Trump

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun receives Ambassador to the United States Nada Hamadeh in Beirut on Aug. 29, 2025. (Lebanese Presidency)

Meet Nada Hamadeh, Lebanon's US ambassador set to lead Israel talks

Lebanese ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh is expected to lead the Lebanese delegation in talks with the Israeli side in Washington on Tuesday, the first such contact between the two parties in decades.

A woman walks past a digital screen displaying news of US-Iran peace talks along a road in Islamabad on April 10, 2026.

In Islamabad, US set to face a more defiant Iran at negotiating table

Iran's widening ambitions after the war include a bid to exercise permanent control over the Strait of Hormuz.

TOPSHOT - Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted an area in Beirut on April 8, 2026. Israel launched a series of strikes on Beirut on April 8, the most violent attack on the Lebanese capital since the start of war. The strikes came as Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, which drew Lebanon into the Middle East war by attacking Israel on March 2, claimed it was close to a "historic victory". (Photo by Dylan COLLINS / AFP via Getty Images) /

Analysis

Ahead of Washington talks, Israel has little choice but to accept ceasefire in Lebanon

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had little choice but to agree to direct talks with Beirut as it became clear that Hezbollah is unlikely to be quickly disarmed.

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

Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, speaks during a UN Security Council meeting regarding the situation in the Middle East on April 7, 2026, in New York City. A vote on a resolution in the Security Council introduced by Bahrain focusing on reopening the Strait of Hormuz failed after opposition from Russia and China. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Analysis

Sanctions relief, Pakistan role propel China backing of Iran-US ceasefire

The US–Iran truce boosts Pakistan — one of China’s closest partners — by elevating its role as a mediator and strengthening a regional balance that favors Beijing’s allies.

Joyce Karam

By Joyce Karam , Rosaleen Carroll

Latest News

Analysis

Trump ceasefire leaves Netanyahu flustered as Iran gains politically

TOPSHOT - Iranians react after a ceasefire announcement at the Enqelab square, in Tehran, on April 8 2026. The United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire Tuesday barely an hour before US President Donald Trump's deadline to obliterate the rival country was set to expire, with Tehran to temporarily reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images) /

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

Trump agrees to halt war for 2 weeks if Iran reopens Hormuz

President Donald Trump pauses as he finishes speaking about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington.

Iran threatens energy shock, ups Gulf strikes ahead of Trump deadline: What to know

A family sits against the backdrop of a dockyard in Khor Fakkan in the Gulf emirate of Sharjah, off the coast of the Gulf of Oman, on Feb. 25, 2026.

Israel, seeking wider war, hits Iranian railways, bridges as Trump deadline nears

A view of the damaged B1 bridge, a day after it was destroyed by an airstrike, on April 3, 2026, west of Tehran in Karaj, Iran.

A Turkish military vehicle drives at Manbij countryside, Syria December 29, 2018. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC11D6A7B320

Turkey relying on events to turn tide against Kurdish YPG

A Turkish military operation in northern Syria does not appear to be in the cards, but Ankara is determined to use the threat of one to curb Kurdish aspirations.

American soldiers stand near military trucks, at al-Omar oil field in Deir Al Zor, Syria March 23, 2019. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC168E86AEF0

Pentagon sustains budget for arming local anti-IS forces amid US pullout

The Donald Trump administration's envoy for Syria issues said the United States is keeping “very limited” numbers of troops in the country as the Pentagon continues to build up the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland, U.S., March 1, 2019. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1CC97DE280

Republicans push to lock in Trump’s shift on Golan Heights

After President Donald Trump announced his intention to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, Republicans are pushing a bill that would make it permanent US policy.

A signpost pointing out distances to different cities is seen on Mount Bental, an observation post in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights that overlooks the Syrian side of the Quneitra crossing, Israel January 21, 2019. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC15E9AC5010

How Trump's Golan decision will further frustrate Mideast peace process

President Trump's tweet saying the United State should recognize Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights may help Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in April 9 elections, but may set back Trump's peace plan.

Democratic 2020 U.S. presidential candidate and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks at a campaign rally in Concord, New Hampshire, U.S., March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder - RC17BE4EE740

2020 Democrats vow to re-enter Iran nuclear deal

Advocacy groups are pushing to rejoin US allies in the JCPOA amid criticism of Trump’s foreign policy record.

Senators Mike Lee (R-UT), Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Chris Murphy (D-CT) speak after the senate voted on a resolution ending U.S. military support for the war in Yemen on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., December 13, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC13D91DD370

Senate seeks to tie Trump’s hands on war powers with vote to end military role in Yemen

The vote to end US support for the Saudi coalition in Yemen deals another blow to Riyadh, but it’s also an effort by liberals to curtail the president’s war-making authority.

Netanyahu fears tackling Democrats

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has kept quiet so far on the matter involving US Rep. llhan Omar, D-Minn.; he knows his policies have been helping reduce Democratic support for Israel for years.

A rebel fighter rides on a motorbike as people take a selfie on a road in Quneitra, Syria July 27, 2018. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki - RC1305C71BB0

Trump budget nixes aid to opposition-held Syria

The Donald Trump administration is doubling down on its decision to eliminate economic and stabilization aid for Syria amid its pending troop withdrawal.

A U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, touches down at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, April 9, 2016. The U.S. Air Force deployed B-52 bombers to Qatar on Saturday to join the fight against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the first time they have been based in the Middle East since the end of the Gulf War in 1991. REUTERS/U.S. Air Force/Staff Sgt. Corey Hook/Handout via Reuters THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTE

Plan to charge allies for US troop presence carries risks for Americans in North Africa

US President Donald Trump’s reported plan to charge allies for US military bases could make it harder to protect diplomats and embassies throughout Africa.

A picture taken on February 21, 2019 shows a US soldier atop an armoured vehicle on a road in Syria's northern Deir Ezzor province. - US-backed Syrian forces tried today to negotiate the release of civilians still trapped in the Islamic State group's last redoubt, as the international coalition warned the jihadists faced "inevitable defeat". (Photo by Bulent KILIC / AFP) (Photo credit should read BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images)

US struggles to get European troops for Syria

European allies are wary of committing troops for a Syria mission when the Donald Trump administration has given conflicting signals about its engagement in Syria.

Palestinian Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh welcomes Hamas members who went missing in Egypt a few years ago, after their arrival in Gaza City February 28, 2019. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa - RC1C19571390

Fatah suspicious after Egypt releases Hamas members

The recent release of four Hamas members abducted in Egypt in 2015 raises speculation about the price the movement might have paid for their release.

Plumes of smoke rise in Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, Syria March 3, 2019. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC1C6AD6B3F0

Islamic State roots run deep in Middle East discontent

There has been a sharp increase in reports that the Islamic State is being eradicated in Syria, but such declarations seem premature.