Middle East crises loom in background as NATO leaders gather in Washington While this year's summit is expected to focus largely on the ongoing war in Ukraine, Iran's military support for Russia and Turkey's strategic balancing act with Moscow are expected to weigh on NATO leaders gathered in Washington. Washington Pulse
US, Israel hold second virtual meeting on Rafah Biden administration officials have denied offering to green-light an Israeli invasion of Rafah if Israel holds off on retaliating against Iran. Washington Pulse
One year on Sudan’s war: 14,700 killed, 8.6M displaced, 4.9M face starvation As the war in Sudan enters its second year, the humanitarian situation is worsening by the day with no prospects of an imminent end of the hostilities. North Africa Pulse
State Department staffer resigns over Biden's handling of Gaza Annelle Sheline is the second State Department official to publicly resign since Oct. 7, citing the erosion of US credibility on human rights in the Middle East as a result of the war. Washington Pulse
Congress seeks to insulate Oman from Yemen instability As the 3-year-old proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran continues to destabilize Yemen, Congress seeks to shore up security in neighboring Oman. Saudi Arabia
Iraq's Christians, Muslims agree to revive site of ancient church A lunch meeting between a Christian tour group and local Muslims during Ramadan resulted in an initiative to save one of Iraq’s oldest churches. Iraq
Israeli association aims to teach children tolerance through dolls Armed with dolls, a small Israeli organization aims to make Israel’s increasingly diverse society more tolerant by educating children. Israel
Can Egypt’s superheroes stop corruption? Egyptian superheroes with a common touch tackle the ills of the country such as corruption, injustice, violation of human rights, loss of Egyptian identity and even bad grammar. Egypt
Russia finds navigating new development tricky in Syria Syria is slowly being seen less as a military liability and more as an investment opportunity, though there are still many potential challenges. Syria
Baghdad pays homage to nationalist poet who fled under Saddam Hussein The Baghdad municipality has announced that it will turn the house of Arab poet Mahdi al-Jawahiri into a museum. It remains to be seen whether Iraq will also get his remains back from Syria, where Jawahiri lived after fleeing Iraq in 1980. Iraq
Two-way mistrust hinders Libyan rivals' meeting in Paris The latest meeting between Libya’s rival governing factions produced interesting points that could help the country, but was ultimately disappointing after both sides refused to recognize each other's legitimacy. Libya
Will Israel annex the Jordan Valley? Instead of entertaining his fantasies about settlement blocs in the West Bank and the Jordan Valley, President Donald Trump should try to bring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu down to earth to an agreement on two states for two people. Palestine
Political wrangling within Tunisia's leading party points to power struggle Whoever takes over Tunisia’s leadership eight years after the revolution will face an array of challenges, not least addressing the long-held grievances of much of the population and safeguarding the country’s democratic gains. Tunisia
Palestinian campaign settles debts of those killed during Great Return March A Gaza-based charity campaign is helping the families of the Great Return March victims to settle debts with a newly launched campaign. Palestine
Iran undeterred by possible Russia-Israel deal on Syria Iranian analysts believe any possible deal for Iran to pull back from Syria is designed to prevent the end of the country’s civil war. Palestine
Tunisia faces calls for government reshuffle Tunisia has had eight governments since the 2011 revolution, and political parties are now calling for yet another government reshuffle and for the removal of Prime Minister Youssef Chahed. Tunisia