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May 4, 2026

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 22, 2026 in Washington, DC.

US sanctions Iran’s shadow banking channels moving oil proceeds from China

The latest sanctions come as the Trump administration weighs Iran's latest proposal to end the war.

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Without exit strategy, Israel faces emboldened Hezbollah, limited options on Iran

While President Donald Trump remains undecided on striking Iran again, the Israeli military is sinking deeper into its Lebanon quagmire with a reinforced Hezbollah.

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

Iraq's prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, at Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office on April 28, 2026.

Trump congratulates Iraq PM-designate Zaidi in call: What to know

The US President was openly critical of previous nominee Nouri al-Maliki, seen as too close to Iran, but is now welcoming the new candidate put forward by Iraq’s leading Shiite bloc.

This photo obtained by AFP from the Iranian news agency Tasnim shows an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) boat allegedly taking part in an operation to seize ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, on April 21, 2026.

Trump faces three paths ahead in Iran war as Hormuz standoff intensifies

As the Hormuz standoff threatens a global economic chill, Trump must choose between military escalation, seeking a partial deal with Iran, or waiting out the pressure campaign.

Latest News

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

President Donald Trump gives a speech during the State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn on April 28, 2026, in Washington.

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

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.

Analysis

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

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

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

Why US, Israel are freezing France out of Lebanon talks

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

U.S. and Turkish soldiers conduct the first-ever combined joint patrol outside Manbij, Syria, November 1, 2018. Picture taken November 1, 2018. Courtesy Arnada Jones/U.S. Army/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC17C4EA11D0

US diplomats shaken by Trump decision to exit Syria

US President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to withdraw from Syria humiliates US envoys who have said the United States would maintain a presence indefinitely to prevent the return of the Islamic State and to counter Iran’s influence.

U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis listens as U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the news media while gathering for a briefing from his senior military leaders in the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 23, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis - RC1C2E1A2820

Trump’s Syria pullout shakes up US Mideast policy

The US president’s snap decision to withdraw 2,200 US troops from Syria will have an impact across the region.

General Chiya, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria’s Middle Euphrates River Valley, speaks with U.S. Army Lieutenant General Paul E. Funk, commander of Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve and Major General James B. Jarrard, commander of Special Operations Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, as they fly in a helicopter over Syria July 11, 2018. Picture taken July 11, 2018. U.S. Army/Sgt. Brigitte Morgan/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGES WAS PROVIDE

Congress slams Trump on Syria pullout

President Donald Trump wants to immediately begin withdrawing US troops from Syria, but Iran hawks in Congress aren’t having it.

U.S. forces set up a new base in Manbij, Syria May 8, 2018. Picture Taken May 8, 2018. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC1504520BB0

US to withdraw from Syria, leaving Kurdish allies to face Turkish offensive alone

President Donald Trump tweeted that the war against Islamic State is over and his administration has confirmed American soldiers would leave Syria immediately, a significant diplomatic win for Turkey that follows US approval of a major weapons deal with Ankara.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a bilateral meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Carlos Barria - RC1935359D70

Netanyahu tries postponing publication of Trump’s peace plan

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knows that if President Donald Trump presents his regional peace plan before elections in Israel, he will have a hard time winning.

A general view shows Turkish flags fluttering at a military post in the village of Ashma in the Kurdish region of Kobane in northern Syria on November 8, 2018. - In recent days, cross-border Turkish artillery fire has targeted positions held by the People's Protection Units (YPG), the main Kurdish militia in Syria. Ankara sees the de-facto autonomous rule set up by Syrian Kurds as an encouragement to the separatists of the Turkey-based Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has close ties to the YPG. (Photo

US official speaks out against possible Turkish offensive in Syria

After Iraqi Kurdistan-backed Rojava Peshmerga are sent to the Turkish-Syrian border, Turkish officials inveigh against the action and what it represents.

The national flags of Australia and Israel are seen outside the building housing the Australian Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel October 16, 2018 REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RC1C0F4C5BF0

How Palestinians are working to stop Australia embassy move

Palestinians are deploying efforts to prevent Australia from following in the steps of US President Donald Trump in recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

US genocide law triggers mixed feelings among Iraqis

US President Donald Trump has signed legislation calling for greater support for religious minorities victimized by the Islamic State.

Turkish soldiers ride on a military vehicle in the center of Afrin, Syria March 24, 2018. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1B6933DB00

How does Turkey's threatened Syria invasion play elsewhere?

As Turkey prepares for a possible offensive against Kurdish militias in Syria, Moscow is watching for any mistakes that multiple players, including the Unites States and the United Arab Emirates, might make in their efforts to deter the operation.

U.S. Army Secretary Mark Esper, Army Undersecretary Ryan McCarthy, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley and Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville hold a news conference at the Pentagon July 13, 2018 in Arlington, Virginia. The Army officials announced its biggest reorganization in 45 years with the creation of the Army Futures Command, which is tasked with modernizing the fighting force.

Trump’s pick for top general could expand Mideast advising role

The Pentagon’s incoming Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman has a long track record of training foreign military forces.

WASHINGTON, DC - July 10: Michael Flynn, former National Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, departs the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse following a pre-sentencing hearing July 10, 2018 in Washington, DC. Flynn has been charged with a single count of making a false statement to the FBI by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. (Photo by Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)

Flynn business partner, client charged as secret foreign agents for Turkey

A US court indicted two associates of President Donald Trump’s first national security adviser amid an investigation into Ankara's secret campaign to obtain the extradition of cleric Fetullah Gulen.

Technicians construct a Turkish Attack and Tactical Reconnaissance Helicopter (ATAK) at the Turkish Aerospace Industries Inc (TAI) factory in Ankara, Turkey, April 28, 2015. TAI, which produces F-16 fighter jets and other military aircraft, could float on the Istanbul stock exchange in the second half of this year, its chief executive told Reuters. Ankara-based TAI was established to co-produce Lockheed Martin's F-16 for the Turkish Air Force in 1984. It is almost wholly owned by the Turkish Armed Forces Fo

Turkey's defense industry still striving for self-sufficiency

Turkey has made significant strides in developing its defense industry during the past four years, but it is still being held back by its dependence on other countries' goods and technologies.