Middle East

World News

U.S.-Backed Forces In Syria Close In On ISIS' Last Stronghold

8:12am March 11, 2019

by Ruth Sherlock

The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have launched another assault on the Islamic State group's last enclave in Syria. A major concern is that people are still being held hostage by ISIS.

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News Brief: Boeing Plane Crash, Trump Budget, ISIS Territory

5:39am March 11, 2019

An Ethiopian Airlines crash raises concerns about a Boeing airliner. The White House's proposed budget reflects Trump's priorities. U.S. backed forces close in on the last ISIS stronghold in Syria.

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World News

Reckoning With 8 Years Of War In Syria

8:35am March 10, 2019

It's been eight years since the Syrian uprising that led to civil war. NPR's Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks with Syrian-American journalist Alia Malek about the conflict and where it may be headed.

Shamima Begum was stripped of her citizenship last month but her child, a boy, was still considered a British national. However, the government argued it was too dangerous to try to retrieve the newborn from the sprawling refugee camp where the pair lived

World News

Baby Of British ISIS Woman Stripped Of Citizenship Has Died

10:27pm March 08, 2019

by Vanessa Romo

Shamima Begum, who was 15 when she fled to Syria in 2015, had been begging to return to the U.K. prior to her son's birth last month, saying she feared for his health. He died of pneumonia.

World News

Coalition Forces Prepare For Final Fight In Syria's Last ISIS Stronghold

5:14pm March 08, 2019

ISIS is putting up a ruthless fight over the last bit of territory it controls in Syria. NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Associated Press reporter Sarah El Deeb, who has been covering the fight.

World News

Assessing U.S. Accomplishments In The Fight Against ISIS In Syria

6:53am March 08, 2019

With the Islamic State almost forced out of Syria, has the U.S. met its objectives in the battle against ISIS? Steve Inskeep talks to Jasmine el Gamal, a former Middle East adviser at the Pentagon.

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'Spies Of No Country' Offers Nuanced Understanding Of Israel's Complexity

12:39pm March 07, 2019

by Lily Meyer

For half a decade, Matti Friedman has been working hard, and publicly, to dispel easy narratives about Israel. In his book about four spies, he aims to show that Israel is "more than one thing."

World News

Extradition Hearing For Huawei CFO Comes During U.S.-China Trade Talks

7:26am March 06, 2019

by Jackie Northam

An extradition hearing for a senior executive of Chinese tech giant Huawei gets underway in Vancouver. The U.S. requested the extradition of Meng Wanzhou for violating U.S. sanction against Iran.

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World News

After Finally Escaping ISIS Captivity, People Talk About Their Experiences

8:24pm March 05, 2019

by Jane Arraf

As the last ISIS remnants hold out in a small pocket of Syria, captured Yazidis have been among those struggling to get out.

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Saudi Arabia's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Jubeir spoke to journalists in Indonesia on October 23, 2018.

World News

Canada Set To Go Ahead With Arms Deal, Saudi Arabia Says

5:02pm March 04, 2019

by Dalia Mortada

A senior Saudi official told journalists Monday he believes that Canada will honor its $13-billion agreement, contrary to the Canadian prime minister's comments in December.