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July 12, 2026
 

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Samia Nakhoul
A plume of smoke rises in Tehran on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 10, 2026
Iran bets on endurance and energy disruption to outlast foes in conflict
By driving up energy prices and spreading financial pain across Western economies, Tehran hopes the pressure will force a U.S. retreat.
Mojtaba Khamenei, the son and successor to the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has long opposed reformist groups advocating for engagement with the West.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Mar 9, 2026
In unequivocal message to Trump, Iran elevates Khamenei son as successor
Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointment locks hard-liners firmly in control in Tehran, which could reshape Iran’s war with the U.S. and Israel and reverberate far beyond the Middle East.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan at the Munich Security Conference in Munich on Feb. 13
WORLD
Mar 8, 2026
Saudi Arabia has told Iran not to attack it and warns of possible retaliation
The sources said the kingdom had remained in regular contact with Tehran through its ambassador since the U.S. and Israeli military campaign against Iran began.
People mourn the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed amid joint U.S. and Israeli strikes, at a square in Tehran on Sunday.
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Mar 2, 2026
Khamenei killing shatters Iran’s order and triggers high-stakes succession race
The focus now is on whether the Revolutionary Guard, long seen as the true center of gravity, emerge weakened by battlefield losses and internal frictions — or more entrenched.
People walk past an anti-U.S. billboard in Tehran on Jan. 26.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
Feb 21, 2026
U.S. and Iran slide toward conflict as military buildup eclipses talks
Two Israeli officials said they believe the gaps between Washington and ​Tehran are unbridgeable and that the chances of a near-term military escalation are high.
A billboard threatening action against American warships in Enghelab Square in Tehran on Tuesday
WORLD / Politics
Jan 29, 2026
Trump weighs Iran strikes to inspire renewed protests, sources say
The U.S. president wanted to create conditions for “regime change,” in Iran after a crackdown crushed a nationwide protest movement earlier this month, two sources said.
U.S. President Donald Trump addresses the media as he leaves the congress center during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 22, 2026
‘Who can say no?’ Trump’s Board of Peace tests doubters’ resolve in Davos
Officials from several regions said privately that joining the U.S. president’s proposed board felt less like a choice and more an inevitability.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei attends a meeting with students in Tehran on Nov. 3, 2025.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 14, 2026
Why Iran’s clerical establishment still holds as protests rage
Despite nationwide protests and years of external pressure, there are no signs yet of fracture in the Islamic Republic’s security elite that could bring an end to its government.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, during bilateral meetings at the Royal Palace in Riyadh on May 13.
WORLD
Nov 17, 2025
From pariah to power player: Saudi’s MBS reclaims world stage in U.S. visit
Both reformist and autocrat, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has emerged as the most momentous and audacious leader in Saudi Arabia’s modern history.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed Bin Salman shake hands at the Royal Court in Riyadh on May 13.
WORLD / Politics
Nov 9, 2025
Before talks with Trump, Saudi Arabia doubles down on terms for Israel ties
Normalized relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia could shake up the Middle East, and possibly strengthen U.S. influence there.
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomes Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House in Washington on Sept. 25.
WORLD / Politics
Oct 22, 2025
Erdogan turns Trump’s Gaza deal into a power play for Turkey
Initially resistant to Trump’s ultimatum, Hamas leaders relented only when Turkey, a country they view as a political patron, urged them to agree to the plan.
Bedouins, many of whom were displaced by fighting in the Sweida region, receive donated bread in the village of Umm Walad, Syria, on July 28.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 16, 2025
Sectarian violence risks dividing Syria despite al-Sharaa’s diplomacy
The country’s Alawite, Christian and Druze minorities have voiced anger at the president’s Islamist administration following outbreaks of sectarian violence.
U.S. President Donald Trump pumps his fist as boards Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jun 22, 2025
Israel tells U.S. it could attack key Iran nuke site before Trump deadline
Israel communicated their concerns to Trump administration officials on Thursday in what sources described as a tense phone call.
