Human rights

Hassan Akkad speaks about fleeing Syria in 2015 and his work as a filmmaker at a BAFTA event, Sept. 2023.

Culture

In Syria, detention of Hassan Akkad raises alarm about free expression under Sharaa

Akkad, a British-Syrian filmmaker, was detained Wednesday night after his campaign questioning the whereabouts of funds allegedly pledged for relief, reconstruction and community initiatives across Syria.

Israeli security forces attempt to disperse Palestinians who had gathered to protest the reported burning of land by Israeli settlers in the Palestinian village of Idna, west of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, on June 5, 2026.

Amnesty International accuses Israel of state-led ethnic cleansing in West Bank

In a new report, Amnesty International said that the escalating forced displacement and settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank is part of a state-led campaign to control the Palestinian territory.

Janti Soeripto helps at a community kitchen serving hot meals to displaced families arriving from El-Fasher.

Interview

As Sudan war drags on, US-Iran conflict compounds humanitarian crisis in Darfur

Save the Children US President and CEO Janti Soeripto said delivering aid in Sudan remains extremely difficult, with supply trucks often delayed for weeks or months even after entering the country.

Janti Soeripto

President and CEO of Save the Children US

Israel's Netanyahu suing New York Times over column on Palestinian rape

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar rejected New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof's accusations of systematic sexual abuse and rape of Palestinian prisoners, calling the claims a "blood libel."

Latest News

Syria arrests Amjad Youssef, Tadamoun massacre perpetrator: What to know

A young man stands in the entrance of tunnels that were used by the ISIS and the Assad's regime for fighting. Tadamon, Syria, February 7, 2025. (Photo by Raghed Waked / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by RAGHED WAKED/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Lebanon bids farewell to Amal Khalil, journalist killed by Israel: What to know

Amal Khalil, a veteran correspondent for the daily newspaper Al-Akhbar, in the southern Lebanese border village of Jebbayn in 2024.

Iran executes 14th person since war over alleged Mossad ties: What to know

Mahdi Farid, who was convicted of espionage for Israel’s Mossad, was executed after his death sentence was upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court, Tehran, Iran, April 22, 2026.

Interview

Olmert: Only Israel-Lebanon deal can curb Hezbollah, occupation 'unviable'

Olmert

Ehud Olmert

Ehud Olmert

Former Israeli prime minister

Journalists carrying placards "No to the censorship law" and "We are journalists" take part in a protest in front of the Constitutional Court in Ankara on Nov. 8, 2023, regarding the law discussed by the Constitutional Court and known to the public as the Censorship Law.

Turkey’s top court upholds controversial media law as EU laments 'democratic backsliding'

The ruling coincided with the release of the EU Commission's annual report which noted “continued deterioration” in the country’s democratic standards, the rule of law, and the independence of the judiciary.

MOHAMMAD ZANOUN/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

One month into Israel-Hamas war, more than 10,000 killed in Gaza, almost 1.5 million displaced

The war in Gaza has killed more than 10,000 people and injured more than 25,000 since Oct. 7 as prospects of cease-fire appear remote.

Israeli war cabinet

Israeli minister who called to nuke Gaza votes in cabinet meeting, despite suspension

Asked on the radio if Israel should throw a nuclear bomb at Gaza, Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu responded, "that’s one option."

A woman holds a poster of Israeli hostage Omer Neutra during a memorial vigil for the Israeli people killed by Hamas during the October 7 attack, in New York City on November 1, 2023. Thousands of civilians, both Palestinians and Israelis, have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip entered southern Israel in an unprecedented attack triggering a war declared by Israel on Hamas with retaliatory bombings on Gaza. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEI

Analysis

Families of Israeli hostages frustrated with Netanyahu government, urge talks

The families of kidnapped Israelis and foreign nationals worry that the Israeli government's dual goals of the Gaza operation — eliminating Hamas and rescuing all the hostages — are incompatible with one another.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

People demonstrate in support of Palestinians in Cali, Colombia, on Oct. 19, 2023.

Chile, Colombia, Jordan recall Israel ambassadors after Bolivia cuts ties

Bolivia became the first country to end its diplomatic ties with Israel over the war in Gaza.

Palestinians search for survivors in the rubble of a building in the Nuseirat refugee camp, in the central Gaza Strip on October 31, 2023, amid relentless Israeli bombardment of the Palestinian enclave. Thousands of civilians, both Palestinians and Israelis, have died since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian Hamas militants based in the Gaza Strip entered southern Israel in an unprecedented attack triggering a war declared by Israel on Hamas with retaliatory bombings on Gaza. (Photo by Mahmud HAMS / AFP) (P

'Total blindness': Gaza paramedics recount horror during Israel's blackout

Gazans recount the 34 hours of internet and communications blackout during intense Israeli bombardment cutting off the enclave from the rest of the world.

Jordan's Queen Rania and Spain's Queen Letizia (R) arrive for an official luncheon at the Royal Palace in Madrid, on June 19, 2023. (Photo by Paul White / POOL / AFP) (Photo by PAUL WHITE/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Day 19 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Wednesday, Oct. 25

President Joe Biden speaks on the terrorist attacks in Israel.

At least 11 Americans dead in Hamas attack on Israel, Biden says

Other Americans are still missing and could be among the scores of hostages taken into Gaza, the White House said.

Narges Mohammadi has not seen her children for eight years

Iran's jailed women's activist Narges Mohammadi wins Nobel peace prize

Agence France-Presse

09/17/2023 Shiraz, Iran. An Iranian young girl in a car shows a victory sign from the window on the anniversary of Mahsa Amini's murder. (Photo by Amir / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by AMIR/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran's security arrests mother of Armita Garawand as teen still lies in coma

Just days after her daughter fell into a coma after reportedly being attacked by morality police officers, Shahin Ahmadi was arrested by security forces and taken to an unknown location.

(D-NY)

Breaking | Last Updated: September 29, 2023, 7:05 pm

Meeks urges pause on US military aid to Egypt in wake of Menendez indictment

Rep. Gregory Meeks on Friday sought a hold on more than $200 million in Egypt's military financing over human rights concerns.

Poster featuring jailed businessman and philanthropist Osman Kavala.

Turkey’s appeals court upholds life sentence for Osman Kavala, four others

The trial and ensuing sentences have turned into a symbol of Turkey’s democratic backsliding and erosion of judiciary independence.