Amna Nawaz

Princeton graduate student Elizabeth Tsurkov has been missing for six months. A dual Russian-Israeli citizen with family in the U.S., she was conducting research for her doctoral degree in Baghdad when she was believed to be kidnapped by an Iraqi militia. Amna Nawaz spoke with her sister, Emma Tsurkov, about efforts to bring her home.

A new report sheds light on a rise in the number of people dying behind bars in Louisiana prisons, jails and juvenile detention centers. The Incarceration Transparency Project at the Loyola University Law School says there's been a 50 percent jump in deaths from 2019 to 2021. Roby Chavez,'s communities correspondent based in New Orleans, joins John Yang to discuss.

The United Auto Workers launched a strike Friday, the first time it began a strike by picketing against the three big automakers simultaneously. The union, under new leadership, has also changed its traditional approach to a walkout by starting with a shot on the production of popular truck models. Automakers say the workers' demands will endanger their ability to compete. Amna Nawaz reports.

Five Americans imprisoned by the Iranian regime for years were released Monday in a complex deal between the U.S. and Iran. Some lawmakers have been critical of the Biden administration for making the deal, but U.S. officials have defended the agreement. Geoff Bennett speaks to Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer for the White House perspective.

The nation of Turkey sits at a crossroads of the world, and its president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is its preeminent leader. Reelected to office earlier in 2023, he has now been in power for 22 years. In an exclusive interview with Amna Nawaz, Erdogan discusses the state of NATO, Russia’s war on Ukraine and why Turkey might soon end its bid to become a part of the European Union.

It’s the end of an ordeal for five Americans held for years by the regime in Iran, who were freed after high-stakes negotiations and began their journey home Monday. Jared Genser, human rights attorney and pro-bono counsel for the family of one of the detainees, joins Amna Nawaz to talk about the hostage release.

India and Canada are caught up in a tense diplomatic showdown over the assassination of a Canadian Sikh separatist leader in British Columbia. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this week linked the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar to India's government. Both countries have since expelled top diplomats. Bloomberg columnist Bobby Ghosh joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.

The Federal Reserve did not hike interest rates Wednesday, but many Americans are still struggling with the burden of the higher costs of borrowing. The Fed’s series of hikes over more than a year has triggered a big jump in mortgage rates, pushing them to the highest level in more than two decades. Daryl Fairweatherr, chief economist of the real estate company Redfin, joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.

Before his mission to Washington, Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy first stopped in New York on Tuesday to address the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council. Ambassador Victoria Nuland, who is the acting deputy secretary of state for the U.S., joins Amna Nawaz to discuss American policy and global security in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The police use of force Thursday against Alabama high school band director Johnny Mims is sending ripples across the nation. Video of the incident after a football game shows police arresting and tasing Mims after he refused to stop the band’s traditional “fifth quarter” performance. Mims and Alabama state Rep. Juandalynn Givan join Amna Nawaz to discuss what happened.