Armed Militias and Extremist Groups

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon close to the Beaufort Castle as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee, in northern Israel on June 4, 2026.

Analysis

Israel’s Lebanon endgame remains elusive despite ceasefire deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was compelled by President Donald Trump to accept a new ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah, but without a clear long-term strategy, he may be inclined to resume hostilities at the first opportunity.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

A portrait of the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah is visible in heavily damaged building in the border town of Ayta al-Chaab, southern Lebanon, Feb. 21, 2026.

Analysis

Why Israel sees Lebanon’s 'pilot zones' as path to containing Hezbollah

Israel views the proposed pilot security zones in southern Lebanon as a pragmatic way to gradually expand Lebanese state control, push Hezbollah away from the border and preserve a fragile ceasefire while the Trump administration pursues broader negotiations with Iran.

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

Tom Barrack testifies during his Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 01, 2025, in Washington, DC.

Tom Barrack addresses criticism over his remarks on Hezbollah, Turkey: What to know

Tom Barrack, a senior figure within the Trump administration, was recently criticized by a member of the House for some of his past statements on Hezbollah.

First responders gather at the site of an Israeli strike that hit near a hospital in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre on June 1, 2026.

What’s in new Israel-Lebanon ceasefire deal — and what’s missing?

Hezbollah’s insistence on continuing to fight off Israeli attacks, along with Israel’s ongoing airstrikes in Lebanon, could threaten the implementation of the latest US-brokered ceasefire.

Latest News

Analysis

‘Iranians threatened Trump and he folded’: Beirut veto leaves Netanyahu exposed

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP via Getty Images

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

Ongoing Israeli strikes, Hezbollah projectiles cloud Trump’s ceasefire in Lebanon

Smoke rises from the sites of Israeli airstrikes in the southern city of Nabatieh on June 2, 2026. Israel's growing offensive in Lebanon, including heavy bombardment and its deepest ground invasion in two decades, has threatened to scupper a ceasefire in the wider Middle East war between the United States and Iran. (Photo by Abbas Fakih / AFP via Getty Images)

Trump says Hezbollah, Israel agree to stop fighting after call with Netanyahu

Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon as seen from a position across the border in the Upper Galilee in northern Israel on May 31, 2026.

Analysis

Can Iraq absorb Iran-backed militias without deepening Tehran’s influence?

Hawre Khalid/Getty Images

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

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

The US Central Command Commander General Michael Kurilla speaks at the 18th IISS Manama Dialogue in Bahrain's capital on Nov. 19, 2022.

US general says Israeli strike on Iran would risk troops in region

Outgoing CENTCOM Gen. Michael 'Erik' Kurilla said he has provided a broad range of military options to the Trump White House should diplomacy fail to rein in Tehran's nuclear enrichment.

US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack meets Syrian President Ahmed Sharaa in Damascus, on May 29, 2025.

Interview

US believes Syria’s Sharaa at risk of assassination, Trump envoy says

US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack also discusses what’s next for sanctions relief, the country’s relationship with Israel and why the Trump administration is not engaged in “nation-building.”

Tom Barrack

Tom Barrack

US special envoy for Syria

US soldiers patrol in Syria's northeastern city Qamishli, in the Hasakeh province, mostly controlled by Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), on Jan. 9, 2025.

Analysis

How the US drawdown in Syria is expected to play out

Senate Foreign Relations Chair Jim Risch called the US troop presence in Syria "critical" to contain ISIS and urged a Russian withdrawal, as sources said US troops are expected to eventually draw down to a single base in Hasakah province.

Jared Szuba

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

A large Syrian flag flutters above Tishreen Park in Damascus, on June 4, 2025.

Culture

Syria’s top Islamic body issues decree against honor killings: What to know

US special envoy to Syria Tom Barrack referred to the decision as “great first steps,” though concerns persist about the new Islamist-led government.

Israeli tanks are positioned along the border with the Gaza Strip, on June 5, 2025, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

Analysis

‘A wild gamble’: Will Israel's arming of Gaza militia backfire?

In a move critics have called dangerous and risky, Israel is now supplying weapons to an independent Gaza militia in a bid to weaken Hamas.

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

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli air strike targeting the southern suburbs of Beirut, Nov. 23, 2024.

Israel strikes Beirut, targeting underground Hezbollah drone facilities

This marks the first time Israel has struck Lebanon’s capital city since April.

Travelers from the Middle East arrive at the International Arrivals section at Los Angeles International Airport on June 29, 2017.

Trump travel ban 2.0: Assessing the impact on Mideast nations

Trump’s new decision excludes Syria and Iraq, both of which were part of his previous ban issued during his first term in 2017.

Protesters hold signs and photos of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by Hamas during a rally calling for a hostage deal, May 31, 2025 in Tel Aviv, Israel.

Israeli military recovers bodies of two Israeli-American hostages held in Gaza

Kibbutz Nir Oz announced that the bodies of Gadi Haggai and his wife, Judith Weinstein, were recovered overnight from Gaza in a military operation.

A fighter loyal to the army patrols a market area in Khartoum on March 24, 2025.

Sudan: 14 killed in camp shelling blamed on RSF as Darfur violence grows

An attack on the Abu Shouk displacement camp in El Fasher has killed 14 people amid ongoing assaults on civilians and humanitarian convoys.

Hossein Salami, commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, delivers a speech during a funeral ceremony after a terrorist attack, on Jan. 5, 2024, in Kerman, Iran.

Iran says 13 ISIS affiliates arrested for planning suicide attacks

ISIS’ Khorasan branch has conducted numerous attacks against Iran in recent years, prompting authorities to pursue its members.

US special envoy for Syria, the ambassador to Turkey Thomas Barrack attends a flag-raising ceremony at the US ambassador's residence in Damascus on May 29, 2025 for the first time since 2011. Barrack's visit to Syria marks a new step in the rapprochement between the two countries following the fall of former president Bashar al-Assad. (Photo by Rami al SAYED / AFP) (Photo by RAMI AL SAYED/AFP via Getty Images)

US envoy Barrack in Israel after cross-border shelling with Syria: What to know

US envoy for Syria Tom Barrack met Wednesday with Israeli officials in an effort to de-escalate ongoing tensions with Syria and Turkey.

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