Middle East crises loom in background as NATO leaders gather in Washington While this year's summit is expected to focus largely on the ongoing war in Ukraine, Iran's military support for Russia and Turkey's strategic balancing act with Moscow are expected to weigh on NATO leaders gathered in Washington. Washington Pulse
US, Israel hold second virtual meeting on Rafah Biden administration officials have denied offering to green-light an Israeli invasion of Rafah if Israel holds off on retaliating against Iran. Washington Pulse
One year on Sudan’s war: 14,700 killed, 8.6M displaced, 4.9M face starvation As the war in Sudan enters its second year, the humanitarian situation is worsening by the day with no prospects of an imminent end of the hostilities. North Africa Pulse
State Department staffer resigns over Biden's handling of Gaza Annelle Sheline is the second State Department official to publicly resign since Oct. 7, citing the erosion of US credibility on human rights in the Middle East as a result of the war. Washington Pulse
Holding Libyan elections this year could be disastrous There's a lot of pressure to hold elections in Libya this year, but many observers fear the country is still too unstable to pull it off without making the situation even worse. Libya
Palestinians pin hopes on Pompeo The Palestinian leadership hopes that the friendship between intelligence chief Majid Faraj and Mike Pompeo, who will soon be appointed US secretary of state, will help thaw relations between Washington and Ramallah. Palestine
Animators with passion bring humor to digital content in Gaza Three young Palestinians are determined to create socially relevant and sometimes-humorous digital content in Gaza despite some obstacles. Palestine
Gazan family discovers Roman site in backyard A Gaza family’s discovery of the remains of a Roman cemetery in their backyard spurred a major conflict between the family and the authorities. Palestine
Iran deal advocates prepare to battle Pompeo nomination President Trump’s pick to replace Rex Tillerson at the State Department has called the Iran agreement “disastrous” and threatened military action against Iran. Congress
With Tillerson firing, Trump throws transatlantic Iran talks into disarray In a tweet, US President Donald Trump threw transatlantic consultations on Iran into disarray March 13 with his surprise decision to fire Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. United States
Pentagon braces for emboldened Iran after Syria gains The Pentagon’s top commander in the Middle East told lawmakers today that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s gains in the yearslong civil war will bolster Iran’s ability to frustrate US aims in the region. Syria
Life sentence hangs over US pastor as Washington sizes up Ankara Though Congress was reportedly deterred by the State Department from imposing sanctions on Turkey, the indictment of pastor Andrew Brunson may alter the mood as Mike Pompeo replaces Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Turkey
Russia warns against attacking Damascus, says West is lying Moscow accuses the United States of wanting to interfere in Russia's presidential election and of concocting fake news about a pending Syrian chemical strike against civilians, and it says it's being falsely blamed for the spy poisoning in the UK. Syria
European pressure over missiles unites Iranian hardliners, moderates Iran appears impervious to the increasing pressure from the United States and Europe to negotiate over its regional policies and missile program. Iran
Tunisian women fighting for equal inheritance rights Increasing numbers of women are organizing to pressure the government into legislating equal inheritance rights to replace the current law, which is based on the Quran. Tunisia
Young Cairo painters take their work underground Young Egyptian artists are bringing color to Cairo’s metro stations, starting with magnificent murals for the Opera House stop. Egypt
