World

The New Middle East: A Struggle Between Two Visions
Op-edThe New Middle East: A Struggle Between Two Visions

Over the past 80 years, the Middle East has consistently defied the predictions of analysts and commentators. The impulsive decisions of individual autocrats, and the complex interplay of geopolitics, wealth, religion, and great-power rivalry have made the region uniquely vulnerable to rapid and often catastrophic upheavals. We can cite countless ...

The Trump Team Takes Shape: Part 2 – Nominations Not Subject to Senate Confirmation
The Trump Team Takes Shape: Part 2 – Nominations Not Subject to Senate Confirmation

In the United States, the Constitution mandates that certain presidential appointments receive Senate approval through a confirmation vote. A new president is tasked with filling over 1,200 positions within the Executive Branch, subject to the Senate’s advice and consent, according to the Center for Presidential Transition. These appointments ...

Iran Says Hopes Trump Will Take 'realistic' Approach to Region
Iran Says Hopes Trump Will Take 'realistic' Approach to Region

Iran said Monday it hoped the incoming US administration under Donald Trump would adopt a "realistic" approach and show "respect" for the interests of countries in the region. Trump will be sworn in for a second term as US president on Monday. "We hope that the approaches and policies of the (new) US government will be realistic and based on ...

The Trump Team Takes Shape: Part 1 – Nominations Requiring Senate Confirmation
ExplainerThe Trump Team Takes Shape: Part 1 – Nominations Requiring Senate Confirmation

President-elect Donald Trump will be sworn in on Monday, January 20, officially signaling his return to power. In the lead-up to the inauguration, Senate confirmation hearings have begun, giving the public a chance to watch committees evaluate Trump’s nominees and their suitability for their designated roles. But how does the confirmation ...

The Trump Administration and the Challenge of Multiple US Presidential Envoys to the Middle East
ExplainerThe Trump Administration and the Challenge of Multiple US Presidential Envoys to the Middle East

As the second Donald Trump administration begins its term, it is poised to tackle significant global challenges, particularly in the Middle East. The conflict dynamics are in constant flux between escalation and de-escalation, which brings ongoing concerns about the potential for costly US intervention. Recent surveys by the Council on Foreign ...

TikTok Restores Service in US, Thanking Trump
TikTok Restores Service in US, Thanking Trump

TikTok restored service in the United States Sunday after briefly going dark, as a law banning the wildly popular app on national security grounds came into effect. The video-sharing platform credited President-elect Donald Trump, who retakes power on Monday, for making the reversal possible – though the outgoing administration of President ...

Inauguration Day, Trump-Style: What Will Happen?
Inauguration Day, Trump-Style: What Will Happen?

Every four years America's president is sworn in on Inauguration Day, whether newly elected or returning to office, in a long-established ceremony held amid pageantry shaped by the incoming leader's personal flourishes. What does that mean for the inauguration of Donald Trump? Cue the Village People and social media titans – and leave the ...

Israeli Hostages, Palestinian Detainees Freed on first Gaza Truce Exchange
Israeli Hostages, Palestinian Detainees Freed on first Gaza Truce Exchange

Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners on Monday after Hamas handed over three Israeli hostages, completing the first exchange under a long-awaited truce aimed at ending more than 15 months of war in Gaza. The three hostages released Sunday, all women, were reunited with their families and taken to hospital in central Israel where a doctor said ...

Trade Wars, Culture Wars, and Anti-Immigration: Trump's Big Promises
Trade Wars, Culture Wars, and Anti-Immigration: Trump's Big Promises

A sweeping deportation program, "drill, baby, drill," and peace for Ukraine: President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to move big and fast when he returns to the White House on Monday. Here is a look at his sensational but frequently vague promises for a second term -- much of them likely to be enacted through executive ...

The Deferred Normalization
AnalysisThe Deferred Normalization

The election of a president and the nomination of a new prime minister in Lebanon were good omens, but the process of political normalization doesn’t seem to be moving in the right direction. The ongoing negotiations in Gaza about the release of Israeli hostages and the swap of Palestinian prisoners are stumbling as well. The smooth transition ...