CNN correspondent covering the Middle East & beyond. Based in Abu Dhabi, via Seoul, Jerusalem & London.
Abu Dhabi
Joined November 2009
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Paula Hancocks retweeted
Fighting in Yemen pushes an already dire humanitarian crisis to the brink. @MSF warns that women are giving birth in tents without medical care, while neonatal units struggle to keep newborns warm amid fuel shortages. CNN’s @PHancocksCNN reports on the humanitarian crisis:
Paula Hancocks retweeted
US intelligence officials believe Iran & the Houthis are unlikely to carry out preemptive escalatory attacks against American personnel or Israel at this point but would not hesitate to respond if Iran is targeted first, one source familiar with latest US assessments noted.
New reporting: US forces in the Middle East are prepared to launch new, potentially major, military operations against Iran “within 96 hours of receiving” an order from President Donald Trump, according to two US officials.
W/my colleagues @ZcohenCNN @talshalev1
cnn.com/2026/10/26/politics/…
UAE is tackling an oil spill from a tanker in the Persian Gulf. Beaches closed in Umm al Quwain, fishermen told to stay away.
Here is a deeper look at the toxic impact of the war in Iran.
edition.cnn.com/2026/10/23/c…
Paula Hancocks retweeted
Trade In a Changing World with Fahad Al Gergawi, Farid Belbouab (@Gulftainer), Florence Gaub, @PHancocksCNN (@CNN), @TimcoMucunski (@VladaMK), @ProfessorKaren (@ColumbiaUEnergy) #AMGFL26 teapaw.org/i/broadcasts/1rGmqpkVa…
Paula Hancocks retweeted
With #AMGFL26 taking place on 13–15 October, we’re highlighting key sessions to watch.
Trade in a Changing World will explore how businesses and governments can maintain global connectivity as economic uncertainty reshapes the movement of goods, capital and technology across borders. The discussion will examine what it takes to keep trade resilient in a changing global economy.
The flydubai hijacking attempt exposes worrying gaps in aviation security.
Israel and the UAE insist they are working together to find the truth.
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Paula Hancocks retweeted
Tzvika Manes is one of 3 passengers who heroically wrestled the would-be FlyDubai hijacker to the ground.
And his wife, Tali, is the one who alerted passengers & crew to the gruesome fight for control of the cockpit
I spoke with them today
Paula Hancocks retweeted
For Gulf states, even discussing a US military drawdown risks handing Iran a victory and leaving them more exposed.
“This is not the time to have these conversations at all,” an official familiar with Saudi thinking told CNN, adding that this has been conveyed to the Trump administration. “The Iranians want headlines like (these)"
With @BeckyCNN
edition.cnn.com/2026/09/22/m…
CNN Investigates: Iran has improved targeting of US assets. Here's how Russian satellites likely have helped
cnn.com/2026/09/16/world/vid…
Paula Hancocks retweeted
Exclusive: More than 100 US military advisers are on the ground in Saudi Arabia providing intel & targeting support to the Kingdom for its military campaign against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen, sources tell me, @KatieBoLillis & @kylieatwood.
Comes as fighting on the peninsula intensifies & risks spilling into open war -- with the Houthis threatening a second major shipping corridor out of Middle East.
Paula Hancocks retweeted
Exclusive access to fight to stop Iran's powerful Yemen proxy - the Houthis who want this vital waterway - could drive up cost of oil - and pressure Trump
Paula Hancocks retweeted
.@Ed_Miliband's West Bank settlement sanctions triggered a full chorus of objections. None of them survive first contact. Poor, bad faith effort. A brief thread, from a former deputy convenor of a Home Office taskforce on extremism, who has been in security affairs for 20 years🧵
What the death sentence for former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad tells us about the future of the country. cnn.com/2026/08/16/middleeas…
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Paula Hancocks retweeted
Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sentenced to death in absentia for crimes during the country's 14-year deadly conflict cnn.it/4cxwRqS
Paula Hancocks retweeted
We're hiring for a group of new positions on CNN's Visual Investigations team!!!!
We're looking for sharp people with a strong OSINT skillset and a good judgement for stories that can handle both breaking news and long, difficult investigations.
Paula Hancocks retweeted
The investigation into a US strike that hit a school in Iran has sat for months with a military command while leaders have held off on ordering a critical, standard intelligence review to help determine what happened, according to three sources familiar with the matter. cnn.it/44tY2yL
Paula Hancocks retweeted
The agreement between Iran and the US lays out the terms of the ceasefire between the bitter rivals, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, some financial relief for Iran and a reiteration from Tehran that it will never produce a nuclear weapon, according to a draft copy of the text obtained by CNN. cnn.it/3SKWuxq
Paula Hancocks retweeted
The UAE is exiting OPEC and OPEC+ within days. UAE Energy Minister @HESuhail tells me “the timing is right.” My conversation with him here in thread: (1/5)
Paula Hancocks retweeted
My take on latest developments and Iran’s attacks on the Gulf - speaking to @FareedZakaria who always asks the questions that matter