Michael Slackman

Our international editor introduces Promises Made, a new series that investigates whether those in power did what they said they would.

Journals have long been a way for The Times’s foreign correspondents to bring readers with them as they explore a distant land. But they have needed a reboot, our international editor writes.

The Arab Spring uprisings showed hard-line Islamists who had embraced violence a peaceful path to change.

The sudden turn from humor points to a sense of revolution fatigue that has swept over a nation where people had hoped for overnight change.

President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday offered no concessions to ease the grip on public life exercised by his authoritarian regime.

The resignation came ahead of a speech President Bashar al-Assad is expected to give to the nation on Wednesday that may offer other concessions.

The most serious challenge in two decades to 40 years of repressive rule by the Assad family erupted in violence when soldiers opened fire on peaceful demonstrators.

The Muslim Brotherhood, once banned, is now a tacit partner with the military government that many fear will thwart changes.

In the fight for influence between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the United States may end up the loser.

The movement for change in the Arab world is not necessarily over, but it has run up against dictators willing to use lethal force to preserve their power.

Iran has already benefited from the ouster or undermining of Arab leaders who were its strong adversaries and has begun to project its growing influence, analysts say.

More than 100,000 protesters poured into Pearl Square in the biggest antigovernment demonstration yet.

Protesters surged back into the square, and the monarchy called for peace after two days of violent crackdowns.

Security Forces in Bahrain Open Fire on Protesters (Published 2011)

A brutal crackdown on protesters in Bahrain killed at least five people, creating another diplomatic challenge for the Obama administration.

Riot police rained tear gas and grenades on protesters challenging the country’s absolute monarchy on Thursday. At least two people were killed.

More than 10,000 people streamed into Pearl Square as a political protest merged with a funeral procession in the Persian Gulf kingdom.

Protests organized in the wake of events in Tunisia and Egypt led to clashes as police attacked peaceful protesters all over this island nation on Monday.

The end came suddenly for Hosni Mubarak, who consistently rejected bold action in favor of caution.

Omar Suleiman, President Hosni Mubarak’s choice for vice president of Egypt, is the establishment’s candidate.