Akbar Shahid Ahmed
@akbarshahidahmed.huffpost.com
Senior Diplomatic Correspondent at HuffPost // Writing a book on Gaza and the Biden administration for W. W. Norton // he/him
Say hi: akbar.58 on Signal or [email protected]
Say hi: akbar.58 on Signal or [email protected]
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
How I feel about the whole Olivia Nuzzi story is that there are a lot of talented, ethical, underemployed or unemployed black and brown journalists right now who are ready to work.
November 22, 2025 at 2:20 PM
How I feel about the whole Olivia Nuzzi story is that there are a lot of talented, ethical, underemployed or unemployed black and brown journalists right now who are ready to work.
Notable development for Democrats' foreign policy: firmly pro-Israel Brad Sherman is now their top voice on the House panel for the Middle East
"It’s like they are trying to spotlight the deep division between D lawmakers & voters + alienate progressive activists," one unhappy advocate argued to me
"It’s like they are trying to spotlight the deep division between D lawmakers & voters + alienate progressive activists," one unhappy advocate argued to me
November 21, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Notable development for Democrats' foreign policy: firmly pro-Israel Brad Sherman is now their top voice on the House panel for the Middle East
"It’s like they are trying to spotlight the deep division between D lawmakers & voters + alienate progressive activists," one unhappy advocate argued to me
"It’s like they are trying to spotlight the deep division between D lawmakers & voters + alienate progressive activists," one unhappy advocate argued to me
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
That this is happening now says so much more about Washington (etc) than about him, since he has been clearly telling us about himself for decades
The decline and fall of Larry Summers's Acela corridor empire www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
After decades of power, Washington shuns Larry Summers over Epstein ties
Larry Summers helped shape U.S. economic policy for decades. His close friendship with Jeffrey Epstein scuttled much of that legacy.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:31 PM
That this is happening now says so much more about Washington (etc) than about him, since he has been clearly telling us about himself for decades
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
WIRED is hiring for a senior politics reporter who will write our weekly newsletter; detailed job description below. This role will be based in New York or DC and report to me; the salary range is $95,000 - $132,000. condenast.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/CondeC...
November 21, 2025 at 2:21 PM
WIRED is hiring for a senior politics reporter who will write our weekly newsletter; detailed job description below. This role will be based in New York or DC and report to me; the salary range is $95,000 - $132,000. condenast.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/CondeC...
Under Biden, General Erik Kurilla was closer to Israel than almost anyone else in government.
Under Trump, he delivered on Israeli + US hardliners' dream of joint US-Isr attacks on Iran.
Now he's joining the hawkish Washington Institute for Near East Policy to continue shaping US discourse & choices
Under Trump, he delivered on Israeli + US hardliners' dream of joint US-Isr attacks on Iran.
Now he's joining the hawkish Washington Institute for Near East Policy to continue shaping US discourse & choices
November 21, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Under Biden, General Erik Kurilla was closer to Israel than almost anyone else in government.
Under Trump, he delivered on Israeli + US hardliners' dream of joint US-Isr attacks on Iran.
Now he's joining the hawkish Washington Institute for Near East Policy to continue shaping US discourse & choices
Under Trump, he delivered on Israeli + US hardliners' dream of joint US-Isr attacks on Iran.
Now he's joining the hawkish Washington Institute for Near East Policy to continue shaping US discourse & choices
Useful. You don't get to Trump saying anything he does abroad is legal (& jumping to calls for executing dissenting lawmakers) without decades of US officials avoiding uncomfortable conclusions. The pattern of a lack of accountability for foreign policy has been deepened by Democrats & bureaucrats..
Another aspect is that the USG may simply refuse to reach an adverse legal conclusion which would render presidential directives unlawful.
If the USG refuses to determine that Saudi Arabia or Israel are committing war crimes with US weapons, then continued arms sales aren't aid & abetting...
If the USG refuses to determine that Saudi Arabia or Israel are committing war crimes with US weapons, then continued arms sales aren't aid & abetting...
November 21, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Useful. You don't get to Trump saying anything he does abroad is legal (& jumping to calls for executing dissenting lawmakers) without decades of US officials avoiding uncomfortable conclusions. The pattern of a lack of accountability for foreign policy has been deepened by Democrats & bureaucrats..
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
🚨A newly uncovered document flagged last week in a federal court filing threatens undocumented immigrant children in government custody with “prolonged” detention if they choose to exercise their legal rights rather than voluntarily depart the United States.
www.huffpost.com/entry/docume...
www.huffpost.com/entry/docume...
Newly Uncovered Document Reveals An 'Alarming And Disturbing' Trump Threat
The Trump administration is turning the screws on kids who’ve arrived in the United States without adults accompanying them.
www.huffpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:02 PM
🚨A newly uncovered document flagged last week in a federal court filing threatens undocumented immigrant children in government custody with “prolonged” detention if they choose to exercise their legal rights rather than voluntarily depart the United States.
www.huffpost.com/entry/docume...
www.huffpost.com/entry/docume...
