Middle East

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Doctors Without Borders Representative Talks About Afghanistan's Escalating Violence

4:27pm August 06, 2021

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Filipe Ribeiro, the Afghanistan representative for Doctors Without Borders, about the escalating violence in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan.

News Brief: Vaccine Boosters, Emissions Standards, Iran's Ebrahim Raisi

6:12am August 05, 2021

The World Health Organization says it is not the time to give out booster shots. President Biden will unveil proposed rules aimed at fighting climate change. Iran's new president takes office.

With Raisi's Swearing-In, Hard-Line Conservatives Control Iran's Government

6:12am August 05, 2021

Iran is inaugurating new president Ebrahim Raisi — someone already under U.S. sanctions for his role in executions in the 1980s, and who is expected to take a hard line in dealings with the West.

The director of WHO now says that a booster moratorium should be in force until 10% of the population in all countries is vaccinated. Israel had previously announced plans to give a third Pfizer dose to residents age 60 and up after an uptick in COVID cas

Why WHO Is Calling For A Moratorium On COVID Vaccine Boosters

7:15pm August 04, 2021

by Jason Beaubien

The director general is asking for a halt for at least two months. His hope is to use all available doses to vaccinate 10% of the population in every country by the end of September.

World News

In Beirut, Thousands Marched To Mark The Anniversary Of Port Blast That Killed 200

4:57pm August 04, 2021

by Ruth Sherlock

As Lebanon marks a year since a huge blast at the Beirut port, the sister of one of the victims is still working to pick up the pieces of her life and continue her search for justice.

Incoming Iranian President Is Expected To Make U.S.-Iran Relations Even Tougher

4:57pm August 04, 2021

by Peter Kenyon

U.S.-Iran relations are expected to get even tougher when a new Iranian president takes office Thursday. He's a former prosecutor expected to take a hard line inside and outside the country.

Osama bin Laden is seen at an undisclosed location in a television image broadcast on Oct. 7, 2001.

Osama Bin Laden Biography Goes Inside Al-Qaida Leader's Final Hideout

4:34pm August 04, 2021

by Dave Davies

Journalist Peter Bergen visited bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, before it was demolished. His new book, The Rise and Fall of Osama bin Laden, draws on materials seized in the raid.

Queue Listen Now

Tracy and Paul Naggear, the parents of 3-year-old Alexandra, who was killed in last year's massive blast, raise their fists during a protest outside the home of caretaker Interior Minister Mohamed Fehmi, in Beirut, July 13. A year after the deadly blast,

World News

A Year After The Beirut Explosion, Victims' Families Continue To Push For Justice

11:15am August 04, 2021

by Nada Homsi

"If we didn't lead this fight, nobody would," says a Beirut resident whose 3-year-old daughter was among the 217 killed in the blast. An official investigation has stalled. No one has been prosecuted.

Lebanese Demand Justice A Year After The Deadly Beirut Port Explosion

6:55am August 04, 2021

A Human Rights Watch report states there's little chance the probe will hold any ranking officials accountable — despite evidence they failed to act on warnings about dangerous chemicals at the port.

World News

How The Mounting Tension In Afghanistan Is Playing Out For Neighboring Pakistan

6:36pm August 02, 2021

by Diaa Hadid

As neighboring Afghanistan plunges further into conflict, Pakistani officials fear fighting and refugees will surge across the border. Many in Pakistan welcome the Taliban's attempts to wrest Kabul.