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.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the Sixth Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, Astana, Kazakhstan, Oct. 13, 2022.

Putin hosts Abbas as Russia looks for role in ending Gaza war

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas held talks in Moscow on first such visit for the Palestinian leader since 2021.

This handout picture provided by the Iranian army office on Dec. 24, 2023, shows equipment on display.

US says Iran’s attack on Israel 'could be this week'

With the timing of Iran's attack unclear, the White House says it's preparing for a "significant set of attacks."

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant leaves the State Department after meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the US State Department in Washington, DC, on March 25, 2024. The White House said Monday it was "perplexed" and "disappointed" by the cancelation of an Israeli delegation's planned visit to discuss US concerns over a possible offensive in southern Gaza. Israel scrapped the visit after the United States abstained from a UN Security Council vote demanding an "immediate ceasefire" in Ga

Gallant clashes with Netanyahu, cautions against Israeli war in Lebanon

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the military is ready for possible attacks by Iran and Hezbollah, but he does not support a preemptive operation in Lebanon.

Palestinian children passing by on the street look at the makeshift gravesite of Khaled Abu Obeid at his family's home in Gaza City's Sheikh Radwan neighbourhood on August 7, 2024. Khaled was feeding pigeons on their rooftop when he was killed by a sniper on December 21 amid an Israeli siege of the area, forcing the family and neighbours to dig his grave at home, where it remains, the family said. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP) (Photo by OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images)

UK, France, Germany leaders urge restart of Gaza cease-fire talks as Hamas reconsiders

European leaders, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on Monday for the truce talks to resume, after the mediators did last week.

A panoramic view of Jerusalem's Old City is pictured at dawn of April 14, 2024, after Iran launched a drone and missile attack on Israel. Iran launched more than 200 drones and missiles on Israel in an unprecedented attack late April 13, 2024, the Israeli army announced, in a major escalation of the long-running covert war between the regional foes.

Analysis

What an Iran-Israel escalation could mean for Pakistan

Though Pakistan has no diplomatic ties with Israel, peace remains tenuous on the Iran-Pakistan border; still, popular support in Pakistan remains with Tehran, and any situation in Iran has to be handled delicately by Islamabad.

Sabena Siddiqui

By Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A cleric stands next to a poster depicting slain leader of the Palestinian Hamas group Ismail Haniyeh at Tehran's Palestine square on August 8, 2024.

Iran says Israel retaliation won't be to 'detriment' of Gaza cease-fire

As the region braces for Iranian retaliation against Israel, Tehran says its response will be conducted “in a manner not to the detriment” of a Gaza cease-fire deal.

A F18 Hornet fighter jet pilot takes off from the deck of the US navy aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman in the eastern Mediterranean Sea on May 8, 2018.

Analysis

'A chance to stand down': Can US pressure lead to Gaza deal, curb Iran attack on Israel?

The Biden administration and Gaza war mediators hope a cease-fire can entice leaders in Israel and Iran to halt the march to all-out war.

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

Iranians lift up a flag and the mock up of a missile during a celebration following Iran's missiles and drones attack on Israel, on April 15 2024, at Palestine square in central Tehran.

Iran’s threat to Israel adds uncertainty over Gaza cease-fire

The looming attack from Iran and its allies, coupled with Hamas’ elevation of Yahya Sinwar, casts fresh doubt on a cease-fire deal.

(L-R) Michael Erik Kurilla, head of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM), former Israeli Army Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi, and former US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley attend the International Military Innovation Conference at the Tze'elim Urban Warfare Training Center (UWTC) base in southern Israel on September 15, 2022.

CENTCOM chief back in Israel amid fears of Iran, Hezbollah attack

US Air Force F-22 Raptors arrived in the Middle East on Thursday as the Pentagon gears up to fend off an anticipated retaliatory attack by Iran and its proxies against Israel for the assassination of a top Hamas leader in Tehran last week.

Egyptian army vehicles are deployed along the border with the Gaza Strip on July 4, 2024 in el-Arish, in the north Sinai Peninsula, amid continuing battles between Hamas and Israel in Palestinian besieged territory. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu says arms smuggling from Egypt's Sinai, not Qatar, fueled Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Time magazine that his approval of Qatari financial assistance to Hamas over the years was not the reason the group became powerful enough to attack Israel.

Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations, Amir Saeid Iravani addresses the United Nations Security Council during an emergency meeting on April 14, 2024 at U.N. Headquarters in New York City. The U.N. Security Council convened for the meeting at the request of Israel's Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan after Iran's attack on Israel. (Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)

Iran says cease-fire in Gaza 'priority' as US sees deal 'closer than ever'

Iran's statement on a cease-fire comes as Washington intensifies its efforts to reach a deal that could avert Iranian retaliation against Israel and a potential regional war.

Israeli tanks move toward Rafah during the wider military operation in the Gaza Strip, May 29, 2024.

US says cease-fire talks in 'final stage' as Hamas taps Sinwar to be new leader

The nomination of Gaza Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar as head of the organization's political bureau does not mean that the door of cease-fire and hostage release negotiations is closed.