Iran-Backed Militia Kills 3 U.S. Soldiers, Injures More Than 30 in Jordan

Food security and digital inclusion

On October 16, 2025, the AL-MONITOR Global Institute hosted Dr. Conrad Rein, Secretary of the Global Flagship Initiative for Food Security, alongside representatives from multilateral development banks and the private sector for a discussion on food security in the Middle East and Africa.

On Sept. 21, 2025, AL-MONITOR hosted Deemah AlYahya, Secretary-General of the Digital Cooperation Organization, for a discussion on digital inclusion and economic empowerment in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

On May 22, 2025, AL-MONITOR hosted Prime Minister Masrour Barzani of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq and US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright in Washington DC to discuss the future of power and energy in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.

The institute also hosted Dr. Marwan Al-Zarouni, chief AI officer at Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism and CEO of the Dubai Blockchain Center, alongside Dr. Alaa Murabit, senior advisor at 500 Global, for a conversation on how AI is accelerating innovation and transforming global economic development.

In a live Q&A webinar, Pentagon Correspondent Jared Szuba talked with State Department Correspondent Elizabeth Hagedorn about the latest tensions between the US and Iran following an attack by an Iran-backed militia that killed 3 US soldiers and injured more than 30 in Jordan.

Reporting for this sectionAl Monitor

Subsidies, inflation, and reform

A Middle East Council on Global Affairs issue brief says repairing food subsidy programs presents a dilemma as rising inflation and shrinking fiscal space in several countries renew pressures to shift from subsidizing goods and services to targeted cash transfers. The brief argues that “the region is not yet ready to do without food subsidies” because essential conditions for successful reform remain absent, including high popular demand for subsidies and erosion of trust in institutions. It says robust social safety nets are required, adding that more effort is needed to improve targeting accuracy and expand the reach of existing social safety nets before proceeding to reduce subsidy programs.

The brief also prioritizes energy subsidy reforms, stating that “energy subsidies are more unfair and costly than food subsidies, especially for basics like bread,” and urges implementing energy subsidy reforms in parallel with broader structural reforms. It notes that in 2010 Iran reduced bread subsidies and replaced them with a cash transfer program, while Jordan took a similar step in 2018 and Egypt recently began exploring the transition to a cash transfer system.

Reporting for this sectionMiddle East Council on Global Affairs

AI, tech targets, and security

In coverage of the war’s technology and finance dimensions, Courrier international reports that Iran regards Gulf financial institutions as “legitimate targets,” citing a list published by the semi-official Iranian news agency Tasnim. The same report says offices of tech giants including Google, Amazon, Microsoft, IBM, Nvidia, Oracle, and Palantir appear on the list, alongside data centers and an Amazon Web Services site that had already been struck. Separately, Le Devoir reports that an American journalist was abducted on Tuesday in Baghdad, identifying her as freelancer Shelly Kittleson and citing Iraqi security forces pursuing her captors.

Le Devoir adds that Iraqi security officials said the journalist was abducted on Saadoun Street in central Baghdad, and that a checkpoint alert was sent to all checkpoints as pursuit moved toward Babil Province. Radio France later reported that the United States said one of its female citizens, Shelly Kittleson, was kidnapped on Tuesday in Iraq and that one of her abductors has been arrested, linked to the pro-Iranian militia Kata'ib Hezbollah.

Reporting for this sectionCourrier internationalLe Devoir