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August 25, 2026

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Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent addresses the audience during opening remarks at the Ministerial on the Resurgence of Political Terrorism at the State Department on July 16, 2026 in Washington, DC. Bessent spoke alongside U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller as they discussed the rise of far-left political terrorism as a transnational threat. (Photo by Finn Gomez/Getty Images)

In 'warning shot,' US threatens sanctions on Iran’s trading partners

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said countries were given "defined timelines" to halt business with Iran or face US sanctions.

Leon Neal/Getty Images

Oil falls 1.8% as traders await 'toughest' sanctions on Iran

Traders are awaiting details about new US measures sure to further disrupt Iranian oil flows.

ANKARA, TURKEY - JULY 7: U.S. President Donald Trump (L)shakes hands with with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a formal arrival at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Emrah Gurel - Pool/Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them

Israeli officials remain skeptical of Turkish and Syrian denials over Ankara’s military ambitions in Syria, warning that a deeper Turkish foothold could threaten Israel’s security and strain its ties with Washington.

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

Latest News

Caught in the middle, Oman shrugs off Trump's latest Iran threat

Win McNamee/Getty Images

China slams Trump over economic war on Iran: What to know

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian holds a press conference on Aug. 19, 2026.

Explainer

King Abdullah visits China as region hedges against US unpredictability

King Abdullah II arrives in Beijing, Aug. 20, 2026. Photo from Xinhua/Chen Yehua.

Trump’s Iran ‘economic D-Day’ threat sends oil prices above $94

Iranians drive past an anti-US billboard at Enghelab Square in central Tehran, Aug. 3, 2026.

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

TOPSHOT - Armed Yemeni tribesmen loyal to the Shiite Huthi rebels sit in the back of an armed vehicle during a gathering to mobilise more fighters into several battlefronts on November 1, 2016 on the outskirts of the capital Sanaa.
The war in Yemen escalated in March 2015 when the Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign to push back the Huthi rebels, after they seized the capital in 2014 and then advanced on other parts of Yemen.

/ AFP / MOHAMMED HUWAIS (Photo credit should read MOHAMMED

US sanctions two Houthi military leaders after attacks on Saudi Arabia

The administration's revocation of the Houthis' terrorist designation has been met with further missile strikes.

Displaced Yemenis wait for their turn at a health clinic of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) in Yemen's war-ravaged western province of Hodeida, on February 24, 2021. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP) (Photo by KHALED ZIAD/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden under pressure to reverse Trump's aid cuts in Yemen

The Joe Biden administration faces growing calls from Democratic lawmakers and aid groups to reinstate funding to Houthi-held northern Yemen.

WATCH: Pentagon releases video of Iran ballistic missile attack on Iraq air base

More than a dozen ballistic missiles rained down on Ain al-Asad and Erbil air bases in Iraq last year after the United States killed Qasem Soleimani.

Turkey silent as US Khashoggi report emerges

Ankara's silence following the declassification of a US intelligence report implicating the Saudi crown prince in journalist Jamal Khashoggi's killing speaks to its own contradictions on the issue.

Iran rejects EU invitation to talks with US on nuclear deal

Tehran's rejection may be posturing, but the clock is ticking on chances to limit its nuclear capabilities.

US President Joe Biden signs an executive order on securing critical supply chains, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, February 24, 2021. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden approves airstrike on Iran-backed militias in Syria following Iraq attacks

Officials suggested the late-night precision bombing was designed to minimize casualties while avoiding backlash from the Iraqi government.

CENTCOM chief warns Iran over strikes on Erbil, Saudi Arabia

Gen. Kenneth "'Frank" McKenzie warned Iran in the boldest statement yet from the Biden administration over the attacks.

Russian soldiers examine the S-400 Triumph rocket systems in Elektrostal, 06 August 2007. Russia's long-delayed Triumph anti-aircraft missile system was activated around Moscow today in an upgrade of the capital's air defences, Russian military officials said. In mid-July Russia successfully tested the long-delayed S-400 missiles, also known by their NATO designation SA-21 Growler. The director of the Almaz plant that designed the rockets, Igor Ashurbeily, told the Interfax news agency that the company expe

As Erdogan finesses Turkey-US ties, Pentagon reiterates stance on S-400s

A Pentagon official urged Ankara to take action over its Russian-made S-400 missile acquisition after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed interest in restoring bilateral ties.

Intel: Blinken tells Egypt that human rights are 'central' to US relationship

Secretary of State Antony Blinken also expressed concern over Egypt’s planned procurement of Su-35 fighter aircraft from Russia.

A man inspects the damage on February 16, 2021 following a rocket attack the previous night in Arbil, the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region. - The United Nations warned Iraq could spin out of control after a rocket attack on the Kurdish regional capital Arbil killed a foreign contractor and wounded several Iraqis and foreigners. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED / AFP) (Photo by SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images)

Kataib Hezbollah denies role in recent Iraq rocket attacks

The high-profile, Iran-backed militia denied responsibility for attacks on US targets in Iraq.

Israeli Prime Minister and Defence Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a statement to the media on the Iranian nuclear issue at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem on September 9, 2019. - Netanyahu accused Iran of having a previously undisclosed site aimed at developing nuclear weapons that it destroyed. Iran itself destroyed the site located near the city of Abadeh, south of Tehran, in around July after realising that Israel had detected it, Netanyahu alleged. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo c

Former Israeli security officials call on Netanyahu to dialogue with US on Iran deal

For many former senior security officials, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should work with the Biden administration, not against it, for a rapid nuclear deal with Iran.

Erik Prince, former Navy Seal and founder of private military contractor Blackwater USA, arrives to testify during a closed-door House Select Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, November 30, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Erik Prince violated Libya arms embargo, UN report alleges

The Blackwater founder and associates sought to buy helicopter gunships from Jordan to aid Libyan warlord Khalifa Hifter's assault on Tripoli, investigators believe.