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
New: Reuters has tallied job losses, suspensions and investigations stemming from the reaction to Charlie Kirk's Sept. 10 assassination. Its findings: More than 600 Americans have been punished, and the figure is likely to be an under-count.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
November 19, 2025 at 11:35 AM
New: Reuters has tallied job losses, suspensions and investigations stemming from the reaction to Charlie Kirk's Sept. 10 assassination. Its findings: More than 600 Americans have been punished, and the figure is likely to be an under-count.
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
The state of US-brokered ceasefires: fresh reports of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza are coming in just a few hours after three separate strikes were reported in Lebanon.
November 19, 2025 at 4:53 AM
The state of US-brokered ceasefires: fresh reports of Israeli airstrikes in Gaza are coming in just a few hours after three separate strikes were reported in Lebanon.
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
Listen I am sorry to be this way but I am going to take this opportunity to plug myself and more specifically my second book, Bad Jews (the JBC review says that to my credit, I am also self aware www.jewishbookcouncil.org/book/bad-jew...)
November 13, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Listen I am sorry to be this way but I am going to take this opportunity to plug myself and more specifically my second book, Bad Jews (the JBC review says that to my credit, I am also self aware www.jewishbookcouncil.org/book/bad-jew...)
"Just as Gaza has proved to be a place where the failings of Western political institutions are exposed, the BBC has itself come unstuck... [with a] managerial elite struggling to avoid falling into a chasm that has opened beneath them." @equatormag.bsky.social:
www.equator.org/articles/ins...
www.equator.org/articles/ins...
Inside the BBC’s Gaza Fiasco • EQUATOR
How the world’s most trusted media organisation fell apart
www.equator.org
November 18, 2025 at 10:58 PM
"Just as Gaza has proved to be a place where the failings of Western political institutions are exposed, the BBC has itself come unstuck... [with a] managerial elite struggling to avoid falling into a chasm that has opened beneath them." @equatormag.bsky.social:
www.equator.org/articles/ins...
www.equator.org/articles/ins...
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
I will never forget having to edit Jamal’s final, posthumous piece for the Washington Post, after he was murdered.
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
Opinion | Jamal Khashoggi: What the Arab world needs most is free expression
The Arab world needs a modern version of the old transnational media so citizens can be informed about global events.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:48 PM
I will never forget having to edit Jamal’s final, posthumous piece for the Washington Post, after he was murdered.
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
He was calling for free expression in the Arab world. You can read it here :
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/glo...
"We did all the right steps of investigation in Saudi Arabia" re: Khashoggi, MBS just claimed at the White House
In fact, Saudi cleared suspect Saud al-Qahtani (blamed by US intel) — and the path to impunity + today's MBS-Trump photo op was laid by the Biden admin..
www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-bi...
In fact, Saudi cleared suspect Saud al-Qahtani (blamed by US intel) — and the path to impunity + today's MBS-Trump photo op was laid by the Biden admin..
www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-bi...
Joe Biden Promised To Take On Saudi Arabia Over Jamal Khashoggi. The Saudis Won.
Biden pledged to root his foreign policy in values like human rights, but didn't apply that standard to the long and morally dubious U.S.–Saudi relationship.
www.huffpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 7:00 PM
"We did all the right steps of investigation in Saudi Arabia" re: Khashoggi, MBS just claimed at the White House
In fact, Saudi cleared suspect Saud al-Qahtani (blamed by US intel) — and the path to impunity + today's MBS-Trump photo op was laid by the Biden admin..
www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-bi...
In fact, Saudi cleared suspect Saud al-Qahtani (blamed by US intel) — and the path to impunity + today's MBS-Trump photo op was laid by the Biden admin..
www.huffpost.com/entry/joe-bi...
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
New foreign student enrollment in the US fell 17% this fall www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...
How foreign student enrollment is shifting in the U.S., in 6 charts
Foreign student enrollment in U.S. colleges has stalled, with a 17 percent decline in new students this fall after Trump policy changes, a key survey shows.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 17, 2025 at 2:10 PM
New foreign student enrollment in the US fell 17% this fall www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...
