Middle East

Recent violence raises questions about why U.S. has so many troops in the Middle East

6:12pm February 05, 2024

Last week, an attack on an American military outpost in Jordan killed three U.S. soldiers and injured dozens more. This base raises the question of why American troops are stationed in this region.

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Blinken is back in the Middle East as U.S. responds to attack

4:50pm February 05, 2024

by Michele Kelemen

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is back in the Middle East, reassuring the region that the U.S. is seeking to de-escalate tensions and pushing for more aid to get into Gaza

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Will U.S. strikes in Iraq, Syria and Yemen lead to more fighting in the region?

7:28am February 05, 2024

First, Hamas attacked Israel, igniting a local war. Then the Houthis fired on ships, drawing in the U.S. Navy. Now the U.S .is bombing Iraq, Syria and Yemn as part of a tense standoff with Iran.

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Morning new brief

7:26am February 05, 2024

The U.S. led coalition in the Red Sea hit new Houthi targets in Yemen. Bipartisan Senate negotiators release a $118 billion border bill. The big winner at the Grammy Awards was Taylor Swift.

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Israel shouldn't keep a military presence in Gaza after the war, analyst says

5:05am February 05, 2024

NPR's Leila Fadel speaks with Palestinian writer and analyst Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib about the future of security and governance in Gaza.

Is retaliation the most effective way to strike back at Iranian-backed attackers?

5:05am February 05, 2024

NPR's Leila Fadel asks Daniel Byman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, about the retaliation for the killings of three service members in Jordan by Iranian-backed militants.

Anger over deadly airstrikes could push U.S. out of Iraq

5:17pm February 04, 2024

by Jane Arraf

After a weekend of U.S. air strikes targeting Iranian-backed militias, Iraq buries fighters killed in the attacks, as pressure grows for U.S. withdrawal.

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World News

Will U.S. retaliation deter Iran?

8:00am February 04, 2024

by Elissa Nadworny

NPR's Elissa Nadworny speaks to Abbas Milani, director of Iranian studies at Stanford University, about the conflict between the U.S. and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria.

A paddle boarder heads out into the water in Eilat, Israel. Normally, Eilat's beaches and hotels would be busy with tourists.

World News

A seaside town shelters thousands of Israeli evacuees, but struggles without tourists

5:01am February 04, 2024

by Jackie Northam

The tourists are gone and many of the hotels are filled with displaced Israelis nearly four months after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.

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U.S. Central Command released this undated photo as part of its announcement of renewed airstrikes against Houthi targets on Saturday.

The U.S. targets Iranian proxies for a second day in a row

7:54pm February 03, 2024

by NPR Washington Desk

The new round of U.S. strikes is far more extensive and deadly than those that have been launched since October, when the Israel-Hamas war began and pro-Iranian groups began their attacks.