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August 22, 2026

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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

Win McNamee/Getty Images

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

For the second time in months, President Donald Trump has threatened to strike the US partner as it holds talks with Iran.

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

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

China’s once significant oil imports from Iran have been impacted by the war in the region and increasing US sanctions.

Latest News

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.

US sanctions International Criminal Court president, top lawyer

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

Iran hopeful about Europe remaining in nuclear deal

Iran’s deputy foreign minister has expressed satisfaction with Europe's resistance to US pressures to kill the nuclear deal.

Olive Branch wins Erdogan friends at home, but risks standoff with US

Despite the success of Ankara's Syrian military operation in closing Turkish ranks around him, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has raised the possibility of a military confrontation between Turkey and the United States.

Jordan, Israel resume frosty relations

It appears that Jordan has quietly accepted Israel’s apology for the killing of two Jordanians by an Israeli Embassy guard in Amman without the perpetrator being put on trial.

Students walk at the campus of the Ariel University Centre in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Ariel September 13, 2012. An Israeli government move to upgrade Ariel University Centre in the occupied West Bank to a full-fledged university has put the 30-year-old school at the centre of a debate at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: how the settlements will figure in defining a future Palestinian state. Picture taken September 13, 2012. To match Feature PALESTINIANS-ISRAEL/SETTLEMENTS REUTERS/Ro

Israel moves forward with gradual annexation of West Bank

The latest proposal to apply Israeli law on West Bank higher education institutions is part of the settlers’ strategy to gradually annex Palestinian lands.

Buildings are seen on a coast line in Doha, Qatar June 5, 2017. REUTERS/Stringer - RC19BDD1CE80

Qatar visit to the US aims to break Gulf gridlock

Qatar is using a high-level visit to Washington to get the Donald Trump administration’s support to broker a deal to end the monthslong Saudi-led embargo.

Trump puts Israeli-Palestinian security coordination at risk

Threats by US President Donald Trump to cut aid to the Palestinian Authority endangers the so-called Dayton Force and their security coordination with Israel.

A fighter from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) sits on a curb as he holds his weapon in Raqqa, Syria September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC17FB8BC0B0

Is US bailing on Syrian Kurds?

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ignores appeals for restraint in northern Syria, appears to have gotten Washington to end support for the YPG.

Security forces aim their weapons as take positions during clashes with gunmen in Kerdasa, a town 14 km (9 miles) from Cairo September 19, 2013. Egyptian security forces clashed with gunmen on the outskirts of Cairo on Thursday as the army-backed government moved to reassert control over an Islamist-dominated area where militants staged a bloody attack on a police station last month. REUTERS/Stringer (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY) - GM1E99J1SNE01

US military aid to Egypt under scrutiny on uprising’s anniversary

The Donald Trump administration has taken a harder line on military assistance to Egypt as President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi moves away from Washington.

Supporters of the Transitional Southern Council attend a rally to demand the secession of south Yemen, in the southern port city of Aden, Yemen July 7, 2017. REUTERS/Fawaz Salman - RC129FE53400

Yemen’s southern separatists take case to Congress

Yemen’s UAE-backed secessionists have hired a US lobby firm to build support for their cause as they threaten to overthrow the UN-backed government in Aden.

United Arab Emirates

Turkey says US account of Trump-Erdogan call not 'accurate'

A telephone conversation between the Turkish and US leaders has turned into a "he said-he said" affair as the gulf widens between the NATO allies over Syria.

Europe emerges as new sponsor of Mideast peace

The European Union reassured Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas about European support for a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, but will the United States and Israel allow other parties to be involved in the Middle East peace process?

US-Palestinian rift nothing for Israel to celebrate

Israel shouldn’t rejoice over rift between the United States and the Palestinians as previous US administrations helped repeatedly to ease tensions and end violent clashes.