An Epstein cameo was not the end to the work week I was expecting…
(spotted by @ryangrim.bsky.social 🙏🏽)
(spotted by @ryangrim.bsky.social 🙏🏽)
November 15, 2025 at 1:46 AM
An Epstein cameo was not the end to the work week I was expecting…
(spotted by @ryangrim.bsky.social 🙏🏽)
(spotted by @ryangrim.bsky.social 🙏🏽)
I'll be live @kalwradio.bsky.social re Gaza—including my revelations on Biden's fateful final decisions on the war, avoiding accountability for US-backed Israeli conduct even as officials worried about their culpability +Blinken acknowledged possible ethnic cleansing www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 14, 2025 at 6:30 PM
I'll be live @kalwradio.bsky.social re Gaza—including my revelations on Biden's fateful final decisions on the war, avoiding accountability for US-backed Israeli conduct even as officials worried about their culpability +Blinken acknowledged possible ethnic cleansing www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Blinken asked if Israel was conducting ethnic cleansing
Biden + advisors discussed if American officials were liable for war crimes
New details on the late 2024 deliberations that could have helped Gaza—and how Biden dodged accountability, kicking the can to Trump:
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden + advisors discussed if American officials were liable for war crimes
New details on the late 2024 deliberations that could have helped Gaza—and how Biden dodged accountability, kicking the can to Trump:
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:11 PM
Blinken asked if Israel was conducting ethnic cleansing
Biden + advisors discussed if American officials were liable for war crimes
New details on the late 2024 deliberations that could have helped Gaza—and how Biden dodged accountability, kicking the can to Trump:
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden + advisors discussed if American officials were liable for war crimes
New details on the late 2024 deliberations that could have helped Gaza—and how Biden dodged accountability, kicking the can to Trump:
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
"Peter Hildebrand, whose unvaccinated 8-year-old daughter died of measles-related complications in Texas this spring, said he would do everything in his power to protect his children from vaccines & to never go to a hospital again." @laurenweberhp.bsky.social:
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
‘God is an anti-vaxxer’: Inside the conference celebrating RFK Jr.’s rise
An anti-vaccine conference in Austin celebrated Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s rise to political power, highlighting his influence in Trump’s Washington.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 11, 2025 at 1:21 AM
"Peter Hildebrand, whose unvaccinated 8-year-old daughter died of measles-related complications in Texas this spring, said he would do everything in his power to protect his children from vaccines & to never go to a hospital again." @laurenweberhp.bsky.social:
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/...
At 7:20 ET I'll be live w/ @joyannreid.bsky.social discussing my revelations on Biden's last-minute choices re Gaza—fueling the ongoing bloodshed. Key:
—Blinken asked if Israel was committing "ethnic cleansing"
—Brett McGurk quashed a new push to cut US support
&more
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
—Blinken asked if Israel was committing "ethnic cleansing"
—Brett McGurk quashed a new push to cut US support
&more
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 11, 2025 at 12:05 AM
At 7:20 ET I'll be live w/ @joyannreid.bsky.social discussing my revelations on Biden's last-minute choices re Gaza—fueling the ongoing bloodshed. Key:
—Blinken asked if Israel was committing "ethnic cleansing"
—Brett McGurk quashed a new push to cut US support
&more
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
—Blinken asked if Israel was committing "ethnic cleansing"
—Brett McGurk quashed a new push to cut US support
&more
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
On the subject of a reckoning for the Democratic Party...
NEW: Inside the Biden administration debates in late 2024 that could have changed the course of the Gaza war
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 10, 2025 at 1:26 AM
On the subject of a reckoning for the Democratic Party...
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
“Biden officials worried that attaching their names to a recommendation to limit American support for Tel Aviv would hinder their future career prospects, the former senior official said, ‘which is in itself appalling.’”
NEW: Inside the Biden administration debates in late 2024 that could have changed the course of the Gaza war
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 9, 2025 at 12:27 AM
“Biden officials worried that attaching their names to a recommendation to limit American support for Tel Aviv would hinder their future career prospects, the former senior official said, ‘which is in itself appalling.’”
My book on the Biden administration’s Gaza policy, CROSSING THE RED LINE, is soon entering production. I’m so excited to share it with you in 2026
In the meantime, if you want to share info about US officials’ choices around the war, you can always reach me at akbar.58 on Signal; anonymity is fine
In the meantime, if you want to share info about US officials’ choices around the war, you can always reach me at akbar.58 on Signal; anonymity is fine
November 8, 2025 at 9:03 PM
My book on the Biden administration’s Gaza policy, CROSSING THE RED LINE, is soon entering production. I’m so excited to share it with you in 2026
In the meantime, if you want to share info about US officials’ choices around the war, you can always reach me at akbar.58 on Signal; anonymity is fine
In the meantime, if you want to share info about US officials’ choices around the war, you can always reach me at akbar.58 on Signal; anonymity is fine
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
NEW: Inside the Biden administration debates in late 2024 that could have changed the course of the Gaza war
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Biden Discussed Potential Israeli War Crimes In Gaza. He Kicked The Can To Trump.
New intelligence shocked officials in late 2024, spurring heightened fear of U.S. liability, HuffPost has learned. The period saw Secretary of State Antony Blinken ask if Israel’s actions constituted ...
www.huffpost.com
November 7, 2025 at 11:59 PM
NEW: Inside the Biden administration debates in late 2024 that could have changed the course of the Gaza war
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
-top intel official sought to cut support for Israel but Brett McGurk pushed back
-talk of "very likely" US liability
-Blinken spoke of "ethnic cleansing"
www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
Reposted by Akbar Shahid Ahmed
Brett McGurk led the pushback to reducing support, two officials said; the controversial Biden adviser often behaved as “Israel’s lawyer” when U.S. officials questioned the country, another senior Biden-era colleague told HuffPost.
For more fresh information about what Biden officials knew about Gaza/Israel & their choice not to act even as they knew they would be handing power to Trump, an open skeptic of international law + human rights standards, read my latest: www.huffpost.com/entry/biden-...
November 8, 2025 at 6:17 AM
Brett McGurk led the pushback to reducing support, two officials said; the controversial Biden adviser often behaved as “Israel’s lawyer” when U.S. officials questioned the country, another senior Biden-era colleague told HuffPost.