Latest Israeli political crisis exposes fragile coalition Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s maneuvering through the coalition crisis and early elections has broken whatever trust his coalition partners had in him and left him weaker. Israel
Why Erdogan called for updating Islam Misogyny in the name of Islam proved shocking to Turkey’s secularists, but it also was disturbing to most moderate religious conservatives, many of whom vote for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey
Egyptian campaign speaks up for architectural heritage Inspired by the plight of an Alexandria villa that has played an important literary role, a group of Egyptians are working to educate the public and protect the remaining palaces and other architectural wealth of Egypt. Egypt
Holding Libyan elections this year could be disastrous There's a lot of pressure to hold elections in Libya this year, but many observers fear the country is still too unstable to pull it off without making the situation even worse. Libya
Palestinians pin hopes on Pompeo The Palestinian leadership hopes that the friendship between intelligence chief Majid Faraj and Mike Pompeo, who will soon be appointed US secretary of state, will help thaw relations between Washington and Ramallah. Palestine
Netanyahu’s lesson on power limits The leaders of HaBayit HaYehudi and Shas parties joined forces to stop Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan for early elections in June. Israel
Animators with passion bring humor to digital content in Gaza Three young Palestinians are determined to create socially relevant and sometimes-humorous digital content in Gaza despite some obstacles. Palestine
Sisi pitches Sinai development to business world Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has called on the country’s business leaders to help develop Sinai, but interest has been underwhelming so far. Egypt
Gazan family discovers Roman site in backyard A Gaza family’s discovery of the remains of a Roman cemetery in their backyard spurred a major conflict between the family and the authorities. Palestine
Iran deal advocates prepare to battle Pompeo nomination President Trump’s pick to replace Rex Tillerson at the State Department has called the Iran agreement “disastrous” and threatened military action against Iran. Congress
With Tillerson firing, Trump throws transatlantic Iran talks into disarray In a tweet, US President Donald Trump threw transatlantic consultations on Iran into disarray March 13 with his surprise decision to fire Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. United States
Pentagon braces for emboldened Iran after Syria gains The Pentagon’s top commander in the Middle East told lawmakers today that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s gains in the yearslong civil war will bolster Iran’s ability to frustrate US aims in the region. Syria
Turkish-Arab ties marked by fear and loathing A senior Turkish diplomat says Ankara misread the Middle East and ended up relying on Iran and its backer Russia, the two countries that Arab regimes fear the most. United Arab Emirates
Life sentence hangs over US pastor as Washington sizes up Ankara Though Congress was reportedly deterred by the State Department from imposing sanctions on Turkey, the indictment of pastor Andrew Brunson may alter the mood as Mike Pompeo replaces Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Turkey
Outspoken Iranian pro-reform professor sentenced to jail A prominent pro-reform professor is sentenced to jail in Iran as two ministers survive impeachment votes in parliament. Iran
Russia warns against attacking Damascus, says West is lying Moscow accuses the United States of wanting to interfere in Russia's presidential election and of concocting fake news about a pending Syrian chemical strike against civilians, and it says it's being falsely blamed for the spy poisoning in the UK. Syria
