Photo of Isabel Coles
Isabel Coles

Chief International Correspondent

Isabel reported from the Middle East for a decade before covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Before joining The Observer in 2025, she worked for The Wall Street Journal and Reuters. She received an award from the Overseas Press Club of America for a series of articles about a Swedish man’s quest to recover his seven orphaned grandchildren from Syria, and was part of a team that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for coverage of Iraq.

Photo of Isabel Coles

Isabel Coles

Chief International Correspondent

Isabel reported from the Middle East for a decade before covering Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Before joining The Observer in 2025, she worked for The Wall Street Journal and Reuters. She received an award from the Overseas Press Club of America for a series of articles about a Swedish man’s quest to recover his seven orphaned grandchildren from Syria, and was part of a team that was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for coverage of Iraq.

  • Isabel Coles
    Our destinies are entwined, Rubio tells Europe after a year of turmoil

    The US secretary of state’s speech to security conference was greeted warmly but fundamental differences remain

    Sun, 15 Feb 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Trump helps Greenlanders

    When Donald Trump tried to buy Greenland, he forced Denmark to tackle longstanding grievances.    Reporter: Isabel Coles  Writer: Casey Magloire Producer: Amalie Sortland Host: Casey Magloire Episode photography: Joe Mee Executive Producer: Rebecca Moor

    11 min • S1, E1220

  • Isabel Coles
    Norway’s crown princess apologises for Epstein friendship

    Mette-Marit has thrown the monarchy into disarray through intimate emails with Jeffrey Epstein that continued three years after she learned of the allegations against him

    Sun, 8 Feb 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Neom, MBS’s desert city dream, fades with the price of Saudi oil

    The crown prince has been forced to rein in plans for his high-tech metropolis as costs spiral to $8.8tn and the kingdom’s wealth falls

    Mon, 2 Feb 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Israeli aistrikes on Gaza leave at least 30 dead, including children

    More than 500 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire was brokered in October

    Sat, 31 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Hundreds dead after collapse of mine at the heart of DRC conflict

    Heavy rains led to tragedy in rebel-controlled zone where men, women and children dig for metallic ore used in smartphones

    Sat, 31 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Minneapolis erupts again as US citizen is shot dead by federal agents

    Sun, 25 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Board of peace or alternative UN? Trump moves upend world order

    The US president’s initiative to oversee the rehabilitation of Gaza may undermine other international agencies

    Sun, 25 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    ‘His missiles hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table’

    Progress threatened by Russian bombs that ‘hit not only our people, but also the negotiation table’, says foreign affairs minister

    Sat, 24 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Blair ‘honoured’ to sit on Gaza board

    Trump’s appointment of the former PM to his ‘board of peace’ evokes Blair’s tainted legacy in the Arab world

    Sun, 18 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    UK and Nato allies object to Trump’s tariff threat

    New US trade tariffs will come into force on 1 February until Denmark relents

    Sat, 17 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Trump promised to help Iran’s protesters. Here’s what he can actually do

    The US president appears to have rowed back on a pledge to protect demonstrators from the regime’s wrath. It is a sign of how few levers he has to pull

    Thu, 15 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Trump’s clamour for Greenland could collapse the world order

    The territory is part of Nato, which in turn depends on America

    Thu, 15 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Wanted: a visionary to stand firm amid tyranny and turmoil

    Finding a new secretary general is an enormous challenge for the United Nations this year

    Sun, 11 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Denmark fears it has nothing that will satisfy Trump’s desire for Greenland

    The Danish government is feeling the pressure as the US president refuses to rule out military force in order to obtain the mineral-rich territory

    Sat, 10 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Greenland’s worries over US ‘fantasies’ harden into alarm

    Donald Trump has repeated his vow to take over the Arctic territory, sparking unease among European allies

    Mon, 5 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    ‘If we want the regime out, we can’t back down’

    As civil unrest spreads from the capital to more than 30 cities, the government is responding in brutal fashion

    Mon, 5 Jan 2026

  • Isabel Coles
    Zelensky stays hopeful on plan for peace ahead of Trump talks

    Ukrainian president aims to put finishing touches to 20-point peace plan and discuss security guarantees

    Sun, 28 Dec 2025

  • Isabel Coles
    Defiance and denial in besieged Sloviansk as residents resist surrender to Moscow

    With Trump pressing Kyiv to give up the last part of the Donbas, citizens of this northern city remain determined to face down Russian occupation

    Sun, 28 Dec 2025

  • Isabel Coles
    Starmer to host Zelensky and EU leaders for Ukraine talks

    Show of support as concerns grow over peace deal that could favour Russia

    Sun, 7 Dec 2025

  • Isabel Coles
    Europe split over Putin’s frozen assets in race to hand Ukraine financial lifeline

    Gaining access to €210bn of Russian funds held in Brussels is key to Kyiv’s war effort but Belgium is resisting the move

    Sat, 29 Nov 2025

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