Middle East

The Gaza International Airport was shut down amid Israeli-Palestinian fighting in 2001, barely two years after it opened. Today it lies in ruins. This photo is from 2011.

World News

The day Gaza got an airport and a presidential visit, fueling dreams of statehood

4:21pm November 20, 2023

by Greg Myre

It seems hard to fathom today, but 25 years ago, a relatively calm Gaza appeared to be progressing toward a Palestinian state — and President Bill Clinton inaugurated the Gaza International Airport.

Demonstrators call for the return of 40 children who are among the roughly 240 hostages believed held by Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip as they mark World Children's Day during a protest across from UNICEF offices in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Monday.

World News

A deal for the release of Israeli hostages appears close, officials say

2:30pm November 20, 2023

Talk of a possible deal comes as Palestinian health officials say Israeli fire hit another hospital in Gaza, and dozens of premature infants from Al-Shifa hospital are evacuated to Egypt.

Israel and Hamas appear to inch toward a possible deal to release some hostages

7:26am November 20, 2023

Amid anticipation that an Israel-Hamas hostage deal is close, intelligence officials talk about negotiating the release of an Israeli soldier who was held by Hamas in Gaza for five years.

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Can the unity in Israel's parliament last as the war in Gaza goes on?

7:26am November 20, 2023

NPR's Michel Martin talks to Yohanan Plesner of the Israel Democracy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank, about how the Hamas attack and Israel's military actions are perceived in the Knesset.

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Israel's plan to eradicate Hamas is an impossible goal, Hamas expert says

5:06am November 20, 2023

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Tareq Baconi of the think tank Al-Shabaka, The Palestinian Policy Network, and author of the book Hamas Contained, about whether Hamas can be eliminated.

A group in Gaza writes about Palestinian lives lost since Oct. 7 Hamas attack

5:06am November 20, 2023

We Are Not Numbers is a nonprofit dedicated to telling stories of Palestinians who have died since Israel began strikes on Gaza in retaliation for the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.

Politics & Government

Morning news brief

5:06am November 20, 2023

Former first lady Rosalynn Carter dies at 96. Israel and Hamas appear to inch toward a possible deal to release some hostages. An ultra-conservative economist won Argentina's presidential election.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses media during a joint press conference with French President in Jerusalem on October 24, 2023.

World News

Israel's lack of a strategy is the strategy

8:07pm November 19, 2023

by Steve Inskeep

On Netanyahu and Gaza's unclear future.

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New challenges lie ahead for Israeli military

6:04pm November 19, 2023

by Peter Kenyon

Israeli military experts see a long, hard road ahead for Israel in the war in Gaza, both for the military and Palestinian civilians.

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Palestinian medics care for premature babies evacuated from Al-Shifa hospital to the Emirates hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday.

31 premature babies are evacuated from Al-Shifa Hospital to southern Gaza

10:27am November 19, 2023

by Jaclyn Diaz

A humanitarian assessment team, led by the World Health Organization, gained access to the hospital Saturday. Al-Shifa has just 25 health workers for the 291 remaining patients.