Simon Speakman Cordall

Senior reporter

About the author

He writes news, features and analysis pieces on the Middle East and North Africa region with an emphasis on North Africa and Israel. Simon spent more than a decade in Tunisia, from where he covered the rise of armed groups such as ISIL, social unrest and migration, with a particular focus on the perspective of refugees, asylum seekers and irregular migrants in North Africa. As a freelance journalist, Simon has previously contributed to the Guardian, the Economist, Foreign Policy, the Independent, the Moscow Times and the Saigon Times. He has appeared on France 24 and the BBC World Service.

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Featured

UK police to use AI facial recognition tech linked to Israel’s war on Gaza

British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood speaks on stage at Britain's Labour Party's annual conference in Liverpool, Britain [File: Phil Noble/Reuters]

Dehumanisation: How Israel is able to commit its genocide in Gaza

A man carries the body of 3-year-old Palestinian child Nour Abu Ouda, killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip, at Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir al-Balah, Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)

‘The end of the world as we know it’: Is the rules-based order finished?

US President Donald Trump (R) gestures flanked by World Economic Forum president and CEO Borge Brende during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos on January 21, 2026. The World Economic Forum takes place in Davos from January 19 to January 23, 2026. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

What if … the United Nations was disbanded next Friday?

A child holds a box that says UNRWA

Latest Posts

The Republican midterm rout is helping shape who leads Israel next, as Netanyahu’s US ties turn toxic.

An aide speaks to Israeli Prime Minister and Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu.

Israel’s political establishment grapples with US voter rejection of White House ally and own contribution towards it.

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, US [File: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters]

With neither bloc near a majority, Arab and ultra-Orthodox parties hold the key to Israel’s next government..

Protesters hold portraits of Benjamin Netanyahu during a demonstration in support of the Israeli prime minister at Habima Square in Tel Aviv on October 31, 2026, following Israel's general election [Jack Guez/AFP]

Despite genocide, regional war and isolation, Israel’s election revealed little appetite for political alternatives.

TOPSHOT - Palestinian boys stand amid the rubble after a building was hit overnight by an Israeli strike west of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, on October 30, 2026.

Palestinian voters could decide Israel’s future, but its political class refuses to accept their mandate

Supporters of Israel's Arab-led Joint List political alliance

With both blocs short of a majority, parties face a choice: to break the taboo on Arab allies or return to the polls.

A supporter gestures while waiting for the arrival of far-right Otzma Yehudit party leader Itamar Ben Gvir, after the first exit polls were announced, in Modiin on October 27, 2026, during Israel's legislative elections. Israeli voters on October 27 gave a narrow edge to opposition parties over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, initial projections showed, after decades-high turnout in the country's first election since the trauma of the October 7, 2023 attacks. (Photo by Ilia YEFIMOVICH / AFP)

Netanyahu seeks to extend rule at helm of far right alliance facing off against predominantly right-wing bloc.

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station during Israel's general election in Jerusalem, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

From judicial reform to conscription, here’s where candidates stand on the key issues dominating the campaign.

FILE PHOTO: An advert for an Israeli television channel that will broadcast Israel's election coverage features Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli military chief Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, ahead of Israel's national election, on a bridge in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 21, 2026. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo

Israel’s election heats up over ultra-Orthodox conscription debate, reflecting deep societal and political divides.

Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men block a highway during a protest against army recruitment in Bnei Brak, Israel, Thursday, June 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Israel’s Arab-led and ultra-Orthodox parties face attacks but could hold the balance of power after October 27 vote.

Israeli lawmaker Mansour Abbas, leader of the Ra'am party, speaks to supporters during a campaign event ahead of Israel's general election in the northern Israeli town of Baqa al-Gharbiyye, Thursday, Oct. 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

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