hardline message, defends adventurism abroad
January 18, 2020
Hints of blackmail. German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L) meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in New York, last September. (DPA)
European fears over refugees foreshadow Merkel’s visit to Turkey
January 18, 2020
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference following a meeting with Italian Prime Minister, in Ankara, January 13. (AFP)
Turkey threatens to teach Haftar ‘a lesson’ as Berlin sticks to plan for conference on Libya
January 14, 2020
In this photograph taken Saturday, Jan. 11, 2020, protesters hold flowers as tear gas fired by police rises at a demonstration in front of Amir Kabir University in Tehran, Iran, to remember victims of a Ukrainian flight downed by an Iranian missile. (AP)
Iran’s supreme leader and elite guards draw public ire after air disaster
January 13, 2020
In the cross hairs. A 2017 file picture shows US Marines stationed in al-Asad Airbase in Iraq. (AP)
Iran avoids full-blown war with US but is caught in new crisis
January 11, 2020
Joint benefits. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin attend cerenomy inauguration of a new gas pipeline “TurkStream” in Istanbul, January 8. (AFP)
Erdogan and Putin’s call for Libya ceasefire rejected, reports of first Turkish casualties
January 11, 2020
Crisis within the crisis. Mourners attend an outdoor vigil for the victims of a Ukrainian passenger jet which crashed in Iran, in Toronto, Canada, January 9. (Reuters)
Weakened by showdown with US, Iran faces outcry over plane downing
January 11, 2020
Another war? Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and a Turkish Army serviceman during a visit to border units in Turkey’s Hatay province. (AFP)
Turkish majority opposes Erdogan’s Libyan policies
January 07, 2020
On collision course? Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) listens to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a meeting in Sochi, last October. (Reuters)
Turkey and Russia face ‘clash of interests’ in upcoming talks
January 04, 2020
Fallen icon. Supporters of the Hashed al-Shaabi and Iraq’s Hezbollah Brigades pose for a picture next to a poster of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani, in Baghdad, January 4. (AFP)
Killing of Soleimani escalates tensions in Middle East, rattles Tehran’s proxy strategy
January 04, 2020
Looming trouble. A fighter with Libya’s Government of National Accord is seen in southern Tripoli. (Reuters)
Turkey affirms plan for troop deployment to Libya but may send Syrian fighters instead
January 02, 2020
Making no friends. Turkish soldier patrols the northern Syrian town of Tal Abyad, on the border with Turkey, in October . (AFP)
Turkey’s militarised foreign policy puts Ankara on collision course with Russia
December 21, 2019
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Abbas Araghchi (C-R) and German Secretary-General of the European External Action Service Helga Maria Schmid (C-L) attend a meeting of the Joint Commission on Iran’s nuclear programme in Vienna, December 6. (AFP)
International nuclear pact with Iran could collapse in 2020, analysts say
December 21, 2019
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a meeting in Ankara, December 12. (Turkish Presidency via AP)
Ankara clashes with EU as it flexes muscles in Mediterranean
December 14, 2019
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo makes a statement to the press at the State Department in Washington, December 11. (Reuters)
US concern over Iranian activities in Iraq quashes stirrings of dialogue
December 14, 2019
talian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio (L) speaks with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (C) and Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zharieva during a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the Europa Building in Brussels, December 9. (AP
EU condemns the Turkish-Libyan ‘illegal drilling,’ readies sanctions
December 11, 2019
Former Turkish prime minster Ahmet Davutoglu announces the formal establishment of his “Party of the Future” in Ankara, December 13. (Reuters)
Knives are out in ‘war’ between Erdogan and AKP rivals
December 11, 2019
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director-General Rafael Grossi speaks during an interview in his office in Vienna, Austria December 3. (Reuters)
New UN nuclear chief vows to be ‘firm and fair’ in Iran dispute
December 07, 2019
French President Emmanuel Macron (C) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel (2nd R) look at US President Donald Trump (2nd L) and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a photo shoot at the NATO summit, December 4. (AFP)
Turkey isolated in its Syria policy as Erdogan fails to secure NATO backing
December 07, 2019
US Army soldiers stand outside an armoured vehicle at a base south of Mosul, Iraq, February 23. (AP)
Iraq new flashpoint for US-Iran tensions, troop buildup mulled
December 07, 2019