An Air Force Global Strike Command unarmed Minuteman III ICBM launches during an operation test on February 23, 2021, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (US Space Force)
A protester flashes victory signs as traffic slows during demonstrations in Hamedan, Iran, on January 1, 2026. The demonstrations erupted after shopkeepers in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar shut their businesses to protest the sharp fall of Iran’s currency and worsening economic conditions. (Getty Images)
An Air Force Global Strike Command unarmed Minuteman III ICBM launches during an operation test on February 23, 2021, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. (US Space Force)
Political scientist specializing in national security
Rebecca Fradkin
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iran's President Hassan Rouhani review the honor guard during official welcoming ceremony at Saadabad Palace in Tehran, Iran on April 7, 2015. (Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Nigerien soldiers patrol in Bosso, near the Nigerian border, where the army had been battling Boko Haram militants since February. (May 25, 2015 - ISSOUF SANOGO/Getty Images)
Syrian fighters attend a mock battle in anticipation of an attack by the regime on Idlib province during a graduation of new HTS members at a camp in the countryside of the northern Idlib province August 14, 2018. (Getty Images)
An Egyptian protester raises flags during the clashes between Egyptian police and protesters after declaring the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group in Alf Maskan district of Cairo, Egypt, December 27, 2013. (Getty Images)
Hari Prasad is a research associate at Critica Research and Analysis
Hari Prasad
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Trucks carrying armed police officers run towards the residential area of Uighur people on July 8, 2009 in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang Uighur autonomous region, China. (The Asahi Shimbun/Getty Images)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks as a security staff member stands guard in foreground during a rally of Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Ankara, Turkey, on March 28, 2019. (Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)