Jack Dutton

A possible move by the Treasury would reduce pressure on Iranian crude as Washington seeks to offset supply losses tied to Iran's virtual closure of the strait. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor

DAMASCUS, March 17 (Reuters) - Syrian authorities have banned alcohol from restaurants and bars in Damascus, one of the clearest moves yet by the Islamist-led government towards enforcing conservative ways since Ahmed al-Sharaa toppled Bashar al-Assad 15 months ago.

Another Middle East event delayed/cancelled due to the war: Arabian Travel Market "initially planned for 4–7 May 2026, has been rescheduled to 17–20 August 2026 due to recent developments in the region."

The US-Israeli war against Iran is disrupting key trade routes into the Gulf, raising concerns about longer-term food security in one of the world’s most import-dependent regions, experts told @AlMonitor al-monitor.com/originals/2026…

Trump’s Iran dilemma • Unable to bring in EUR allies • He has to lean on China • Risks losing Gulf allies • Nuclear sites op. requires troops • He realizes protests internally, Kurdish revolt not fully feasible • Israel not listening on🛢️targets, Lebanon Not a good place

“The security situation in the Middle East is still very much in flux. The IEA will continue to work very closely with governments around the world to discuss options to respond to the disruptions we are seeing,” Birol said. Asian members releasing over 100m barrels from today. (3/3)

IEA's Fatih Birol says the agency still has 1.4B more barrels of oil after this initial 400M deployment. “I very much hope the situation will be resolved quickly to enable markets to start recovering. But of course, we need to be prepared in case it continues to for a while longer," he said. (2/3)

The International Energy Agency's Asian members have begun deploying emergency oil reserves in response to the near total closure of the Strait of Hormuz. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor (1/3)

The UAE has started the process of freezing Iranian assets following strikes by Tehran, a source familiar with the matter told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity, marking a sharp escalation in the economic dimension of the war that erupted on Feb. 28. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor

Dozens of international flights bound for Dubai and Abu Dhabi were forced to hold or divert after the UAE's Ministry of Defense confirmed it had intercepted six ballistic missiles and 125 drones on Thursday. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor

The Emirati billionaire condemned the US president, a former business partner, for his “dangerous” attack on Iran and asked whether he had stopped to consider the collateral damage. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor

Jazz festivals trying to book their next lineup

Extremely useful and very insightful thread

This is huge. Qatar exports a fifth of all of the world's LNG, so the move will rattle global gas markets. Almost all of the LNG transits through the Strait of Hormuz, which is all but closed off entirely given the Middle Eastern conflict. x.com/qatarenergy/st…

BREAKING: Turkey says it has intercepted an Iran-fired ballistic munition. It is a significant escalation, as up until now, Iran had not targeted the NATO member. al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @ezgi_akin

Kpler lowered its March LNG export forecast for Qatar, the UAE, and Oman by 5.8 mt to 2.4 mt due to the ongoing conflict between Iran, US and Israel disrupting transit through the Strait of Hormuz. This represents a 14% cut in global LNG supply for the month. @Kpler #LNG

BREAKING: US State Department issues 'depart now' alert for over a dozen countries in the Middle East

A senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards official on Monday increased threats to vessels seeking to traverse the Strait of Hormuz, further heightening risks to supply chains and maritime security in the crucial waterway. app.al-monitor.com/originals/2026… via @AlMonitor

Global stocks have been in freefall today as a result of the US-Israel-Iran war. There have been a few exceptions. Oil and gas prices have been climbing since markets reopened on Sunday night. al-monitor.com/originals/2026…

JUST IN: 🇮🇷 🇺🇸 Six suspected insiders made $1.2M betting on a US strike on Iran Most of these wallets: • were funded in the last 24h • specifically bet for February 28 • bought "yes" hours before the strike