Ethnic/Religious Minorities

A police speed boat patrols the port as oil tankers and high speed crafts sit anchored at Muscat Anchorage near the Strait of Hormuz on March 30, 2026 in Muscat, Oman.

Analysis

Hostage to Hormuz, can Gulf rewire future energy flows to bypass Iran’s chokepoint?

As the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts around 20% of global oil supply, experts point to opportunities and challenges facing a renewed push to develop alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

A Hezbollah flag is seen in a destroyed car after an Israeli airstrike in Nabi Chit (Al-Nabi Shayth), Lebanon, on March 26, 2026. In the first week of March, the Israeli army carried out an unsuccessful nighttime commando operation there to recover the remains of Ron Arad, a pilot missing since 1986, triggering airstrikes and destruction in the area that forced residents to flee their homes. (Photo by Fabio Bucciarelli / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Displacement and dissent: Hezbollah’s war with Israel splits Lebanon’s Shiites

The renewed Israel war against Hezbollah in Lebanon has divided the Shiite community, with some still backing the group as resistance against Israel’s expansionist vision and others refusing to pay the price of foreign conflicts.

Karim Safieddine

By Karim Safieddine

In Beirut, reporting on politics

Displaced families set up tents along Beirut's waterfront in Beirut, Lebanon, on March 10, 2026, after fleeing recent Israel-Hezbollah hostilities.

Lebanon scrambles to contain tensions over displacement as Israel ups threats

Displaced Shiites are facing growing resentment from host communities in areas outside of Hezbollah’s control in Lebanon amid uncertainty over their return to southern Lebanon, where Israeli attacks and advances signal a potential ground invasion.

Rabbi Daniel Walker and King Charles III view floral tributes during a visit to Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue on Oct. 20, 2025, in Manchester, England.

UK, Netherlands probe Iran links to plots targeting Jewish sites: What to know

British authorities said two men had spied on the Jewish community in London for Iran, and synagogues were recently targeted in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Latest News

Analysis

Turkey cautious but unfazed by US plan to mobilize Iranian Kurds against regime

A group of Peshmergas of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan (PDKI) walks during military training near one of their bases in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, on March 1, 2025.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Which 6 Kurdish groups could join the war in Iran?

A picture from the formation of the Coalition of Political Forces of Iranian Kurdistan on Feb. 22, 2026.

Amid chatter of local uprisings, eyes turn to Iran's minorities: What to know

Osama Al Maqdoni / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Syria begins prisoner exchange with Druze militia in south: What to know

Suwayda

Mor Gabriel Monastery

Court case against priest evokes bitter memories for Turkey’s Assyrians

Turkey’s tiny Assyrian community views a jail term handed to an Assyrian priest on “terrorism charges” as an official strong-arming tactic, while Assyrians around the world call for dismissal of the case.

April 23, 2021 torchlight procession in Yerevan

Biden calls Erdogan ahead of expected Armenian genocide labeling

The White House readout of the call between the two leaders did not mention the Armenian genocide.

Catholicos Garegin II, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, attends a ceremony commemorating the 105th anniversary of the massacre of 1.5 million of Armenians by Ottoman forces in 1915, at the Tsitsernakaberd memorial in Yerevan on April 24, 2020.

Turkish talk of reconciliation angers Armenians on 106th anniversary of genocide

Turkey has warned the United States that President Joe Biden's expected characterization of the mass killings of the Ottoman Armenians in 1915 as a genocide will derail Turkish-Armenian reconciliation and further damage US-Turkish ties. Armenians say there is no reconciliation process to speak of.

Pope Francis speaks about the situation in Lebanon as a Lebanese priest (R) holds Lebanon's flag and Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza (L) looks on during the pope's limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican on Sept. 2, 2020.

Pope may visit Lebanon once new government is formed

Pope Francis met Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri in Vatican City today.

2018 Coptic Christian funeral

Egypt's Christians fearful after IS killing in Sinai

The latest killing of a Christian man in Sinai by the Islamic State has brought back to Egypt's Christians memories of past attacks on churches by the terrorist group, even as the Coptic Orthodox Church appeared defiant.

EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images

Jerusalem seethes with clashes between Jews, Arabs

The week has been violent in Jerusalem with both Israeli Jews and Arabs reportedly attacking each other in well documented incidents.

Women of the Wall

New Israeli legislator smuggles Torah scroll for Women of the Wall

One of the first actions of new Labor Knesset member Rabbi Gilad Kari was sneaking a Torah scroll into the Western Wall plaza for women activists to pray from.

EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images

New ultra-Orthodox residents make Israel's Dimona nervous

Many secular residents of the southern town of Dimona are afraid that new residents, families from the Gur Hasidic community, will change the character of their town.

A picture taken on Oct. 3, 2016 shows a general view of the interior of the Shaar Hashamayim Synagogue in Cairo, also known as Temple Ismailia or Adly Synagogue.

The lost Jewish surnames of Cairo

An extensive list of the surnames of the Jewish families who lived in Cairo has been published, helping tell stories across generations.

Syria’s Armenian community resilient, but faces uncertain future

Syrian Armenians, despite the fragility of their presence in the region, are determined to stay and rebuild.

Pope's pilgrimage to Iraq and land of Abraham begins

The first-ever papal visit to Iraq starts as Pope Francis lands in Baghdad.

Israelis blame ultra-Orthodox for coronavirus pandemic

Many secular Israelis express hatred towards the ultra-Orthodox, whom they blame for the continuing coronavirus pandemic.