“In the Middle East,” the Israeli general and politician Ehud Barak once said, “a pessimist is simply an optimist with experience.” Barak would know. He was Israel’s prime minister in 2000, a year ...

Visuals by David Guttenfelder Saher Alghorra Daniel Berehulak and Nanna Heitmann Roger Cohen reported from Israel, the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Qatar and Dubai. From the rubble and the ruin, the ...