Aya Batrawy
Aya Batrawy is an NPR International Correspondent. She leads NPR's Gulf bureau in Dubai.
She joined NPR in 2022 from the Associated Press, where she was an editor and reporter for over 11 years. She covered the Arab Spring uprisings from Cairo, the rise and fall of the Muslim Brotherhood and the ensuing turmoil that ricocheted across the region.
Batrawy moved to Dubai in 2013 with AP, where she reported on tensions with Iran and the emergence of Gulf Arab states as the region's new powerbrokers. She also led coverage on Islam's hajj pilgrimage from Mecca and examined efforts by Gulf oil producers to diversify their economies away from fossil fuels in a world grappling with climate change.
The weight of her coverage has also centered on the rise of Saudi Arabia's crown prince — his attempts at transforming the kingdom and centralizing power.
Batrawy's love of broadcast news began at the University of South Florida. As an undergraduate, she volunteered at WMNF community station and the local NPR Member station in Tampa Bay, where she grew up. After two years in Washington as a journalist and a master's from London's SOAS, she moved to Cairo and produced for NPR's Peter Kenyon and Deborah Amos, crisscrossing North Sinai in memorable adventures with both. She taught journalism at the American University in Cairo and freelanced for Voice of America, Pacifica Radio and PRI's The World.
When not listening to podcasts, she's trying to drink her coffee while it's still hot, make it to barre class on time and keep up with royal news. [Copyright 2025 NPR]
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Qatar slams Israeli attacks on Hamas leaders in Doha as "state terrorism" after the bombardment rocks the tiny U.S. ally and dashes hopes of a ceasefire in Gaza -
Israel's military says it has gained "operational control" of 40% of Gaza City and plans to intensify its attacks in a large-scale ground offensive to fully occupy the city. -
More than 250 news outlets around the world have signed onto an appeal that calls for the protection of Palestinian journalists in Gaza, and for press to have independent access to the territory. -
Israeli forces killed 22 people, including five journalists, in two strikes on Gaza's Nasser Hospital, drawing global condemnation and prompting a rare admission of regret from the Israeli government. -
Desperate Palestinians are risking gunfire, looting or being crushed by moving trucks to get flour in northern Gaza. -
Al Jazeera's Anas al-Sharif and five of his colleagues at the network were killed in an Israeli airstrike targeting Gaza's most recognized television journalist. -
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doubled down on his plan for Israel to seize control of Gaza City and the remaining sliver of Gaza not already under Israeli control. -
Israel's Security Cabinet approved a plan to take over Gaza City despite demands by families of hostages and mounting international calls for Israel to end the war. -
Dozens of Palestinians were killed, many while waiting for food aid, amid a deepening starvation crisis and despite Israeli assurances of a humanitarian pause in some areas of the territory. -
Israel's prime minister denounced a report in Israeli newspaper Haaretz quoting Israeli soldiers saying commanders ordered them to fire at unarmed crowds near food distribution sites.
