Articles
The Taliban’s Qatar Office: Are Prospects for Peace Already Doomed?
As far as diplomatic prospects go, the omens don’t augur well. On Tuesday, the Afghan Taliban announced the opening of their first political office in the Qatari...
Karzai Suspends Talks With U.S. Over Taliban Move
(KABUL, Afghanistan) — The Afghan president on Wednesday suspended talks with the United States on a new security deal to protest the way his government was...
Syria's Civil War
According to the U.N., at least 80,000 Syrians have died since the start of hostilities in 2011, and more than 4 million have been forced from their homes. What...
U.S. to Begin Meetings with Taliban
(KABUL, Afghanistan) — American officials say U.S. representatives will begin formal meetings with the Taliban in a few days at the group's new office opening in...
Iran’s Polls Open in Presidential Vote
(TEHRAN, Iran) — In the end, Iran's presidential election may be defined by who doesn't vote. As polls opened early Friday, arguments over whether to boycott...
The Shadow War Behind Syria’s Rebellion: Foreign Backers Jockey for Influence in Turkey
While the diplomatic grouping known as the Friends of Syria met in the Jordanian capital Amman on Wednesday to discuss a U.S.-Russian plan for peace talks, a...
Syria: Intervention Will Only Make it Worse
The various schemes that have been proposed for a kind of tiddlywinks intervention from around the edges of the conflict—no-fly zones, bombing Damascus and so...
Modesty Concerns Prompt Qatar to Return Ancient Greek Statues of Nudes
Qatari officials were worried that the statues would upset female visitors.
The Great Wall of Qatar
The U.S. military has been routinely flying warplanes out of Qatar’s al Udied air base, just west of the Gulf state’s capital of Qatar, since 1991’s Persian Gulf...
Must-Reads from Around the World
The ruler of Qatar proposes a $1 billion-fund to help Palestinians in East Jerusalem, Peru declares an environmental state of emergency in its rainforest, and...
Just How Blind Are We In Syria?
American intelligence has become too dependent on data analytics and super computers, which are as good as useless in Aleppo
The Lure of Office Space and Other Ways to Talk to the Taliban
The latest moves in the Afghanistan end-game have moved the insurgents closer to talking with the Kabul government — but there is no real breakthrough yet.
Qatar is tiny and rich, and it's angling for influence
When a cease-fire was called on Nov. 21 between Israel and Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, residents of Gaza rushed to the streets in relief. They set off...
Behind the Story: TIME’s Aryn Baker Discusses Qatar’s Outsize Influence
As this tiny, resource-rich nation is becoming increasingly influential in the Arab world, Aryn Baker talks about what the future holds for Qatar
Syrian Opposition Boosted by U.S. Recognition, But Faces Growing Challenges
With three weeks of fighting in Damascus signaling the accelerating erosion of the Assad regime's control of Syria, Western diplomats are pressing the exiled...
Why the U.S. Has Designated One Anti-Assad Group as “Terrorist”
One of the most effective anti-Assad militias has just been designated a "terrorist" organization by the U.S. Will that help or hobble the exiled opposition's...
The Next Frontier for Climate Activism: College Investments
Climate activists need to take their victories where they can. There was little success to celebrate at the U.N. climate summit in Doha, Qatar, which concluded...
If You Thought Benghazi Was Bad, Watch Syria
A New York Times exposé suggests U.S. allies armed Libyan extremists, raising troubling questions over Syria's rebellion
Desert Dreams: Can the Middle Eastern Country of Qatar Learn to Feed Itself?
Qatar is a desert nation with lots of oil and natural gas, but little arable land. That's meant importing most of the food the country needs, but with climate...
