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Wars and Peace: Israel Courts Arab World

Speculation is mounting that Israel and Saudi Arabia may be about to normalise ties after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly held secret talks in the kingdom.

If a deal is done, Saudi Arabia would become the sixth Arab nation to recognise Israel after historic accords since September with the UAE, Bahrain and Sudan.

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From Hope to Agony, What's Left of the Arab Spring?

Ten years ago, a wildfire of revolts in the Arab world touched off an unlikely series of events that swelled, then dashed many hopes, and irrevocably changed the region.

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Pompeo's Strange Farewell Tour, Full of Symbolism and Silence

What's Donald Trump's top diplomat to do when allies have turned the page and are waiting for Joe Biden but the president refuses to concede?

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Firings, Recount Calls: Trump's Desperate Push to Invalidate Vote

Firing the U.S. election security chief and pressuring local officials to throw out valid votes, President Donald Trump and his Republicans are making desperate -- though likely futile -- attempts to invalidate Democrat Joe Biden's election win.

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Explainer: Trump's Total Backing for Israel

Mike Pompeo is expected to become the first U.S. secretary of state ever to visit land used by settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Thursday.

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As More U.S. Troops Leave Iraq, Pro-Iran Factions Take Their Shot

Eyeing Washington's withdrawal of 500 more troops from Iraq, pro-Iran factions have boldly resumed attacks on the U.S. embassy there despite suspicions outgoing President Donald Trump could strike back.

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After Military Defeat, What's Next for Nagorno-Karabakh?

Fighting has come to an end in the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region a week after Armenia agreed to sign a Russian-brokered peace accord sealing its defeat to longtime rival Azerbaijan. 

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Clock Ticking, Trump Looks Set to Hasten Afghanistan Pullout

With little more than two months left in office, President Donald Trump appears to be pushing ahead with plans to pull out of Afghanistan as he stacks the Pentagon with loyalists.

Trump, who refuses to acknowledge defeat to President-elect Joe Biden, in his campaign declared that he was winding down "endless wars" and his new picks are enthusiastic supporters of his position.

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In Ruins, Syria Marks 50 Years of Assad Family Rule

On Nov. 13, 1970, a young air force officer from the coastal hills of Syria launched a bloodless coup. It was the latest in a succession of military takeovers since independence from France in 1946, and there was no reason to think it would be the last.

Yet 50 years later, Hafez Assad's family still rules Syria.

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French Secularism Explained

Home to Europe's largest Muslim population, France is often accused of being "against" Islam because of its ban on the burqa and religious symbols such as headscarves in schools.

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