Gaza

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (L) and French President Emmanuel Macron take part in a joint press conference at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on July 20, 2022. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / POOL / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Macron’s Palestine gamble: Can recognition plan jump-start peace talks?

French President Emmanuel Macron said he may recognize a Palestinian state in June when he will cohost a peace summit with Saudi Arabia, but has not committed to such a move.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Amid differences, Trump and Netanyahu hold call, discuss Iran nuclear talks

It was their first conversation since the prime minister's visit to the White House two weeks ago, when the US president announced direct talks with Iran.

Pope Francis is welcomed at Presidential Palace on Feb. 4, 2019 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Middle East churches, Al-Azhar, leaders mourn Pope Francis

Pope Francis was praised by several regional leaders and churches, including Lebanon's Maronite Church and Iraqi officials, who noted his historic visit to Iraq in 2021.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at the Kremlin in Moscow, on April 17, 2025.

Qatar and Russia to up investment by $2B as emir visits Moscow

Cooperation between Qatar and Russia on energy matters is growing, as Doha seeks to mediate between the Kremlin and Ukraine over the war.

Latest News

Israel expands Gaza buffer zone to 20% as humanitarian situation deteriorates

Palestinians gather for a communal iftar.

Analysis

Postwar Gaza plans stall over challenge of disarming Hamas

Palestinians chant slogans during an anti-Hamas protest, calling for an end to the war with Israel, in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip on March 26, 2025.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

What the Signal chat leak reveals about Trump’s Middle East policy

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth participates in a TV interview outside of the White House on March 21, 2025 in Washington, DC. Hegseth visited the White House to join U.S. President Donald Trump in announcing the Next Generation of Air Dominance (NGDA) program, the F-47, the sixth-generation high-tech Air Force fighter to succeed the F-22 Raptor. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Rare protests against Hamas erupt in Gaza: What to know

Palestinians attend a rally calling for an end to the war, in Beit Lahia, in the northern Gaza Strip, on March 25, 2025.

Ronen Bar, chief of Israel's domestic Shin Bet security agency, attends a ceremony marking Memorial Day for fallen soldiers of Israel's wars and victims of attacks at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl military cemetery, on May 13, 2024.

How Netanyahu's sacking of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar could backfire on Israel

The decision by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar is likely to further erode Israel’s rule of law and democratic principles.

Hossam Shabat

Al Jazeera journalist Hossam Shabat killed in Israeli strikes on Gaza: What to know

Two journalists were killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza on Monday amid Israel’s renewed offensive in the territory.

Israeli army Merkava main battle tanks move at a position in southern Israel along the border fence with the northern Gaza Strip on March 18, 2025.

Analysis

With ceasefire shattered, what's next for Israel’s military invasion of Gaza?

It is unclear whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan is to pressure Hamas until it agrees to compromise on the hostage deal or if he is now heading toward resuming the war until Hamas is defeated.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

US President Donald Trump speaks to the media during a guided tour of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts before leading a board meeting, on March 17, 2025, in Washington.

Trump's Middle East strategy faces scrutiny as Gaza reignites

As the civilian death toll climbs in Gaza, can the self-proclaimed peacemaker president get both sides back to the negotiating table?

Israeli army Merkava main battle tanks move at a position in southern Israel along the border fence with the northern Gaza Strip on March 18, 2025.

Israel launches ground operation in Gaza as ceasefire collapses: What we know

After heavy aerial bombardments, Israeli troops launched their first ground incursion into central Gaza since January's ceasefire was reached.

Adi Alexander (C), father of Edan Alexander, attends a US House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia roundtable with family members of individuals being held hostage by Hamas, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on Nov. 29, 2023.

Interview

Israel's renewed Gaza strikes put last living US hostage at risk, family warns

Israeli American Edan Alexander was due to be released in the second phase of the ceasefire.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a joint press conference with US President Donald Trump in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 4, 2025, in Washington.

Analysis

Netanyahu’s Gaza war goal: Pressuring Hamas or political survival?

It is unclear yet whether the aerial bombardments are a strategy to pressure Hamas into a new hostage deal, or a more comprehensive decision by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue the war until the group is defeated.

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

OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images

Over 400 killed in Gaza as Israel breaks ceasefire, Ben-Gvir returns to cabinet

The new round of airstrikes in Gaza come two months after a ceasefire halted the more than 13-month Israel-Hamas war that left tens of thousands dead and caused massive destruction across the enclave.

TOPSHOT - A Palestinian boy picks flowers close to the rubble of destroyed buildings in the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on March 11, 2025. (Photo by Eyad BABA / AFP) (Photo by EYAD BABA/AFP via Getty Images)

US, Israel looking to resettle Gaza's Palestinians in Somalia, Somaliland, Sudan: Report

Israeli and American officials have been in contact with Sudan, Somalia and Somaliland for the possible resettling of Gazans there, the Associated Press reported.

Women pass by a wall covered with photos of hostages that were kidnaped to the Gaza Strip during Hamas deadly attack on Jan. 6, 2025 in Kfar Saba, Israel.

US slams Hamas offer to release American Edan Alexander

US special envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff said Hamas faces a fast-approaching deadline to accept Washington’s proposed ceasefire extension.

Displaced Palestinian children queue to get a portion of cooked food from a charity kitchen in Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip, ahead of the iftar fast-breaking meal during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on March 9, 2025. Israel's energy minister said on March 9 he had given instructions to stop supplying electricity to Gaza, a week after Israel blocked all aid into the war-ravaged Palestinian territory. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP) (Photo by OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images)

Gaza ceasefire in doubt as Israel tightens grip on aid

By squeezing Gaza’s civilian population, Israel hopes to pressure Hamas into extending the ceasefire on its terms.

US Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler speaks during a US hostage and wrongful detainee flag-raising ceremony at the State Department in Washington.

Israel, US at odds over Trump envoy's 'one-off' talks with Hamas

US envoy Adam Boehler’s media blitz added to the tensions with Israel over the Trump administration’s willingness to engage with Hamas.