All Middle East
Obama to Israel: 'You are not alone'Speaking in Jerusalem today, President Obama sought to drive home the point that US support for Israel is unwavering and that the US understands the litany of challenges that keep Israel apprehensive.
From Turkish jail, Kurdish guerrilla leader offers to lay down armsAfter three decades of war, Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan has proposed a cease-fire agreement to jumpstart steps toward limited self-governance.
As Obama does about-face on settlements, Palestinians question US as 'honest broker'Speaking in Ramallah today, President Obama reversed US insistence on an Israeli settlement freeze before peace talks could begin. The reversal highlights Palestinian frustrations.聽
Is a leader from Texas a good fit for the Syrian opposition?International donors will like Ghassan Hitto, the newly elected leader of the Syrian opposition, because of decades spent in the US, but that undermines his credibility among Syrians.
All signs point to no lethal chemical weapons attack in SyriaAs the Syrian regime and rebels trade accusations of an alleged lethal chemical weapons attack yesterday, chemical weapons experts say there is no evidence that attack occurred.
FocusObama arrives in a Middle East upended since his 2009 visitPresident Obama arrived in Israel today for a regional visit in which he will have to juggle three rapidly ticking time bombs: the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Syria's war, and Iran's nuclear program.
Nuclear talks: Iran unmoved by world powers' latest proposalWorld powers and Iran met in Istanbul yesterday to follow up on last month's talks in Kazakhstan. Despite high hopes, the two sides didn't find enough common ground.聽
In Iraq, a tyrant was toppled - and then no one was in chargeThe road to victory in Baghdad that began 10 years ago today was swift. But Monitor journalist Andy Nelson recalls the disquieting collapse of central authority, setting the stage for the war after the war.
Iraq 10 years on: The blast that changed a reporter's view of warIraq was a somewhat safe place filled with large dangerous pockets. Then one day in in 2005, the danger seemed to be everywhere.
The latest hot language among Palestinians in Gaza? HebrewStudents are flocking to a fledgling Hebrew program sponsored by Gaza's Hamas-run government, encouraged by their parents who learned Hebrew through years of working in Israel.- Can Iran, world powers build on recent progress in nuclear talks?Tomorrow's 'technical-level' meeting in Istanbul will give a quieter, closed-door venue for six world powers and Iran to try to turn diplomatic progress into concrete measures.
Two years on, aid efforts struggle to keep up with a shattered SyriaEmbattled aid workers in Syria say they can only do so much to counter the effects of the spiraling conflict, which is now entering its third year and shows little movement toward a political solution.
Will unlikely coalition partners force new path for Israel?In forming new government, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has had to concede to two parties with little in common other than their desire to end exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox.
Egypt's reviled police plead for understanding, supportEgypt's police, besieged by criticism for helping the government crack down on protesters, say they have been put in an unfair position and need protection.聽
Syria's children: even their first words are now shaped by warA Save the Children report released today states that children, some 2 million of them, are the 'forgotten victims' of Syria's war.
Tunisians invoke Macbeth to warn against a return of toil and troubleA Tunisian playwright has adapted the Shakespeare tragedy 鈥� in which Macbeth's drive for power brings moral decline and war 鈥� to warn that political infighting could bring back darker days.
FocusIraq war: The day the conflict changedTen years after the Iraq invasion, reporter Scott Peterson recalls the day a suicide attack threw him out of bed in a formerly quiet Baghdad neighborhood 鈥� and blew a hole in any sense that the war was keeping its distance.- FocusIraq war: On the road to Baghdad for 17 daysAndy Nelson, who photographed the US invasion of Iraq, recalls the pulling down of Saddam's statue 鈥� and early signs of chaos.
FocusTen years after invasion, Iraq remains dangerously dividedIn the new Iraq, old sectarian fears remain.聽Around Baghdad's Green Zone, the fortified seat of government, concrete walls pulled down a year ago are going back up.
Tunisia's Al Nahda unveils new cabinet in latest bid to placate criticsEager to tamp down political instability, Tunisia's ruling Al Nahda party announced a new cabinet today that it hopes will allow the party to focus on political reform and the economy.
