Armed Militias and Extremist Groups

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki speaks during a press conference on May 11, 2011, at the green zone area in Baghdad, Iraq.

Iraq’s Maliki rejects Trump criticism, vows to stay in PM race

Maliki refused to withdraw from the race, despite mounting pressure from the US, and expressed a desire for good relations with Iraq’s neighbors and Washington.

US Department of State's senior advisor to the president for Arab and African Affairs Massad Fares Boulos attends the Sudan Humanitarian Fund event at the Institute of Peace in Washington, on Feb. 3, 2026.

US says Sudan warring parties back withdrawal plan as donors pledge $700M in aid

State Department senior adviser Massad Boulos announced Tuesday that a "comprehensive peace plan" has been approved by Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, though it still needs to be approved by Sudan's warring parties.

Lebanese soldiers standing atop a military vehicle in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel in southern Lebanon, on Nov. 28, 2025.

Lebanon’s army chief in Washington as Hezbollah disarmament enters critical phase

Gen. Rodolphe Haykal is seeking US support for what is likely to be a cautious approach to expanding the geographic scope of the Lebanese army's efforts to disarm Hezbollah.

Sudanese army soldiers parade in the streets of eastern Sudan's city of Gedaref on Aug. 14, 2025, to mark the 71st anniversary of the formation of the Sudanese army.

RSF shells Sudan’s Kordofan as US-Saudi truce plan stalls: What to know

Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces have launched drone and artillery attacks in Dilling, just a week after the Sudanese army said it broke a nearly two-year siege on the town.

Latest News

France's role in Syria-SDF agreement: What to know

Syrian Democratic Forces fighters stand on a pick-up truck to provide security during an inspection of SDF positions on the Tell Brak frontline in Syria on Jan. 26, 2026.

Iraqi militias claim volunteers readying to defend Iran from US: What to know

Men sign up to join the "martyrdom brigades" under the umbrella of Iraq's pro-Iran paramilitary group Hezbollah Brigades (Kataib Hezbollah), who called upon Iraqis to volunteer in fighting alongside Iran in the event of a full-scale war with the US and Israel, at a mosque in Baghdad on January 29, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel ups Iran intel sharing with US, expects Trump to strike within 'weeks'

TOPSHOT - Cars drive past an anti-US billboard installed on a building at the Enqelab Square in Tehran on January 26, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Lebanon army chief to visit US Tuesday to shore up support: What to know

This photograph taken during a press tour organised by the Lebanese army shows Lebanese soldiers standing atop military vehicles in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel in southern Lebanon, on November 28, 2025. It was the first guided tour the army gave journalists since a November 2024 ceasefire sought to end over a year of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (Photo by Anwar AMRO / AFP via Getty Images)

Fighters from Bedouin tribes gather near a burning building in al-Mazraa village, in Syria's southern Suwayda governorate, as clashes with Druze gunmen continue, on July 18, 2025.

Turkey on edge as clashes continue in Syria's Suwayda, Kurds weigh next move

Turkey fears a deepening ethnic fracture in Syria could redraw the regional map — and embolden its own Kurdish population.

ZAID AL-OBEIDI/AFP via Getty Images

Over 10 years after ISIS takeover, Iraq's Mosul Airport reopens: What to know

The airport has been out of operation since the fall of the northern Iraqi city to the Islamic State in 2014.

Israel military vehicles drive along the border fence with Syria, near the town of Majdal Shams, in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, July 17, 2025.

Analysis

'You can’t embark on new war every few days': Israel-US daylight grows over Syria Druze, Sharaa

The Israeli prime minister is being pressed by the Trump administration to avoid escalating the situation in Syria but also by Israeli Druze to protect their brethren there.

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

A picture shows a view of the damage following Israeli strikes on the Syrian army and Defense Ministry headquarters in Damascus, on July 16, 2025.

Israel’s defense chief to visit Pentagon following Syria, Iran strikes: What to know

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz is expected to meet in Washington with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and other senior American officials to discuss the latest developments in Iran and Syria.

Members of the Druze community demonstrate before Israeli forces by the barbed-wire fence separating the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights and Syria near Majdal Shams, on July 16, 2025.

Israeli Druze breach Syria border, call for 'day of rage' over Suwayda clashes

The Israeli Druze leadership announced a one-day labor strike on Wednesday and called on all Israeli Druze to go to the border and cross it in order to assist their Syrian brethren in Suwayda.

A woman walks past a mural depicting Lebanese Druze politician Walid Jumblatt (bottom, R) and Syrian Druze nationalist leader Sultan al-Atrash, in the predominantly Druze city of Beit Jann on November 16, 2023. Around 150,000 Druze, Arab adherents of an esoteric offshoot of Shiite Islam, live in Israel. Most identify as Israelis and the men -- not women -- are conscripted into the military, many serving in combat units. The Druze community is concentrated in 16 villages in northern Israel, among them Beit J

Lebanon's Druze mobilize in solidarity with Syria's Suwayda: What to know

Druze leaders in Lebanon are voicing their growing concerns over the deadly violence unfolding in Suwayda while members of the community are trying to cross the border into Syria.

Two armed men gesture as a car burns near the site of clashes between Druze and Bedouin factions on July 14, 2025 in Suwayda, Syria.

Live Updates

Syria says army withdrawing from Suwayda after deadly clashes with Druze

The withdrawal follows reportedly an understanding between Damascus and local Druze leaders to end the fighting after days of deadly violence.

SAFIN HAMID/AFP via Getty Images

Drone strike halts operations at Iraqi Kurdistan oil field: What to know

A second drone attack in as many days has suspended operations at an oil facility in Iraqi Kurdistan, with initial investigations pointing to Iran-aligned armed groups.

Syrian security forces stand with their guns atop a truck on July 15, 2025, near Suwayda, Syria.

Analysis

Is Sharaa’s Druze crackdown a warning to Syria’s Kurds?

Syrian Kurds, who control a quarter of Syria's territory in the north and the northeast, are closely watching events unfold in Suwayda.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Traffic moves beneath a banner depicting the slain leader of the Lebanese Shiite Islamist movement Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah (C) and his deputy Hashem Safieddine (C-R) as well as that of slain Iranian General Qassem Soleimani on Beirut Airport Road, in Beirut on February 19, 2025. The pro-Iran group has called for a huge turnout when Nasrallah, killed in a September Israeli strike, is laid to rest in the Lebanese capital on February 23. (Photo by ANWAR AMRO / AFP) (Photo by ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon bans dealings with 4 Hezbollah-linked financial institutions

Lebanon’s Central Bank has banned licensed financial institutions from interacting with unauthorized entities including those linked to Hezbollah.

Members of Syria's security forces drive through the predominantly Druze city of Suwayda on July 15, 2025, following Israeli bombardment amid clashes between Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters.

Analysis

Will Israel's airstrikes in Druze city derail Syria normalization talks?

The violent clashes in Syria and subsequent Israeli attack have pushed a potential bilateral security agreement further off.

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

A member of Syria's security forces stands under a sign in the predominantly Druze city of Sweida (Suwayda), on July 15, 2025, following clashes between Bedouin tribes and Druze fighters.

Syria announces ceasefire in Druze city of Suwayda: What to know

The ceasefire followed deadly clashes between the Druze of Suwayda and Bedouin tribes that left over 100 people dead.