Osama Bin Laden Almost Sounds Like A U.S. Presidential Candidate In This Secret Letter

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Wednesday March 2, 2016

In a letter apparently written by Osama bin Laden, the late al-Qaida leader denounced the corporate interests supposedly driving politics in the United States and hailed the courage of the country's Founding Fathers.

Amazing Luxuries Found Inside A Mexican Prison

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Wednesday February 17, 2016

Last week, a prison riot in northern Mexico claimed the lives of 49 inmates. The violence that convulsed Topo Chico prison, in the city of Monterrey, involved clashes between members of rival factions of the notorious Zetas cartel, and was the worse such clash since a similar 2014 battle, that also took place in the state of Nuevo Leon, saw the dea...

Was Tamil Nadu Really Hit By A Meteorite? Experts Are Skeptical

India News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Tuesday February 9, 2016

Local authorities in Tamil Nadu are investigating whether the death of a man at a college campus over the weekend was the result of a falling meteorite.

Some Islamic State's Former Sex Slaves Were Forced To Have 'Virginity Tests' After Escaping

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Tuesday February 2, 2016

Some women enslaved by the Islamic State were forced to undergo grim procedures even after they escaped the jihadists' clutches.

The Long History Of Muslims And Christians Killing People Together

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Tuesday February 9, 2016

In 1683, a vast Ottoman army camped outside the gates of Vienna. For centuries thereafter, the siege and final decisive battle that took place would be cast as a defining moment in a clash of civilizations -- that time the forces of Islam were halted at the ramparts of Christendom.

The Young Saudi Royal At The Heart Of The Middle East's Great Power Struggle

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Thursday January 14, 2016

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia's Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was in Islamabad, meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. The recent flaring of tensions between the Saudis and their regional foe, Iran, compelled the visit to a longstanding ally. The Pakistani military reiterated its commitment to Riyadh, declaring in a statement "that...

This Terrible Thai Skin Whitening Ad Is A Symptom Of A Larger Problem

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Saturday January 9, 2016

A televised commercial in Thailand for a skin-whitening product stirred controversy and was eventually withdrawn after a backlash against its perceived racism.

This Strange Story About ISIS Using Birds As Suicide Bombers Shows How Life Can Imitate Art

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Tuesday December 15, 2015

According to the news site Vocativ, which mines social media for its scoops, an online sympathizer of the Islamic State proposed a somewhat bizarre new tactic for the militant group over the weekend. Using the messaging app Telegram, this apparent Islamic State loyalist uploaded what Vocativ deemed a "comprehensive plan" to target coalition aircraf...

Canadian Newspaper Offers Huge Front-Page Welcome To Syrian Refugees

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Friday December 11, 2015

On Thursday, the Toronto Star, a major Canadian daily, published the front page welcoming Syrian refugees to Canada.

The Bataclan Theater, the Epicenter of the Terror Attacks in Paris

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Saturday November 14, 2015

The Bataclan theater in Paris was crammed with more than 1,000 people who had come to see a sold-out show by the American rock band Eagles of Death Metal. Gunmen apparently burst into the crowd and started firing indiscriminately, killing at least 100 people.

Why Turkey's Election is a Very Big Deal

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Sunday November 1, 2015

On Sunday, Turkey will hold a national election, less than six months after voters delivered the country's first hung parliament since 2002.

The Weather in Syria is Great for Airstrikes, Says Russian TV Station

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Tuesday October 6, 2015

"October in Syria is a great month for flying," a Russian TV weather forecaster explained during a report Sunday. The skies are relatively clear, the wind speed is a manageable 2.4 meters per second, "with strong gusts just once a month," and rainfall is sparse.

Why Russia's Syria War is Bad News for the US (and Why It Isn't)

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Thursday October 1, 2015

Russian warplanes are conducting airstrikes now in Syria, according to a slew of news reports. The move follows authorization by a vote in Russian parliament as well as weeks of Kremlin messaging about the importance of bolstering the Syrian regime to combat the Islamic State.

Vladimir Putin Phones Elton John, and This Time It's for Real

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Friday September 25, 2015

This time, it has happened for real. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, told reporters this week that the Russian leader had called Elton John after attending a meeting in a cornfield in southern Russia.

Why Human Rights Lawyer Amal Clooney is Battling Tony Blair's Wife

World News | Ishaan Tharoor, The Washington Post | Wednesday September 23, 2015

Amal Clooney, an internationally renowned human rights lawyer, is known for attracting high-profile cases. In the past year alone, she represented Armenia in the European Court of Human Rights, sparred with the Egyptian government over the independence of its judiciary, and argued the case of the Chagos Islanders, an Indian Ocean people forced out ...