Middle East

The 5-Star Tent Village

Life is hard for the millions of Syrians fleeing war. But it's a bit easier at the gleaming Emirati-funded refugee camp in Jordan.

BY NERI ZILBER | MAY 21, 2013

Texas Hold 'Em in Tehran

Can the Supreme Leader bluff and bully his way to getting what he wants in Iran’s crucial upcoming presidential election?

BY YASMIN ALEM | MAY 21, 2013

Metternich in Baghdad

No, America hasn't "lost" Iraq. But a dangerous realpolitik is the new normal in Baghdad.

BY RAMZY MARDINI | MAY 20, 2013

Bassem Youssef Isn't Joking Around

The Egyptian satirist stands on the front lines of Egypt’s culture wars.

BY DAVID KENNER | MAY 20, 2013

In the Hills of Alawistan

In Syria’s beautiful northwest, all is peaceful. But death is never far away.

BY ALIA MALEK | MAY 17, 2013

Dead on Arrival

I co-wrote the Arab Peace Initiative. And I doubt Kerry's good-faith attempt to revive it will succeed.

BY MARWAN MUASHER | MAY 16, 2013

Yes, Iraq Is Unraveling

And it's about to become Obama's problem all over again.

BY MICHAEL KNIGHTS | MAY 15, 2013

It’s a Nice Place to Visit, But I Wouldn’t Want to Be a Reporter There

How did Turkey become the world's leading jailer of journalists?

BY CHRISTOPHE DELOIRE, JOEL SIMON | MAY 15, 2013

'We Are Not Fanatic Killers'

In an exclusive conversation with Khaled Meshaal, the Hamas chief talks about how Assad should have listened to his advice, and why he’s not “bloodthirsty” or “against” Jews.

BY DAVID KENNER | MAY 14, 2013

You Know It's Bad…

When progress in the Middle East seems more in reach than a Washington that works.

BY DAVID ROTHKOPF | MAY 14, 2013

Erdogan's Great Gamble

Will embracing the Kurds make Turkey's prime minister the country's most influential figure since Ataturk?

BY JOHN HANNAH | MAY 14, 2013

Is This the Most Disgusting Atrocity Filmed in the Syrian Civil War?

What we know about the Syrian rebel commander captured on video ripping out and eating the heart of a pro-Assad fighter.

BY PETER BOUCKAERT | MAY 13, 2013

How Do You Say 'Quagmire' in Farsi?

Why Syria could turn out to be Iran's Vietnam -- not America's.

BY THANASSIS CAMBANIS | MAY 13, 2013

The 'Go Slow' Caucus

As pressure builds for a military option in Syria, can the White House afford to keep quiet?

BY GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON | MAY 10, 2013

The Electric Kool-Aid Flashback Test

Should we arm the Syrian rebels? America's attempts to do so in the past hold a few answers.

BY ROSA BROOKS | MAY 9, 2013

Endangered Spaces

Photos of the Syrian cultural heritage sites now being used as battlefields and sniper hideouts.

MAY 8, 2013

The Art of Civil War

As the conflict rages in Syria, it's a bull market for antiquities dealers and thieves.

BY FERNANDE VAN TETS | MAY 8, 2013

Morsy and the Muslims

Is Egypt’s government getting more Islamist?

BY SHADI HAMID | MAY 8, 2013

Israel’s Three Gambles

Can Israel get away with its attacks on the Syrian regime?

BY DANIEL BYMAN, NATAN SACHS | MAY 7, 2013

Red-Line Follies

Sorting the mistakes from the fiascos on Syria.

BY DAVID ROTHKOPF | MAY 6, 2013

How Syria Ruined the Arab Spring

Hopes for peaceful change have been replaced by sectarian animosity and unending bloodshed.

BY MARC LYNCH | MAY 3, 2013

Slouching Toward Damascus

In Syria's implosion, Secretary of State John Kerry already faces a defining task. How hard is he prepared to push against Obama's weary realism? 

BY JAMES TRAUB | MAY 3, 2013

Time to Talk

What Michael Singh gets wrong about "next steps" with Iran.

BY AMB. WILLIAM H. LUERS | MAY 3, 2013

Yemen's Power Wedding

When the sons of Yemen's most powerful tribal leaders tie the knot, it's not only a marriage -- it's a chance for a show of strength that nobody in Sanaa can ignore. 

BY ADAM BARON | MAY 2, 2013

The Inmates Have Taken Over

Images of life inside the walls of Lebanon's infamous Roumieh prison.

MAY 2, 2013

Beirut's Bastille

The free-for-all inside Lebanon's most notorious prison.

BY SULOME ANDERSON | MAY 2, 2013

What Was Obama Thinking?

How the administration backed itself into a corner on Syria.

BY BARRY PAVEL | MAY 1, 2013

Hawking Something

The Syria interventionists want us to go to war. They're wrong.

BY MICAH ZENKO | APRIL 30, 2013

A Friend in Need

As Syria implodes, the United States and its allies need to help Jordan help itself.

BY JOSEPH P. HOAR | APRIL 29, 2013

The Driver

An exclusive look inside the mysterious death and life of the world's most dangerous terrorist not named Osama bin Laden.

BY MARK PERRY | MAY/JUNE 2013