War in the Middle East
All of our coverage in one place
Latest stories
Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war
Joe Biden’s last roll of the dice on peace in the Middle East
The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu
But may also undermine the International Criminal Court
Get ready for “Maximum Pressure 2.0” on Iran
The Trump White House may bomb and penalise the regime into a deal
Israel’s hardliners reckon Gaza’s chaos shows they must control it
Only 11 out of a recent convoy of 109 aid trucks managed to get in
Iraq could be the Middle East’s next battleground
Until recently violence was at its lowest since the American invasion
Quitting Qatar is the least of Hamas’s problems
Farewell to comfortable villas in Doha, hello Turkey
Regional conflict
Israel’s war aims in Lebanon are expanding
It is hoping for political change as well as the destruction of Hizbullah
Iran needs a new national-security strategy
Will it choose a nuclear bomb or detente with America?
Israel is keeping open the nuclear option
It has prepared a path to hit Iran’s nuclear sites after America’s election
Israel’s limited missile strike on Iran may be the start of a wider assault
Whatever Iran’s response to the attack, it carries risks for the regime
Inside the secret oil trade that funds Iran’s wars
An investigation by The Economist uncovers a multi-billion-dollar, America-defying network
Does Israel’s new plan for Gaza include withholding food?
Israel’s government says no, but America is demanding the ramping up of supplies
Israel
Binyamin Netanyahu fires his defence minister
The Israeli prime minister stamps his authority on his government
Israel’s leaders are watching America’s election closely
Who wins will shape Israel’s approach to its three wars
A year on, Israeli society is divided about the lessons of October 7th
Hawks and doves, religious and secular, right and left—all the old cleavages are resurfacing
Israel’s government is again trying to hobble its Supreme Court
While at war, Israel is facing a constitutional crisis
The one thing Israelis agree on: rescuing the hostages
Bibi’s failure to do so has prompted huge protests
Israel’s settlers are winning unprecedented power from the war in Gaza
They are gaining land—and sway over the army, police and politics
War and diplomacy
Bad ideas are back on the menu in the Middle East
From a proxy force in south Lebanon to regime change, what’s old is new again
Israel’s invasion of Lebanon may bolster support for Hizbullah
The group is deeply embedded in Lebanese politics and society
Iran’s leader must choose how to fight his war with Israel
Hardliners may force the supreme leader to escalate the conflict with Israel
The framework that ended Lebanon’s war in 2006 could help end this one too, says Tarek Mitri
Lebanon’s former foreign minister says any Israeli plan to reshape the country is a recipe for more chaos
Why Israel has not yet lost Europe
Europeans are angry about Gaza, but they aren’t voting like it
The relationship between Israel and Turkey is at breaking point
But the Turkish president is desperate to avoid a regional war
The military campaign
Do Israel’s assassinations work?
Why the conventional wisdom about decapitating Hamas and Hizbullah might be wrong
Just inside Lebanon, Israeli soldiers debate how far to go
They are 2km inside the country, but prepared to go farther
The Israel-Iran standoff in maps
A visual guide to the escalating conflict
A narrow corridor in Gaza has become an obstacle to a ceasefire
Binyamin Netanyahu says the presence of Israeli troops is crucial. His generals disagree
Israel bombs the Hamas military mastermind behind the October 7th attack
If he is dead it could hasten the end of the Gaza war
Hamas and Gaza
Yahya Sinwar made Hamas his own fief
Will his successor embrace more violence or compromise?
Yahya Sinwar will hold sway over Hamas from beyond the grave
Will his death moderate or aggravate its bloody ethos?
How Yahya Sinwar’s death will change the Middle East
Gaza’s mastermind of mayhem is dead. A ceasefire may be alive again
Has the war in Gaza radicalised young Palestinians?
After Gaza, how will the Palestinians try to build their state?
Hamas’s pick of Yahya Sinwar as leader makes a ceasefire less likely
The appointment of the architect of October 7th ties the group closer to Iran
Optimistic plans for post-war Gaza have little basis in reality
Aid, policing, reconstruction—everything is even harder than it sounds
Latest coverage
Middle East & Africa
Israel and Hizbullah strike a fragile deal to end their war
Joe Biden’s last roll of the dice on peace in the Middle East
Middle East & Africa
The arrest warrant is a diplomatic disaster for Netanyahu
But may also undermine the International Criminal Court
Middle East & Africa
Israel’s hardliners reckon Gaza’s chaos shows they must control it
Only 11 out of a recent convoy of 109 aid trucks managed to get in
Leaders
From Nixon to China, to Trump to Tehran
Iran is weak. For America’s next president that creates an opportunity
Middle East in 2025
Binyamin Netanyahu weighs up the political impact of a ceasefire
He wants to avoid a reckoning
Middle East in 2025
The outlook for the Middle East depends on three cantankerous old men
Ali Khamenei, Binyamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump will determine whether the conflict continues
Middle East & Africa
Get ready for “Maximum Pressure 2.0” on Iran
The Trump White House may bomb and penalise the regime into a deal
Middle East & Africa
Iraq could be the Middle East’s next battleground
Until recently violence was at its lowest since the American invasion
Middle East & Africa
Quitting Qatar is the least of Hamas’s problems
Farewell to comfortable villas in Doha, hello Turkey
Middle East & Africa
The world’s most unlikely safe haven
As war rages in the Middle East, Shia are fleeing to a deadly dictatorship
Asia
South-East Asian Muslims are incensed by the war in Gaza
A few may become radicalised off the back of it
Middle East & Africa
Will Donald Trump “stop the wars” in the Middle East?
What he does may depend on which son-in-law spoke to him last
Middle East & Africa
Israel’s war aims in Lebanon are expanding
It is hoping for political change as well as the destruction of Hizbullah
Middle East & Africa
Binyamin Netanyahu fires his defence minister
The Israeli prime minister stamps his authority on his government
United States
War is not the only reason some Muslims are ditching the Democrats
In Michigan, where Kamala Harris leads by less than a percentage point, it could be the difference