Guarded optimism surrounds Trump's Gaza proposal as war marks two years Negotiators convened for indirect talks in Egypt as Israel marked the two-year anniversary of Hamas' deadly attack. Israel
Interview Israel's Oslo architect Yossi Beilin: 2 years after Oct. 7, Netanyahu 'has no hope' of reelection Veteran left-wing politician and former Minister Yossi Beilin says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has caused Israel's deepening international isolation and military quagmire in the Gaza Strip.
UNESCO backs Egypt's Khaled el-Enany as next director-general, first Arab in post Enany would be the first Egyptian and the first Arab to serve as the agency’s director-general. Egypt
Analysis More bark than bite: Why Israel’s far right won’t rush to quit government despite Gaza plan Now that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accepted Washington's plan to end the war, farright Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir must decide whether to quit the government as threatened. By Mazal Mualem In Tel Aviv, reporting on politics
Trump tells Israel to halt Gaza assault 'immediately' after Hamas response to peace plan By Rosaleen Carroll In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East
Analysis Netanyahu hamstrung by far right, Trump as Hamas drags feet on Gaza plan By Ben Caspit In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense
Analysis Trump offers Netanyahu cover as Israel's far right recoils at Gaza peace plan By Ben Caspit In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense
Intel: Why Democrats failed to repeal a key military authorization As US lawmakers vote on a compromise to fund the government this week, one thing is conspicuously absent in the spending bill: a provision Democrats added to repeal the 18-year-old military authorization that serves as the legal basis for counterterrorism operations throughout the Middle East and across the globe. Congress
Will impeachment curtail Trump’s ability to shield Turkey from Congress? Turkish-American ties will likely remain strained in 2020, as Trump will be preoccupied with his reelection bid and have less time for Turkey. Turkey
Congress on verge of passing long-stalled Assad sanctions package Congress is on the brink of sanctioning Syria’s Bashar al-Assad government after three years of struggling to get the legislation approved. Syria
Intel: How Iranian influence operations are receiving new scrutiny in Washington The Senate is poised to follow the House lead in passing legislation to create a center to monitor Iranian, Russian, Chinese and North Korean efforts to sway US public opinion. Congress
Senate recognizes Armenian genocide in latest black eye for Turkey The Senate unanimously recognized the Armenian genocide today, the latest in a string of major blows against Turkey within a week. Turkey
Pentagon: Saudi military students can still enter US despite shooting The Defense Department plans to establish new vetting policies for all foreign military students who enter the United States as a result of the fatal shooting of US sailors by a Saudi air force member at a US base in Florida. Saudi Arabia
US set to lean on Saudi Arabia in Florida shooting probe The FBI will rely on Riyadh as it looks into last week's deadly shooting at a naval base. Saudi Arabia
Trump says Iran prisoner swap shows deal can be made A successful US-Iran prisoner swap is a confidence building measure but it remains to be seen whether it could be a prelude to negotiations on broader US-Iran tensions. United States
Erdogan in NATO: Russia’s ‘Trojan horse’? President Recep Tayyip Erdogan returned from London to Ankara as a “loser” who failed to achieve anything at the NATO summit. Turkey
White House whips Senate allies to block Armenian genocide resolution The White House has so far succeeded in keeping the Senate from passing a resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide, but the Trump administration is slowly running out of options. Turkey
Intel: Here’s how many US troops Trump wants to keep in Syria After months of uncertainty and ambiguity surrounding US troop levels in Syria as part of President Donald Trump’s mission to secure the war-torn country’s northeast oil fields, the Pentagon is finally disclosing a number. Syria
Democratic leader pours cold water on Tulsi Gabbard’s bid to force Syria withdrawal The House’s No. 2 Democrat dealt a major blow to Tulsi Gabbard’s effort to force President Donald Trump to pull the remaining US troops out of Syria. Syria