The Trump Administration has a new plan for delivering aid to Palestinians in Gaza. Israel has blocked all food, fuel and medicine for more than ten weeks, accusing Hamas of stealing aid meant for civilians. The U.S. says their plan will address those concerns, but experts worry the plan could set a bad precedent. We learn more.

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Syria is in a precarious place as it emerges from civil war and a long dictatorship. The recently announced removal of U.S. sanctions bring hopes that the economy might stabilize. Another challenge is Syria's population— it is one of the most diverse countries in the Middle East and with that comes competing demands and priorities from various groups. NPR's Jane Arraf takes us to southern Syria, near the border with Israel and introduces us to one of the biggest minority groups, the Druze.

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President Trump's first major overseas trip of his second term is to the same place as his first term, the Middle East. Trump is visiting the Gulf States of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. And he is scheduled to meet with Syria's new president for the first time. We'll hear about the significance of that meeting and the deals between the U.S. and Gulf countries being announced. We'll also hear about the personal relationships and family business deals Trump has with various Gulf Arab rulers.

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Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and President Trump's efforts to change the U.S. relationship with Europe and NATO have caused some European countries to rethink their own defense. One example is Poland, which shares a 500-mile border with Russia and Russian ally Belarus. Poland is preparing to repel a Russian invasion, and this preparation includes a plan to train every adult male in the country to be ready for war. We go to Poland to see what the preparations look like.

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Since Israel's military went to war against Hamas in Gaza more than a year and a half ago, it has conducted thousands of strikes in the territory. One attack last year stands out. Israel struck a five-story building housing an extended family of well over 100 people. The military says they were targeting an enemy spotter on the roof. NPR reporters and producers set out to chronicle this attack, to know how many people were killed and injured and to understand what it means to the family of survivors.

Click here to see NPR's visual investigation of this attack.

For more coverage of all sides of this conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates

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The world's 1.4 billion Catholics now have a new pope. Robert Prevost, who was born in Chicago and spent two decades of service to the church in Peru will now be known as Pope Leo XIV. We go to the Vatican to hear what it was like in St. Peter's Square when the new pope blessed the faithful for the first time. And we hear from someone who knows the pope from his time in Chicago.

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India conducted airstrikes on targets across Pakistan in the early hours of Wednesday morning. It was the most extensive attack in decades and Pakistan's defense minister warned the escalation could lead to nuclear confrontation. We go to our correspondent in Mumbai to understand what is happening and what each country might do next.

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This week 133 cardinals will meet in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican to select a new pope who will lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. This will be the first papal conclave in which fewer than half the voting cardinals are European. During his time, Pope Frances selected many cardinals from the global south and our correspondent in Rome tells us how this could influence who the next pope will be.

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Israel's cabinet has approved plans for Gaza that include expanding the war, taking territory with the intent to keep troops there, and major shifts in the way food and aid are distributed. Our correspondent in Tel Aviv tells us what are in the plans and what they could mean for Gaza.

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At the heart of a potential peace deal between Russia and Ukraine is what, if any, Ukrainian territory Russia will be allowed to keep. Moscow asserts that four Ukrainian provinces are more culturally Russian than Ukrainian. We go to one of those areas to find out what the people there think.

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