Armed Militias and Extremist Groups

Kurdish Syrians demonstrate in the Syrian eastern city of Qamishli to demand the release of the jailed founder of the Kurdistan Workers Party, Abdullah Ocalan, in Turkey, on May 29, 2025.

Exclusive

Ankara’s direct talks with Syrian Kurds began last year in Europe, continue in Turkey

The talks are part of a sweeping effort to end Turkey’s decades-long war with the PKK and reshape Ankara’s relationship with Kurdish-led forces in Syria.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

COURTNEY BONNEAU/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s FM vows 'noninterference' in Lebanon during Beirut visit: What to know

The Iranian visit to Lebanon comes as talks of disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah group is gaining momentum.

Armed and masked men attend the funeral of two militants from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in Ain el-Hilweh refugee camp near Sidon on Nov. 1, 2024.

PLO officials in Lebanon as push to disarm Palestinian camps gains steam

The effort to disarm Palestinian armed groups in Lebanon’s refugee camps will require outside support, according to one expert, as pressure to disarm Hezbollah grows.

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and US special envoy for Syria Ambassador to Turkey Thomas Barrack (R).

US Syria envoy Barrack says troop drawdown to continue, support for Kurds to remain

Trump’s ambassador to Ankara told a Turkish TV news outlet that American troops will eventually draw down to a single base in Syria, but that Washington is unlikely to abandon the Kurdish-led forces.

Jared Szuba

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

Latest News

Analysis

Sudan’s new PM dissolves government but military control remains firm

SUNA

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Israel expands Gaza offensive as dozens reported killed at aid sites

YOUSEF ALZANOUN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Protests surge as Libyans demand PM Dbeibeh’s resignation: What to know

Protests in the capital Tripoli on May 28, 2025.

Gaza ceasefire seen imminent as Witkoff finalizes Hamas-Israel deal

People watch as smoke billows following an Israeli strike in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip on May 25, 2025.

Amir Levy/Getty Images

Day 98 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Friday, Jan. 12

Saudi Arabia has led an anti-Huthi coalition since 2015, but is now angling for a ceasefire and military exit from Yemen

Saudi Arabia in 'tight spot' as US, UK take on Yemen's Houthi rebels

Agence France-Presse

An RAF Typhoon aircraft takes off to join the US-led coalition from RAF Akrotiri to conduct air strikes against military targets in Yemen on Jan. 12, 2024.

US, UK carry out strikes against Yemen's Houthis following Red Sea attacks

The allied forces struck radar sites and weapons storage facilities with bombs after Houthis spurned a warning by the United States and a dozen others to halt their attacks on Red Sea commercial shipping.

US special envoy Amos Hochstein (L) meets with Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in Beirut on Jan. 11, 2024 amid continuing tensions on the Lebanese-Israeli border.

US seeks diplomatic deal to contain Israel-Lebanon escalation

Amos Hochstein said he was hopeful a "temporary compromise" could be reached to ease tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border.

SUEZ, EGYPT - JANUARY 10: A ship transits the Suez Canal towards the Red Sea on January 10, 2024 in Suez, Egypt. on January 10, 2024 in Suez, Egypt. In the wake of Israel's war on Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Houthi rebels in Yemen pledged disruption on all ships destined for Israel through the Red Sea's Suez Canal. The disruption on world trade is evident in the number of companies using this container ship route - a 90 per cent decline compared to figures one year ago. (Photo by Sayed

Breaking | Last Updated: January 11, 2024, 6:41 pm

US, UK mull strikes against Iran-backed Houthis following Red Sea attacks

British media reported that Downing Street called for an emergency cabinet meeting tonight to approve UK military action against the Houthis.

The statue of late South African President Nelson Mandela.

Day 97 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Thursday, Jan. 11

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy, Logistics Specialist 1st Class Ousseinou Kaba (left), from Silver Spring, Md., and Logistics Specialist Seaman Abigail Marshke, from Flint, Mich., attach cargo to an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter from the "Nightdippers" of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5 from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) May 10, 2019 in the Red Sea.

Day 96 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Wednesday, Jan. 10

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) meets with Israeli President Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv on Jan. 9, 2024, during his week-long trip aimed at calming tensions across the Middle East, amid continuing battles between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.

Day 95 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Tuesday, Jan. 9

A man inspects the destroyed building of Palestinian journalist Adel Zorob, who was killed overnight in an Israeli bombardment, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Dec. 19, 2023, amid continuing battles between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas militant group.

Day 94 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Monday, Jan. 8

The funeral of Hamza Wael Dahdouh, a journalist with the Al Jazeera television network, who was killed in a reported Israeli air strike in Rafah in the Gaza Strip on January 7, 2024

Day 93 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Sunday, Jan. 7

Wael and Hamza Al-Dahdouh and

Day 92 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Saturday, Jan. 6

A picture depicting Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, hangs on a building near the site of a drone strike attributed to Israel targeting Hamas deputy leader Saleh al-Aruri in the southern suburb of Beirut on Jan. 3, 2024.

Day 91 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Friday, Jan. 5