People in Tehran protest Israeli attacks on Iran on Friday. Iran’s supreme leader and government are facing what many regard as an existential moment as they try to decide how to respond to Israel’s ongoing attacks on its military hierarchy, air defenses and nuclear program.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 14, 2025
Israeli strikes back Iran’s leadership into a corner
Iran’s leaders, humiliated and increasingly preoccupied with their own survival, cannot afford to appear weak in the face of Israeli military pressure, officials say.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a G20 summit in Japan on June 28, 2019.
WORLD / Politics
May 12, 2025
Prospects of Saudi ties to Israel elusive as Trump seeks $1 trillion bonanza
Supporters of normalizing relations say it would bring stability and prosperity to the region, while countering Iran’s influence.
Varda Ben Baruch, grandmother of hostage Edan Alexander, points at the portrait of her grandson at Kibbutz Nir Oz, in southern Israel on April 20.
WORLD / Politics
May 12, 2025
Hamas says it will release Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander
Israeli officials said that their offensive will continue until the remaining 59 hostages are freed and Gaza is demilitarized.
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a meeting in which Trump announced nuclear talks with Iran, in Washington on April 7.
WORLD
May 3, 2025
How Trump blindsided Netanyahu with his Iran nuclear gamble
In just three weeks, the U.S. and Iran have held three rounds of talks aimed at preventing Tehran from building a nuclear weapon in return for sanctions relief.
A Russian military vehicle heads toward Hmeimim air base in Latakia, Syria, on Dec. 15.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 3, 2025
Russia gambles to keep military bases in post-Assad Syria
Syria’s interim president wants to renegotiate the 49-year lease for one base and an indefinite lease for the other to secure better terms.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a ceremony for military combat officers at an army base near Mitzpe Ramon, Israel, on Oct. 31.
WORLD / Politics
Dec 23, 2024
Israel’s Netanyahu eyes Iran after triumphs over Hamas, Hezbollah and Syria
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has had a succession of monumental wins that include the top leaders of Hamas and Hezbollah being eliminated.
A damaged poster of Syria's ousted leader, Bashar Assad, in Aleppo on Nov. 30
WORLD / FOCUS
Dec 15, 2024
Assad’s final hours in Syria: Deception, despair and flight
Hours before he fled to Moscow, Assad assured army and security chiefs that Russian support was on its way and urged ground forces to hold out.
China’s demand for Soviet-style apartments shows limits to revival
Apartments built during a Soviet Union-inspired construction drive in the 1970s and 1980s tend to suffer from poor insulation and outdated plumbing, but they are seeing a revival in interest due to their attractive locations.
Japanese scientists identify neural mechanism that may explain why we dislike people
The aggressive mouse (left) used in the experiment and a mouse defending itself
Japanese payment processor’s collapse hits banks and restaurants
Zentoshin served around 200,000 shops, many of which rely on early payments to maintain cash flow, raising concerns over their financial stability following the disruption.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
Lenders seek $700 million after Japanese payments firm’s collapse
The financial failure of Osaka-based Zentoshin has left 63 creditors with claims totaling ¥115.16 billion, according to Tokyo Shoko Research.
Japan’s largest exhibition of women photographers rights a wrong in cultural history
Miwa Yanagi’s “Elevator Girl House” series skewers the superficiality of gender roles through staged images.
Over 70% of accommodations in Japan say they are understaffed amid tourism influx
The number of foreign visitors to Japan reached a high of 42.68 million in 2025.
‘Princess Mononoke’ comes alive in Super Kabuki staging
The “Princess Mononoke” adaptation was created under Shochiku’s Super Kabuki initiative, a modern form of kabuki with more technology in staging and open to pop culture collaborations.
The beating heart inside ‘Human Vapor’
Different forms of love and connection form the emotional backbone of Netflix’s “Human Vapor,” says actor Shun Oguri, who plays troubled detective Kenji Okamoto.
Japan bets on character IP to drive global growth
Born on social media platforms in 2022, Opanchu Usagi has become a major hit, especially among Generation Z.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
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