WEEKLY UPDATE - 11.21.2025

Saudi Crown Prince Visits US as he Seeks to Deepen Ties

The Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, commonly known as MBS, made his first visit to the US during President Trump’s second term as the two countries seek to deepen ties and increased regional cooperation. During the visit, President Trump announced that he was elevating Saudi Arabia’s status to a “major non-NATO ally.” The new status allows Saudi Arabia expedited access to US military hardware, sales, and cooperation. Saudi Arabia joins Jordan, Israel, Egypt, Morocco, Qatar, and Tunisia as major non-NATO allies in the region. President Trump confirmed that he would authorize the sale of the F-35 fighter jet to Saudi Arabia.

Prince bin Salman’s visit also represented his rehabilitation following his reported involvement in the brutal murder of journalist and dissident Jamal Khashoggi in 2017. While MBS has denied his involvement, however Turkish and US Intelligence concluded that MBS ordered the assassination of Khashoggi, who was a US resident at the time of his killing. When asked about MBS’ role in Khashoggi’s death, Trump denied the Crown Prince’s involvement while disparaging Khashoggi and the reporter who asked the question.

The Saudi Crown Prince’s visit comes as he is reconciling his outsized ambitions for Saudi Arabia with the hard realities in the region. Several of his ambitious plans, such as the fantastical Neom project, have been cancelled or put on hold as MBS is in a bit of a cash crunch. President Trump and MBS signaled future economic and technological cooperation specifically around emerging Artificial Intelligence.

Around the Region

• North Africa:

  • Tunisian opposition leader Jawhar Ben Mbarek was hospitalized in relation to his on going hunger strike. Mbarek, who is one of the founders of the National Salvation Front, began a hunger strike on 29 OCT protesting his detention.

  • Thousands of doctors and medical personnel demonstrated on Wednesday demanding higher pay and warning of the potential collapse of the the Tunisian healthcare system. Protesters called attention to their low-pay and outdated equipment warning that many healthcare professionals would migrate or leave the profession further burdening the system.

• The Gulf:

  • Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi rejected an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) resolution calling on Iran to all the agency access to its nuclear program. FM Araghchi rejected the resolution a day before it passed a UN vote.

  • The Iraqi electoral commission confirmed that current PM Mohammed al-Sudani’s political bloc won 46 out of 329 seats in the latest elections making it the largest bloc in the upcoming Iraqi parliament. Form PM Nouri al-Maliki’s bloc won 29 while the Sunni Taqaddum Party won 27 and the Kurdish Democratic Party secured 26 seats respectively. The formation of a coalition government is expected to take months.

• The Levant:

  • Lebanese authorities arrested Noah Zeaiter, one of the most prominent drug kingpin in Lebanon, on Thursday. Zeaiter is the leader of Shi’a family based in the Bekaa Valley with links to Hezbollah and captagon smuggling throughout the region. Zeaiter is known for his flamboyant personality and prominence in the media.

  • The New York Times reported that US Ambassador to Israel met with Jonathan Pollard, a former American citizen and Naval Intelligence officer convicted of spying on behalf of Israel, last July. According to the report, which was confirmed by Pollard, the meeting was held off the books and without the prior knowledge of White House officials. The reason for the visit was not disclosed. Mr. Pollard supports the Israeli settlement movement and has called for Israel’s annexation of Gaza. Ambassador Huckabee has previously met with several controversial figures of the Israeli religious right including Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.

  • Israeli lawmakers condemned a wave of Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank. Defense Minister described the attackers as “anarchistic law-breakers” who tarnish the image of the “settler public” attempting to set them apart from a larger settlement movement that is supported by the Likud government. Over the past month, settlers have carried out hundreds of attacks against Palestinians and their property in the West Bank often done under the protection of the IDF. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to bring the attacks under control, but critics have noted the close ties of his government’s close relationship with those advocating for violence in the West Bank.

Recommended:

• “The Lost Daughters of Bousbir” New Lines Magazine

• “Appeasing the Djinn” London Review of Books

• "The Power Shifts Changing the Middle East” The Lede