Jul 04 Watch Palestinians clash with Israeli forces at funeral of slain teenager By PBS News Hour Lindsey Hilsum of Independent Television News reports from East Jerusalem on the funeral of a murdered Palestinian teenager, Mohammad Abu Khdair, where hundreds of Palestinians clashed with Israeli police. Family members say the victim was slain in retribution for the… Continue watching
Jul 02 Kurdish official: 'We don't want to stay within an Iraq that has failed' By Larisa Epatko Kurdish Foreign Minister Falah Mustafa Bakir said Wednesday that the autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq is "determined to go ahead with the referendum" for independence because Iraq has failed politically. Continue reading
Jun 26 Iraqis trickling back to Mosul, but bracing for more violence By Larisa Epatko When Islamic militants swept into Mosul in northern Iraq earlier this month, at least 500,000 people fled the city. Some have since returned, but many others are watching and waiting in the nearby relatively peaceful Kurdish region. Continue reading
Jun 21 As alliances blur in Mideast, US and Iran are potential partners By Associated Press For years, Iran has been an archenemy of the United States. Now, with alliances blurred in the Mideast, the two countries are talking about how to stop an offensive in Iraq by al-Qaida-inspired insurgents. Continue reading
Jun 17 Watch What Iraq's violent sectarian split means for its neighbors By PBS News Hour The insurgency by Sunni militants in Iraq, known as ISIL or ISIS, adds conflict to an already volatile region. Gwen Ifill talks to Hisham Melhem of Al Arabiya News and Mary-Jane Deeb of the Library of Congress about the failure… Continue watching
Jun 08 Pope Francis holds Middle East peace prayer summit By Kayla Ruble Pope Francis hosted the presidents of Israel and Palestine to the Vatican for a prayer summit on Sunday evening in a move meant to inspire a renewed interests in peace talks from both sides. Continue reading
Jun 03 Former U.S. ambassador to Syria on why 'it was time for me to go' By Larisa Epatko Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford said Tuesday he resigned his post earlier this year because the U.S. policy on Syria was evolving too slowly. “We were constantly behind the curve,” which is only increasing the extremist threat in… Continue reading
May 26 Watch Pope Francis performs 'balancing act' of agendas on Middle East visit By PBS News Hour Juggling the political and religious rivalries between Israel and the Palestinians during his trip to the Middle East, Pope Francis called on Mahmoud Abbas and Shimon Peres to join him at the Vatican for prayer and reflection. Jeffrey Brown gets… Continue watching
May 24 Watch Pope Francis stresses commonalities in trip to Middle East By PBS News Hour Pope Francis met with King Abdullah in Jordan Saturday on the first day of a three-day tour of the Middle East, stressing the relationships between Christianity, Judaism and Islam. This is only the fourth visit of a pope to the… Continue watching
Apr 23 Six takes on the Palestinian unity deal By Larisa Epatko Rival Palestinian groups Hamas and Fatah agreed Wednesday to create a unity government within five weeks, which could help Palestinian Authority President and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas politically at home but could throw up yet another roadblock in the Mideast… Continue reading