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United States

April 28, 2026

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (C), alongside US State Department Counselor Michael Needham (2L) and US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (2R), speaks during a meeting.

US seeks to train Lebanon army units to disarm Hezbollah: What to know

Funding for such a program remains unclear, though the Pentagon has requested $36 million for fiscal year 2027 to support Lebanon’s army.

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Despite Trump pressure to limit Israel's Lebanon attacks, Aoun-Netanyahu meeting still unlikely

As President Donald Trump pressures Israel to limit its strikes in Lebanon, Hezbollah is taking advantage of the situation.

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

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to journalists as he arrives for an informal meeting of the European Council in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026.

Why US, Israel are freezing France out of Lebanon talks

With talks between Israel and Lebanon being held in Washington, Paris still insists that it must be involved to balance possible American bias and to protect Beirut’s interests.

A person walks past the closed Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center on Jan. 7, 2021, in New York City.

Why did the Met Opera lose its Saudi funding deal?

The deal, announced as a nonbinding memorandum of understanding last September, would have seen the PIF inject up to $200 million into the opera institution over the next eight years.

Latest News

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (R) holds a signed "Make America Great Again" hat while (L-R) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh Moawad listen to US President Donald Trump speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the US and Israel Ambassador to the US, at the White House in Washington, DC on April 23, 2026. US President Donald Trump met Lebanese and Israeli envoys at a new round of peace talks Thursday, with Beirut seeking a one-month extension of a

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

How are Iran-linked tankers still moving through Hormuz blockade?

BAY ISMOYO / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Israel sees chance of US-Iran deal as almost 'non-existent,' readies for war

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

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

US boards Iran-linked tanker in Indian Ocean, vows pursuit of 'ghost fleet'

TOWNSVILLE, AUSTRALIA - JULY 14: A US Navy Seahawk helicopter takes off from the deck of the USS Ronald Reagan on July 14, 2017 in Townsville, Australia. USS Ronald Reagan is a 1,092- foot aircraft carrier which carries a crew of 4,539 around 60 aircraft. Exercise Talisman Sabre is the largest combined military exercise undertaken in Australia. The biennial exercise is the principal Australian and U.S. military training activity. (Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

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

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

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

Joyce Karam

Editor-in-Chief

Rosaleen Carroll

News Reporter and Supporting Editor

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

Paul J. Saunders

In Washington, DC, reporting on Russia in the Middle East

NYC mayoral candidate Andrew Yang speaks at a press conference at Tweed Courthouse in Manhattan on May 11, 2021 in New York City.

New York City politicians spar over Israel, Palestine

The leaders in New York City’s mayoral election both defended Israel over the recent conflict with the Palestinians, though other politicians more to the left spoke in favor of the Palestinian cause.

Hady Amr

US sends diplomat to urge calm as Israel, Hamas fighting escalates

Hady Amr, the top State Department official on Israeli-Palestinian affairs, will push for both sides to de-escalate.

Smoke billows following a reported airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, on March 7, 2021.

US Senator, White House push for Yemen peace in regional tour

As the Houthi rebels struggle to take Marib, Senator Chris Murphy says the time for peace is now.

Hezbollah marchers

US sanctions 7 over Hezbollah finances

The sanctions indicate continued US pressure on the Lebanese organization under US President Joe Biden.

The US Department of State is seen on Jan. 6, 2020, in Washington, DC.

US appoints Ambassador Richard Norland as Libya special envoy

Norland, who has served as chief of mission to Libya since August 2019, will lead US diplomatic efforts to promote a political solution to the conflict.

A US Navy personnel mans a heavy machine gun as he watches a Riverine Command Boat (C) cruising past the USS Ponci in the Arabian Sea, on the first day of the the biggest mine countermeasures exercise in the Arabian Gulf, May 13, 2013.

US Navy seizes massive shipment of weapons in Arabian Sea

A video released by the Navy onboard the USS Monterey showed a massive cache of arms seized from a stateless vessel in the Arabian Sea.

Israeli police officers clash with Palestinians during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan on April 24, 2021 in Jerusalem.

US expresses 'serious concerns' to Israel over Jerusalem violence

National security adviser Jake Sullivan said the United States had "serious concerns" over the Jerusalem clashes and the potential evictions of Palestinian families from the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

US Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) speaks during a news conference with members of the Democratic Women's Caucus prior to State of the Union at the US Capitol on Feb. 4, 2020 in Washington, DC.

Top Democrats urge Biden to lift sanctions on Tehran in good faith

Prominent Democratic National Committee members urged President Joe Biden to relieve sanctions on Iran as the window closes for a return to the nuclear deal.

Lenderking and Griffths

State Department: Yemen's Houthis passed up opportunity for peace

The State Department slammed Houthi rebels for turning down the chance to meet with the UN Yemen envoy Martin Griffiths.

Yemeni women wait with their malnourished children ahead of treatment sessions at a medical center in Yemen's war-ravaged western province of Hodeida, on April 24, 2021.

US senators urge Biden administration to back another Yemen donor conference

The bipartisan group called on the administration to mobilize the international community to support Yemen's humanitarian needs.

John Kerry

House Republicans call for review of John Kerry's security clearance

Republicans on the House Oversight Committee responded to a report that Kerry provided Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif information on Israel's operations in Syria, but Kerry has denied this ever happened.

Iranian Army office/AFP via Getty Images

US Navy fires warning shots in encounter with Iranian patrol boats

A US Navy patrol ship fired warning shots to ward off Iranian boats in the Persian Gulf on Monday, marking the second run-in between the two countries’ naval forces this month.