Middle East & Africa

Ethiopian men read newspapers and drink coffee at a cafe in Addis Ababa

Missing Million

Abiy Ahmed is throttling free expression in Ethiopia

A leader who once championed press freedom now treats criticism as a crime

2 min read

Ships and boats in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Musandam

Tanker wars, continued

An extended ceasefire over Iran, but for how long?

The answer may depend on how much economic pain each side can endure

4 min read

Satellite image showing RSF moovement in Sudan

RSF Inc

How a Sudanese militia built a military and economic empire

Three years into Sudan’s civil war, the Rapid Support Forces has grown into a regional power

7 min read

Israeli soldiers stand in a moment of silence near the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip

A new way of war

Israel’s open-ended wars have eroded its security

Binyamin Netanyahu has brought about a big shift in its national-security doctrine

6 min read

Women are seen holding flags and signs during a pro-government National Army Day demonstration in Tehran

A jungle of power

Which Iran is America dealing with?

With talks set to resume, rivalries among Iran’s leaders could stymie a truce

4 min read

Women react as displaced people make their way back to their homes crossing the bridge linking southern Lebanon to the rest of the country, after a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect, in Lebanon.

Further to go

A lasting Lebanese peace still looks a long way off

Donald Trump has enforced a ceasefire, but that is just a start

4 min read

A voter looks at the voters' roll at a polling station in Lokossa, Benin

Bogus in Benin

A victory in Benin’s presidential election was hardly democratic

One of west Africa’s bastions of democracy has fallen

3 min read

A view of the destroyed B1 bridge south of Tehran, Iran

Laws of war

Is bombing power plants and oil facilities a war crime?

 The answer is more complicated than it seems

3 min read

Iranian media featuring the Tehran-Washington talks on their front pages.

Blockades and bargains

The Gulf war has settled into an uneasy limbo

Fighting is paused, Hormuz is shut and prospects for a deal are uncertain

6 min read

Illegal artisanal gold miners work at an open mine in Mazowe, Zimbabwe

A strange golden age

Zimbabwe’s bizarre economic boom

A gold rush is combined with a power grab

5 min read

A view of Cape Town, South Africa

Newsletter

Analysing Africa newsletter: A special edition answering your questions

John McDermott, our Chief Africa correspondent, rummages through the postbag

5 min read

Smoke rises from an explosion following Israeli bombardment on a southern Lebanese village, as seen from the Israeli side of the border.

Newsletter

Middle East Dispatch newsletter: Decades under the smoke trail

Anshel Pfeffer, our Jerusalem correspondent, visits Kiryat Shmona, by the Israeli-Lebanese border

3 min read