Skip to contentSkip to site index
Portrait of Neil MacFarquhar

Neil MacFarquhar

I have reported from Russia and across the Middle East extensively, interspersed with wide-ranging assignments in the United States, most recently writing about extremism. My goal has always been to convey life in different parts of the world — not just key political and economic issues, but matters like what people eat or what makes them laugh.

I began covering the Ukraine war when it erupted in February 2022, following five years spent on assignment in Moscow from 2014-2019. I was part of the team awarded the 2017 Pulitzer Prize in international reporting for a series detailing the Kremlin’s covert methods of exerting influence globally.

I was based in Cairo for The Times from 2001-06, covering all the countries from Iran to Morocco, then roved around the region during the Arab uprisings from 2011-13. Before coming to The Times, I worked for seven years in the Middle East for The Associated Press, including stints as the news editor in Jerusalem and setting up an office in Kuwait after the 1991 Gulf War.

I first decided that I wanted to be a reporter during my junior year at Stanford University, when I dropped most of my classes in order to write about the tension between the university and its clerical staff, which was seeking to unionize. That real-world skirmish seemed far more captivating than my classes in international relations theory. I grew up overseas, mostly in Libya, where my father worked as a chemical engineer, so reporting seemed a perfect way to pursue my interest in global affairs while also keeping one foot planted in the United States.

I have written two books, a satirical novel about the international press corps during war, and another about how the Arab world is changing. I speak French and Arabic, while my Russian is always a work in progress.

All Times journalists are committed to upholding the standards of integrity outlined in our Ethical Journalism Handbook. Every story should be accurate and fair. My reporting is not rooted in any personal agenda; I let the people and the voices that I encounter shape where the story goes. I always identify myself as a Times reporter when I’m working. I do not donate to political campaigns or causes. Having often worked in repressive police states, I am careful to protect my sources, who can put themselves at great risk to share information with me.

The fastest way to contact me is through email. You can try social media, but when things get busy I often forget to check my messages there.

Latest

  1.  
  2.  
  3.  
  4.  
  5.  
  6.  
  7.  
  8.  
  9.  
  10.  
Page 1 of 10