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Frud Bezhan

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Frud Bezhan

Frud Bezhan is Senior Regional Editor in the Central Newsroom at RFE/RL, with a primary focus on the Near East and Central Asia. Previously, he was the Regional Desk Editor for the Near East. As a correspondent, he reported from Afghanistan, Turkey, and Kosovo. Before joining RFE/RL in 2011, he worked as a freelance journalist in Afghanistan.

BezhanF@rferl.org

Also by Frud Bezhan

February 17, 2025
Europe Left Scrambling After Exclusion From Ukraine Talks

Europe has been excluded from negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. How will it respond?
February 13, 2025
Taliban Divisions Laid Bare As Afghanistan Power Struggle Intensifies

Internal rifts in the Taliban have come out into the open in recent weeks, in rare displays of disunity. Experts say it exposes an intensifying power struggle in the secretive armed group.
December 13, 2024
The Foreign Militants Among The Ranks Of Syria's New Rulers

RFE/RL has learnt that hundreds of foreign fighters, including from Central Asia, are among the ranks of Syrian militant groups which toppled the government of Bashar al-Assad.
December 08, 2024
Losing Syria Is A 'Huge Slap In The Face' For Russia

For Moscow, intervention in Syria's civil war in 2015 was proof that it had regained its status as a global power and counterweight to the West. Now, events in Syria threaten to undermine Russia's broader global ambitions.
December 06, 2024
Syrian Militants' Capture Of Key City A 'Game-Changer'

The capture of Hama, a strategic city in Syria, by militants is a game-changer in the Middle Eastern country’s decadelong civil war.
December 03, 2024
The Key Players In Syria's Reignited Civil War

A host of state and nonstate actors are involved in Syria, where the civil war has been revived after a lightening offensive by militants.
November 27, 2024
Rising Violence Threatens Chinese-Funded Projects In South And Central Asia

Chinese nationals have been targeted and killed recently in Pakistan and Tajikistan, two countries where Beijing has invested billions of dollars in development projects. Observers say the incidents could derail the Chinese-funded initiatives.
October 21, 2024
Who Was Fethullah Gulen, The Influential Islamic Cleric?

U.S.-based Muslim preacher and educator Fethullah Gulen, who was accused by Turkey of organizing a failed coup in 2016, has died in exile in the United States aged 83.
October 16, 2024
Lebanon's Armenians Face Painful Choice: Stay And Risk Death Or Flee

Israel’s ongoing aerial bombardment of Lebanon has left many members of the country’s 150,000-strong Armenian community with a painful choice: stay and risk death or leave behind a country they consider home.
October 10, 2024
FBI's Arrest Of Afghan Underscores Growing Threat Of Islamic State-Khorasan

U.S. authorities say they have arrested an Afghan citizen and charged him with conspiring to conduct a terrorist attack on Election Day in the United States in the name of the Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) extremist group. Experts say the case highlights the growing threat posed by IS-K to the West.
October 04, 2024
Who Is Hashem Safieddine, The Senior Hezbollah Leader?

Hashem Safieddine is the latest senior Hezbollah leader to be reportedly targeted by Israel. Safieddine is a potential successor to Hassan Nasrallah, the longtime chief who was assassinated by Israel in late September.
October 03, 2024
Sleeping On Beaches, In Cars: Lebanon's Displaced Have Nowhere To Go Amid Israeli Bombing

Israel’s devastating air raids across Lebanon are fueling a humanitarian crisis in the Middle Eastern country, where around 1 million have been displaced in recent weeks. In Beirut, thousands of people are sleeping on beaches and in the streets.
September 27, 2024
Haunted By War: One Man's Fight For Survival As Israel Pounds Southern Lebanon

Israel’s intense air aids across Lebanon have made the southern city of Tyre a ghost town. Locals say many residents have fled and few shops remain open in the city, which has been the target of Israeli air strikes.
September 25, 2024
'The Taliban Will Kill Me': Panic As Germany Announces First Afghan Deportations

Germany deported several dozen Afghans in August -- all of them convicted criminals -- for the first time since the Taliban takeover in 2021. But the move has fueled panic among Germany's large Afghan community, many of whom fear they could be next.
September 24, 2024
'I Could Be Next': Afghans Fearful After Germany Announces Deportations

Germany deported several dozen Afghans in August -- all of them convicted criminals -- for the first time since the Taliban takeover in 2021. But the move has fueled panic among Germany's large Afghan community, many of whom fear they could be next.
September 21, 2024
Israel's Suspected Attack On Electronic Devices In Lebanon Marks New Phase In Hezbollah Hostilities

Experts say Israeli’s suspected attack targeting Lebanese militant group Hezbollah marks a new phase in the escalating hostilities between the two sides.
July 18, 2024
'Widespread Fear': Spate Of Killings In Pakistan's Restive Northwest Targets Journalists

Three reporters have been killed so far this year in northwestern Pakistan, where there has been a surge in attacks by militant groups. The latest journalist to be killed was Hassan Zeb, a father-of-six who was gunned down in broad daylight.
June 09, 2024
Taliban's Name-Changing Campaign In Afghanistan An 'Ultimate Act Of Victory'

Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban has changed the names of streets, universities, airports, and even a city, often with Arabic ones. The move is an "ultimate act of victory," one analyst told RFE/RL.
April 14, 2024
The 'Kamikaze' Drones Iran Used To Attack Israel

Iran's unprecedented attack on Israel has put the spotlight on Tehran's arsenal of cheap but effective suicide drones. Scores of Iranian-made Shahed-136 and Shahed-131 drones were launched by Iran against Israel on April 13.
March 24, 2024
What Is Islamic State-Khorasan, The Group Blamed For The Moscow Concert Attack?

What is Islamic State-Khorasan, the militant group that U.S. officials say was responsible for the deadliest attack in Russia in decades?

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