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Politics & Security

Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

Iran's IRGC holds anti-helicopter drills in Tehran: What to know

Iran said it downed two US helicopters last month as American forces use the aircraft for strikes in the Gulf.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.

Latest News

In first, Lebanon files formal UN complaint against Iran: What to know

FADEL Itani / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Ahead of Trump-Xi summit, Iran looks to China as guarantor — but with reservations

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands as they arrive for talks at the Gimhae Air Base in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2025.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Lebanon authorities release Salafist cleric Khaled Hablas: What to know

Khaled Hablas

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

Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations Gilad Erdan is seen on a TV monitor.

Israel considers denying visas for UN officials

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres rejects Israel's claim that he justified the Hamas attacks.

Graves are made ready to receive the new dead in the cemetery in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.

Gaza turns to ‘graveyard’ as bombing, siege intensify

Despite the deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip, the UN Security Council has yet to pass a resolution that would bring a sliver of hope to the Gazan population.

ALEXANDER NEMENOV/AFP via Getty Images

Hamas delegation arrives in Russia

Russia maintains cordial relations with Hamas as well as Israel and other actors in the Gaza conflict. The discussions with Hamas in Moscow focused on the release of foreign hostages.

Israel says it is seeking to totally destroy Gaza's Hamas rulers after the deadly October 7 attacks which caused the worst bloodshed in Israel's history

Day 20 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Thursday, Oct. 26

Israeli soldiers prepare a tank near the border between Israel and Lebanon on Oct. 16, 2023, in Shlomi, Israel.

Hamas threatens 'hell on earth' in event of Israeli ground invasion

Israel has amassed troops and military equipment in preparation for its ground offensive on Gaza, while Palestinian factions have further warned that the Israeli army would incur more losses should it invade Gaza.

Gaza refugees

‘They have no answers’: Americans trapped in Gaza wait for US help

Hundreds of US citizens are stranded in the Gaza Strip despite a US-led diplomatic effort to open the border to aid deliveries.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) meets with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani in Doha, Oct. 25, 2023.

Qatar ‘hopeful’ about hostage talks with Hamas as Turkey warns of regional shockwaves

As Qatar expresses hope for the release of more Israeli hostages, Turkey’s top diplomat has warned Israel against a ground invasion.

Gaza journalists

At least 24 journalists, majority Palestinians, killed in Israel-Hamas war

The number of journalists killed in the Israel-Hamas war in three weeks already exceeds the number of journalists killed in Ukraine in the year and half since Russia invaded, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Erdogan

Turkey’s Erdogan hails Hamas as liberators, leaving detente with Israel in shreds

The Turkish president's speech on Wednesday aligned himself more firmly with the Sunni Muslim world, while pushing aside the benefits of closer ties with Israel and other regional economies.

Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah meets deputy head of Hamas’ politburo Saleh al-Arouri, and head of the Islamic Jihad Ziad al-Nakhalah.

Hezbollah hosts Palestinian factions as warnings surge over Lebanon's volatility

Hezbollah and Israel have been trading fire since Hamas launched its surprise attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, raising fears of a new front in south Lebanon.

THOMAS COEX/AFP via Getty Images

Israeli airstrikes in Syria mark 4th suspected round since Gaza war

The Israeli military said it struck Syrian military targets in response to rocket fire in yet another cross-border flare up, leading to casualties among Syrian forces.

US President Joe Biden holds a press conference following a solidarity visit to Israel, on October 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv, amid the ongoing battles between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Thousands of people, both Israeli and Palestinians have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip, entered southern Israel in a surprise attack leading Israel to declare war on Hamas in Gaza on October 8. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BREN

Al-Monitor/Premise poll: 82% of Americans wary of US intervention in Israel-Hamas war

As the Israel-Hamas war rages on and threatens to spill into a wider regional conflict, Americans are either unsure of or reject a US military intervention in the region, according to a new Al-Monitor/Premise poll.