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Frud Bezhan

Frud Bezhan is Senior Regional Editor in the English-language Central Newsroom at RFE/RL, leading coverage of the Middle East, South Asia, and Central Asia. Previously, he was the Regional Desk Editor for the Near East, with a primary focus on Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. As a correspondent, he reported from Afghanistan, Turkey, and Kosovo.

BezhanF@rferl.org

Also by Frud Bezhan

November 07, 2025
Why Is Kazakhstan Joining The Abraham Accords?

Kazakhstan will join the Abraham Accords, a hallmark achievement of Trump’s first term in office. The move puts Kazakhstan at the center of a new push by the White House to reinvigorate the foreign policy initiative.
October 24, 2025
Afghanistan's Taliban 'Here To Stay' As It Gains De Facto International Acceptance

The Taliban’s hard-line government in Afghanistan is making major inroads in garnering legitimacy abroad. Despite its extremist policies, the international community has accepted that the Islamist group is here to stay, say experts.
October 13, 2025
Once Allies, Pakistan And Afghan Taliban Lurch Toward Full-Blown Conflict

A full-blown conflict between Afghanistan’s Taliban and neighboring Pakistan seemed unthinkable when the hard-line Islamist group, a longtime ally of Islamabad, seized power in 2021 as international troops withdrew and the government their supported collapsed.
September 26, 2025
UN To Reimpose Global Sanctions On Iran. What Are They And How Will Tehran React?

The United Nations is set to reimpose wide-ranging sanctions on Iran over Tehran’s disputed nuclear program. Which sanctions will return and how will they impact Iran?
September 11, 2025
What Israel's Unprecedented Strike In Qatar Means For Iran And The Region

Israel’s brazen attack in Qatar, a key US ally, will be felt across the Middle East, including Iran, experts say.
September 09, 2025
This Afghan Teen Is The Sole Survivor From His Family After Deadly Earthquake

Hamidullah weeps amid the ruins of his family home in Afghanistan that was destroyed by a massive earthquake. The teen is the sole survivor in his family from the August 31 tremor. He and his neighbors have pulled the bodies of his parents, five sisters, and two brothers from the rubble.
September 04, 2025
Afghan Woman Who Lost All Male Relatives In Earthquake Faces New Barriers

Sola lost eight members of her family, including all her male relatives, in Afghanistan’s worst earthquake in years.
September 03, 2025
Afghan Man Loses 10 Family Members In Devastating Earthquake

Wazir Khan lost 10 members of his family in the deadly earthquake that struck eastern Afghanistan on August 31.
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.

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