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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

Head of Israel's National Security Council Meir Ben-Shabbat delivers a statement upon his arrival at the Bahraini International Airport on October 18, 2020. - Israel and Bahrain will officially establish diplomatic relations at a ceremony in Manama, an Israeli official said, after the two states reached a US-brokered normalisation deal last month. (Photo by RONEN ZVULUN / POOL / AFP) (Photo by RONEN ZVULUN/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu’s pick of Iran file envoy signals confrontation with US

Picking national security adviser Meir Ben-Shabbat over real Iran experts such as Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen or retired Gen. Amos Yadlin means that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not believe dialoguing with the Biden administration on Iran will do any good.

Newly confirmed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives for a welcome ceremony at the State Department in Washington,DC on January 27, 2021. (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Blinken walks back State Department ambiguity over Turkish hostages killed in Iraq

After an earlier statement suggesting Washington didn't necessarily buy Ankara's narrative on the killings, the State Department today said that "PKK terrorists bear responsibility."

Pentagon ‘comfortable’ with troop levels in Middle East ahead of review

Whether the United States pulls forces from the Middle East to counter China may well depend on the success of Biden's diplomacy with Iran

Displaced Yemenis receive food aid donated by a British organisation in Yemen's western province of Hodeida on February 9, 2021. - Since 2014, Yemen has been engulfed in a war between the internationally recognised government -- supported by a Saudi-led military coalition -- and the Iran-backed Huthi rebels that has triggered a devastating humanitarian crisis. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP) (Photo by KHALED ZIAD/AFP via Getty Images)

US to revoke terror designation for Yemen's Houthis

Washington officials continue to condemn the Iran-linked rebels' activities, saying the terror revocation stems from humanitarian concerns.

Newly confirmed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken removes his face mask to speak during a welcome ceremony at the State Department in Washington,DC on January 27, 2021. - (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel campaigns against the US rushing to negotiate with Iran

A report issued by the Israel Defense Forces about Iran two years away from a nuclear bomb was designed first and foremost to calm the American sense of urgency over negotiating with Tehran.

US stands firm as Turkey proposes to ‘find solution’ over S-400

The State Department urged ally Ankara to get rid of the Russian air defense system

A picture taken on March 12, 2019 shows Iranian Minister of Intelligence Seyyed Mahmoud Alavi (C-R) attending a session of Iran's Assembly of Experts in the capital Tehran. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran could seek nuclear weapon if cornered, threatens intelligence minister

The rare statement from Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi comes as the US administration vows to lift sanctions only if Iran resumes full compliance with the nuclear deal.

Memebers of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) stand near an old Israeli tank as they look toward the Syrian governorate of Quneitra from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, on February 4, 2021. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Golan 'forever' part of Israel, Netanyahu says after Blinken comments

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken appeared to question the previous administration's controversial decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

US to continue defensive intelligence support to Saudi Arabia on Yemen

'We are not a party to Yemen's civil war,' CENTCOM commander says

Turkish President and leader of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during his party's group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara on November 11, 2020. - Turkish President promised on November 11, 2020 to adopt painful reforms and threw his full support behind a new economic team installed after his powerful son-in-law resigned. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

New page for US, Turkey reads like fantasy

Hope for a reset in Turkish-American ties under the Biden administration will remain unrealistic until Ankara addresses its democratic issues and human rights record.

A member of security forces loyal to Yemen's Huthi rebels stands guard as supporters attend a rally denouncing the United States and the outgoing Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement, in the Huthi-held capital Sanaa on January 25, 2021. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

US calls on Yemen's Houthis to halt attacks on Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia said it intercepted four armed drones launched toward the kingdom by the Yemeni rebels.

A handout picture provided by the office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on October 24, 2020, shows him wearing a protective face mask as he gives a speech in the capital Tehran during a meeting of the national staff to discuss the issue of the novel coronavirus pandemic crisis. (Photo by - / KHAMENEI.IR / AFP) / XGTY / === RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / HO / KHAMENEI.IR" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS === (Photo by

Iran, US spar over nuclear deal return

Iran and the United States are clashing over which country will return to its commitments under the nuclear deal first.