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July 3, 2026

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Crude oil tankers, bulk carriers and vessels sit anchored around Qaboos Port on June 22, 2026, in Muscat, Oman.

Oil falls below $71 as US-Iran talks continue, Gulf exports rebound

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in an X post on Wednesday that Iran and the United States had made "positive progress."

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

Who is Melat Kiros, the pro-Palestinian who unseated a longtime Democrat?

Kiros has taken a hard stance against Israel and opposes all aid to the country as pro-Palestinian candidates make further inroads in the party.

Latest News

Explainer

Saudi FM concludes China visit amid Trump-MBS friction: What to know

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud before a family photo for the attendees of a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Muslim-majority nations at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on November 20, 2023. The international community must take urgent action to stop the "humanitarian disaster" unfolding in Gaza, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told visiting diplomats from Arab and Muslim-majority nations on Novembe

Analysis

For Israel, Lebanon deal 'historic' despite fears Hezbollah will rebuild

Shia Muslim devotees gather for a mourning ritual near the shrine of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain leader of the Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah who was killed in a 2024 Israeli-airstrike, in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 26, 2026 at the peak of Ashura, a 10-day period commemorating the seventh century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo listens to a reporter's question during a press conference with Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein at the State Department in Washington, DC on August 19, 2020. (Photo by MANDEL NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Intel: Pompeo says US to trigger snapback sanctions on Iran 'soon'

The Donald Trump administration will "soon" act on its threat to trigger a return of international sanctions on Iran, Secretary of State Pompeo said Wednesday after the United States lost its bid to indefinitely extend an arms embargo on Tehran.

Iran’s hard-liners push legislation to exit nuclear deal

If passed, the legislation proposed by hard-liners would effectively force the government into a farewell to the fragile nuclear deal depending on UN action.

People wear facemasks as US President Donald Trump delivers remarks on the economy at an airport hangar on August 17, 2020 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump says US embassy move to Jerusalem 'for the evangelicals'

At a campaign rally the day the Democratic National Convention opened, Trump said that Christian voters are more supportive of US recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital than Jewish voters.

WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 13: Senior Advisor to President Donald Trump Jared Kushner listens as National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien speaks during a press briefing at the White House on August 13, 2020 in Washington, DC. Kushner appeared with President Trump earlier today as Trump announced a new peace deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

Kushner: US won’t sign off on West Bank annexation 'for some time'

Top US presidential adviser Jared Kushner has said the focus will be implementing the agreement reached last week between Israel and United Arab Emirates.

United Arab Emirates

(FILES) In this file photo taken on November 28, 2019, US President Donald Trump speaks to the troops during a surprise Thanksgiving day visit at Bagram Air Field in Afghanistan. - President Donald Trump has shattered through norms and niceties on the world stage in his nearly three years in office. Entering an election year, Trump is unlikely to slow down as he seeks what has largely eluded him -- a headline-grabbing victory. The tycoon turned president closes 2019 with a new stride after what was perhaps

Intel: Iran paid bounties to Taliban for US soldiers, influencing Soleimani strike

US officials tell CNN the administration took no action against the Taliban in order to preserve its peace deal with the insurgents.

US Vice President Joe Biden (L)attends a meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey on the sidelines of the nuclear summit in Washington, DC, on March 31, 2016. / AFP / ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS (Photo credit should read ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey takes aim at Biden after old comments on Erdogan resurface

Turkish politicians are expressing outrage over presumptive US presidential candidate Joe Biden calling for the Turkish president's ouster back in December, likely because Recep Tayyip Erdogan is using them to whip up nationalist fervor against the United States.

Police remove protesters blocking a main road during a demonstration against the Israeli government near the Prime Minister's residence in Jerusalem on August 16, 2020. (Photo by JACK GUEZ / AFP) (Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Fact vs. fiction on US-Israel police exchanges

Al-Monitor spoke to Israelis and Americans involved in police exchanges between the countries in response to far-left allegations they teach harmful practices.

UN Security Council rejects US-sought extension on Iran arms embargo

The resolution failed by a 2-2 vote with 11 abstentions.

Trump administration goes big with UAE-Israel peace deal

Other Gulf states may follow.

Palestinians express anger at UAE following US-brokered accord with Israel

Palestinians say UAE decision to normalize relations with Israel is a crime.

United Arab Emirates

Intel: FBI to join investigation into Beirut blast

The FBI will lend its expertise to the investigators probing the explosion that killed at least 172 people in Beirut last week, US Undersecretary for Political Affairs David Hale said today in the Lebanese capital.

Intel: Iran’s navy boards oil tanker near Strait of Hormuz, US says

A Liberian-flagged ship was seized by Iranian forces in international waters near the Strait of Hormuz, according to a US-led maritime security coalition.