Trump

Members of Houthi security forces stand guard while supporters of Yemen's Houthi movement attend an event commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Saudi-led intervention in their country, in the capital, Sanaa, on March 26, 2026.

Exclusive

Senior Houthi official says Bab el Mandab closure an option if any Gulf states join war

Houthi Deputy Information Minister Mohammed Mansour also said the strait could be closed “should the aggression against Iran and Lebanon escalate.”

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

People inspect destruction at a business building that housed the offices of the Doha-headquartered news network Al Araby TV following a missile strike earlier in the day, Tehran, Iran, March 29, 2026.

Analysis

Israel urges US escalation against Iran, possible ground invasion

Israel has made clear it will not deploy ground forces to Iran, but would strongly support US military action if the Trump administration chooses to proceed.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) is joined by Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and other officials for a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (not pictured) at the Pentagon, July 9, 2025.

Dermer’s return puts Netanyahu’s 'brain' at center of US-Israel calculus

Dermer, former Israeli strategic affairs minister, is considered one of Netanyahu’s closest associates, having worked together for over two decades.

Israeli settler violence graffiti

Settler violence spike exposes Israeli government rift with military

Knesset member Ram Ben-Barak of centrist Yesh Atid told Al-Monitor that the government must permit the use of administrative detention for extremist settlers to curb the violence.

Latest News

Iran warns Trump against ground invasion as US troop presence surges

A large banner with the image of Iran's slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei adorns a main taxi rank close to Tajrish Square, one week on from the start of the US-Israel attack on Iran, in Tehran on March 7, 2026.

Exclusive

Israel suspects Trump betting on 3 Iran officials, including Ghalibaf, to end war

TEHRAN, IRAN - OCTOBER 4: (EDITOR’S NOTE: This Handout image/clip was provided by a third-party organization and may not adhere to Getty Images’ editorial policy.) In this handout image provided by the Iranian Leader's Press Office, Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei (C) with Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (L) and Judiciary Chief Mohsen Ejeie (R), reading the Koran during the Friday prayer ceremony on October 04, 2024 in Tehran, Iran. Protesters supporting Iran's military position against Isra

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Turkey confirms Iraq troop withdrawal as NATO pulls back due to Iran war

A handing over of command ceremony at Union III Camp in the Green Zone of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on May 22, 2025.

Analysis

Meet Bagher Zolghadr, a hard-line IRGC veteran now Iran's security chief

Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, the new secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, is pictured in this undated photo.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrives for a welcoming ceremony prior to talks with the Russian president at the Kremlin in Moscow, on Jan. 29, 2026.

UAE’s MBZ reportedly cancels Japan visit amid US-Iran standoff: What to know

While tensions remain high between the US and Iran, both sides are reportedly moving toward renewed nuclear talks.

United Arab Emirates

Palestinians sit amid destroyed buildings by the Israeli military in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Jan. 27, 2026.

Feature

Excludes Palestinians, eyes profit: Gazans view Trump’s Board of Peace with deep distrust

Many Palestinians in Gaza view President Donald Trump’s proposed Board of Peace with deep suspicion, citing the complete exclusion of Palestinian representation and the bypassing of existing international organizations.

Rasha Abou Jalal

By Rasha Abou Jalal

In Gaza City, reporting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

PHILL MAGAKOE/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As envoys recalled, what's driving Israel-South Africa rupture?

South Africa has expelled the Israeli charge d'affaires, deepening the diplomatic crisis between the two countries.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, arrives in Beirut, Lebanon, on Sept. 27, 2025, to attend a memorial service for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Putin meets Iran’s top security official as Trump says Tehran wants deal

President Donald Trump said on Friday that Iran is seeking a nuclear deal but declined to specify a timeline for negotiations.

Men sign up to join the "martyrdom brigades" under the umbrella of Iraq's pro-Iran paramilitary group Hezbollah Brigades (Kataib Hezbollah), who called upon Iraqis to volunteer in fighting alongside Iran in the event of a full-scale war with the US and Israel, at a mosque in Baghdad on January 29, 2026. (Photo by AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi militias claim volunteers readying to defend Iran from US: What to know

Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba have said they are registering volunteers to defend Iran should the US attack.

TOPSHOT - Cars drive past an anti-US billboard installed on a building at the Enqelab Square in Tehran on January 26, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel ups Iran intel sharing with US, expects Trump to strike within 'weeks'

Israel is making vast amounts of intelligence available to the United States in preparation for a potential attack on Iran.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

US President Donald Trump addresses the nation, alongside US Vice President JD Vance (L), US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (2nd R), and US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (R), from the White House in Washington, on June 21, 2025, following the announcement that the US bombed nuclear sites in Iran.

Analysis

Iran resists US demands for nuclear talks despite Trump warning

As Iran balks at US demands and Trump dispatches military assets to the region, a nuclear deal remains out of reach.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

A view of the guided missile destroyer USS Delbert D. Black in the Mediterranean Sea, on Dec. 31, 2023.

Navy destroyer, aircraft join US armada amassing near Iran

The US is rapidly massing warships and strike aircraft around Iran as President Donald Trump openly threatens military action in an apparent bid to coerce its leaders to surrender their nuclear program.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

In this handout provided by the US Navy, The USS Gerald R. Ford, and Italian navy offshore Patrol Vessel ITS Paolo Thaon di Revel operate in the Mediterranean Sea, Oct. 2, 2025.

Analysis

Why Trump’s Venezuela playbook could face hard reality in Iran

On Wednesday, Trump said an armada larger than the one sent to Venezuela is heading toward Iran and “like with Venezuela,” it is ready to employ force if necessary.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi attends a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart following their talks in Moscow on December 17, 2025. (Photo by Ramil Sitdikov / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Iran FM heads to Turkey in last-ditch effort to avoid US escalation

Ankara is stepping up efforts to ease Iran-US tensions, as Turkey's top diplomat meets with a US envoy ahead of the Iranian foreign minister's Friday visit to Turkey.

US President Donald Trump gestures after holding a signing ceremony for the “Board of Peace” at the World Economic Forum on Jan. 22, 2026, in Davos, Switzerland.

Feature

Trump’s Iran threats deepen fears over detained Americans

The US military buildup could serve as powerful leverage for the administration to press for the release of Americans detained in Iran.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki leaves after casting his ballot at a polling station in Baghdad on Nov. 11, 2025 during Iraq's parliamentary elections.

‘Very bad choice’: Trump threatens to cut Iraq aid if Maliki returns as PM

Trump warned that the US would “no longer help Iraq” if former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki returns to power, saying his previous leadership had brought chaos and poverty.