Middle East

World News

Three Years Later, Tahrir Protesters Drained And Defeated

8:17pm January 25, 2014

by Leila Fadel

On Jan. 25, 2011, millions of Egyptians took to the streets of Cairo to demand President Hosni Mubarak step down. Now those who led the revolution have all but disappeared, and iconic Tahrir Square is a bitter place for many — a reminder of a momentary high in a battle they say they have lost.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Syria Grants Rare But Scripted Glimpse To Western Journalists

7:53pm January 25, 2014

Negotiations between the Syrian government and Syrian opposition leaders continue in Geneva this weekend. Guest host Kelly McEvers talks to Frederik Pleitgen of CNN, who is in Damascus, reporting about the current situation on the ground in Syria.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Nuclear Inspectors Enter Iran, With Eyes Peeled For Cheating

7:58pm January 20, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

This week in Iran, international inspectors are stepping up surveillance of the country's nuclear program. The inspections are at the heart of a landmark deal that freezes Iran's uranium enrichment in exchange for billions of dollars in relief from sanctions, but they are just a first step.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Iran To Take First Step Toward Long-Term Deal

6:42pm January 19, 2014

On Monday, the nuclear deal between six world powers and Iran officially kicks in. But this agreement is just a first step in a long negotiation process. NPR's Arun Rath talks to Karim Sadjadpour, senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, about what to expect from additional disarmament talks.

Queue Listen Now

Sharon, flanked by Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (left) and Cabinet Secretary Yisrael Maimon, reads a statement during the weekly Cabinet meeting at Sharon's office, on June 13, 2004, in Jerusalem.

World News

Ariel Sharon, Whose Life And Career Shaped Israeli History, Dies

12:09pm January 15, 2014

by Mike Shuster

The former prime minister, who had been in a coma after suffering a massive stroke in 2006, died on Saturday. Sharon's career spanned the birth of the nation and most of its essential turning points. Israelis had a love-hate relationship with him that was beginning to soften only shortly before his death.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Kerry: 'No Other Alternative' To Ending Violence In Syria

6:50pm January 12, 2014

by Michele Kelemen

Secretary of State John Kerry is in Paris preparing for a long-delayed peace conference on Syria next week. He's urging the Syrian opposition to negotiate with a regime they've been trying to topple. The war in Syria has raged for three years and has befuddled the international community.

Queue Listen Now

Ariel Sharon's Death Sparks Strong Emotions Across Middle East

6:40pm January 11, 2014

Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon died Saturday at the age of 85. Israelis mourned the death of the celebrated politician and army general. But Palestinians reacted differently to the death of the controversial leader, who pushed for Jewish settlement of Palestinian territories.

Queue Listen Now

The flag of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, flutters on the dome of an Armenian Catholic Church in the northern rebel-held Syrian city of Raqqa on Sept. 28, 2013. At first, Syrian rebels and civilians welcomed the experienced Islamist fighte

World News

As Rebels Fight Rebels, Grim Reports From A Syrian City

10:29pm January 08, 2014

by Deborah Amos

Syria's civil war keeps getting more complicated. In the latest twist, fractious rebel groups have united to fight extremists linked to al-Qaida. Both sides oppose the Syrian government, but for now they are pointing their guns at each other and a nasty battle is taking place in the northern city of Raqqa.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Corruption Scandal Jeopardizes Turkey's Image Of Stability

7:51am January 03, 2014

A corruption investigation in Turkey has already forced three cabinet ministers to resign. Turkish media reports say the scandal reaches to the top of the government of Prime Minister Erdogan. He's denies wrongdoing, accusing his opponents and foreign governments of conspiring to bring him down.

Queue Listen Now

World News

Saudi Arabia To Give Military Aid To Lebanon

11:29am January 02, 2014

Lebanon has announced Saudi Arabia will give it $3 billion to buy weapons. To explain the significance of this gift, Renee Montagne talks to Aram Nerguizian, a senior fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Queue Listen Now