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Politics & Security

A roadside sign marks the entrance to Khnatsakh on May 16, 2025, a border village in Armenia's Syunik Province that has become a frontline community amid rising tensions with Azerbaijan.

Analysis

Azerbaijan envoy hits raw nerve with reminder of Baku’s sway on Turkey-Armenia ties

Baku’s ambassador says borders with Armenia will remain closed until Yerevan changes its constitution, hardening positions just weeks before a pivotal Armenian election seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s peace agenda with Turkey and Azerbaijan.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

OLE BERG-RUSTEN/NTB/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey’s NATO pipeline bid fuels rivalry with Greece: What to know

Ankara says the project would be faster and cheaper than alternatives, but rival routes could sharpen competition with Greece over eastern flank logistics.

Burak Kara/Getty Images

Quake hits Turkey’s Malatya, reviving fear in 2023 disaster zone

A magnitude 5.6 earthquake has struck Turkey’s southeast, an area devastated by the February 2023 twin quakes.

Latest News

Iraqi PM Zaidi holds talks as cabinet deadlock leaves nine posts unfilled

Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with the head of the Hikmah Movement, Ammar al-Hakim, in Baghdad on May 19, 2026.

Senate advances resolution to limit Trump's Iran war powers

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) speaks during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on May 14, 2026 in Washington, DC.

UAE, France renew defense pact after Rafale jets controversy

A rafale fighter jet prepares for take off on the deck of the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle during the NATO military exercise Neptune Strike 26-2, off the coast of the Greek island of Crete, on April 27, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

Analysis

Iran tightens wartime crackdown across Kurdish, Baluch ethnic regions

Baluch Iranian youths cross a street in Zahedan, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan bordering Afghanistan, on Dec. 18, 2025.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Visitors wearing military camouflage stand at the entrance of the 'PMC Wagner Centre', associated with the founder of the Wagner private military group (PMC) Yevgeny Prigozhin, during the official opening of the office block on the National Unity Day, in Saint Petersburg, on November 4, 2022. (Photo by OLGA MALTSEVA/AFP via Getty Images)

US sanctions UAE-based aviation firm with ties to Russia’s Wagner

Washington says UAE-based Kratol Aviation helped Wagner operations ship personnel and weapons to Libya, the Central African Republic and Mali.

Eiffel Tower

Iran accuses France of 'meddling' as ties strain over unrest

In a tense exchange, Iran's top diplomat has accused Paris of being intentionally confrontational while his French counterpart piled pressure on Iran over the detention of French nationals.

Relatives mourn during the funeral of Palestinians killed during an Israeli raid on the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank on January 26, 2023. - Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians, including an elderly woman, said officials in the occupied territory, while the Israeli military said troops traded fire with Islamist militants during a "counterterrorism operation". (Photo by ZAIN JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Nine Palestinians killed in Israeli raid in Jenin ahead of Blinken visit

Only four days before the arrival to Israel of Secretary of State Antony Blinken, tensions in the West Bank between Israeli security agencies and Palestinian groups increases.

Jordanian King Abdullah (L), former Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani (C) and Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (R) are seen during the opening ceremony ahead of the Qatar 2022 World Cup at Al-Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Doha, Qatar, Nov. 20, 2022.

Jordan, Qatar discuss bilateral ties, regional stability

The Jordanian king and Qatari emir met to discuss bilateral relations and ways to expand cooperation, with a special focus on the Palestinian file.

Iran protest

The Takeaway: Can sanctions curb Iran's protest crackdown?

Plus, a top Republican lawmaker questions the Biden administration's Syria policy and the US announces support for Lebanon's security forces.

Erdogan Bahceli

Murder of former Grey Wolves leader divides Turkey’s nationalists

Questions raised this week about the December shooting of Sinan Ates have placed Erdogan’s allied MHP party under the spotlight as elections loom.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (R) and Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto (L) give a press conference following their meeting in Ankara, on February 8, 2022. (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Finland lifts Turkey's arms embargo, is one step closer to NATO

While Finland seems one step closer to NATO membership after Helsinki’s decision to resume defense sales to Turkey, Ankara’s anger at Sweden shows no signs of abating.

A supporter of Hezbollah and the Amal movements carries a portrait of Judge Tarek Bitar.

Lebanon's prosecutor retaliates, charges judge investigating Beirut port blast

The latest charges made by Beirut port explosion Judge Tarek Bitar against Lebanon’s key political figures has angered many in the political elite who banned him from travel on Wednesday.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog meets with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Brussels, Jan. 25, 2023.

Israel's president holds talks on Iran and Hamas hostages during EU visit

In Brussels, Herzog was expected to raise the issue of two Israeli nationals — Avera Mengistu and Hisham Al-Sayed — captured by Hamas

A Lebanese soldier walks past an American flag flying next to US made Bradley Fighting Vehicles at the port of Beirut on August 14, 2017. (Photo credit should read PATRICK BAZ/AFP via Getty Images)

US to provide $72 million in salaries for Lebanon’s cash-strapped army, police

Washington's support for Lebanese military staff comes nearly two years after country's top general warned of desertions and his troops' inability to afford food.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh

European ministers meet Palestinian PM, commit to support Palestinian elections

Meeting in Brussels with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, European senior officials pledged to support holding Palestinian national elections soon and advancing Palestinian reform plans.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) takes part in a meeting with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on September 18, 2019. (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Washington Post blasts Pompeo's 'vile falsehoods' on Jamal Khashoggi

The former secretary of state called the slain Saudi columnist an “activist,” which led to condemnation from The Washington Post.