Creating a new census category would have economic and political ramifications for Americans of Middle Eastern and North African descent. Read more»

Why anyone who cares about tolerance and peace in today’s Middle East should care about the diminishing Christian presence in the land where the faith began. Read more»

Israel's touted Iron Dome anti-missile system has taken on the aura of a semi-superhuman piece of machinery — as if it were something out of Skyfall — during the rain of missiles that have come during its conflict with Gaza. Read more»

U.S. authorities are building a politically explosive case that Hezbollah, the Lebanese militant group, finances itself through a vast drug smuggling network that links a Lebanese bank, a violent Mexican cartel and U.S. cocaine users. Read more»

First it was Tunisia. Then it was Libya, Algeria, Jordan, Yemen, Albania, Lebanon and Egypt. Suddenly, civil unrest has erupted in countries, some of which have been under authoritarian rule for decades, all over the Middle East and North Africa. Confused about all the protests? Here's what you need to know. Read more» 3

As the U.S. military concludes its combat role — which President Barack Obama will formally announce Tuesday — Iraq is indeed a dramatic example for the Middle East, but not in the ways that President Bush envisioned. As U.S. troops became mired in fighting an insurgency, Iran extended its influence. Read more»

The kings of Morocco, Jordan and Saudi Arabia could speak more freedom into the law with a single royal statement. Read more»