Sanctions

An aerial view shows port of the western Syrian port city of Latakia, on Dec. 18, 2024.

Analysis

Can a UAE-backed Syria-Iraq corridor become Gulf's next trade route?

On June 26, Emirati and Syrian officials discussed plans for a logistics corridor connecting Syrian ports to Gulf markets via Iraq.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Speaker of the Parliament of Iran, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (R) arrives at the Burgenstock resort in Obbuergen, near Lucerne on June 21, 2026.

Iran rejects Trump's claim frozen funds will buy US soybeans: What to know

Trump said Wednesday that the US would release “some” Iranian frozen funds and would use them to purchase corn, wheat and soybeans from American farmers.

Marada Movement leader Suleiman Frangieh (L) meets with Maronite Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi (C) and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea (R), Bkerke, north of Beirut, Nov. 14, 2018.

Who is Lebanon’s Suleiman Frangieh, sanctioned by US for Hezbollah ties?

The politician and Marada Movement leader has a close relationship with the Syrian Assad family and staunchly supports Iran and its Lebanese proxy Hezbollah.

A police officer stands holding a flag in Valiasr Square beneath a mural of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on April 23, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.

Trump, Vance sign Iran-US framework

A US official said that the US president and vice president and Iran's parliament speaker signed the MoU electronically on Sunday.

Latest News

Analysis

As Trump admin drops Halkbank case, S-400 last big hurdle in US-Turkey ties

Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile launching system is displayed at the exposition field in Kubinka Patriot Park outside Moscow on Aug. 22, 2017 during the first day of the International Military-Technical Forum Army-2017.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

US issues more Iran sanctions as Trump says strikes will resume

A woman walks past a banner bearing the images of the late founder of the Islamic Revolution supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L).

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Amnesty International accuses Israel of state-led ethnic cleansing in West Bank

Israeli security forces attempt to disperse Palestinians who had gathered to protest the reported burning of land by Israeli settlers in the Palestinian village of Idna, west of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, on June 5, 2026.

US sanctions network smuggling Iranian LPG as talks falter

An Iranian flag flutters in the wind as ships remain anchored on May 16, 2026 in the Strait of Hormuz near Larak Island, Iran.

Syria's interim president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, signs the country's constitutional declaration, which will be enforced throughout a five-year transitional period, at the presidential palace in Damascus on March 13, 2025.

Exclusive

Syria's Sharaa pledges to form task force for missing Americans

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has promised the daughter of a missing American to take action as Damascus seeks relief from crippling US sanctions.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani met Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez at the Amiri Diwan office in Doha on April 29, 2025.

Venezuela’s VP meets emir in Qatar, looks to expand energy ties: What to know

Qatar has demonstrated interest in Venezuela’s recovering oil industry as well as mediation between the US and the South American country.

ALIREZA/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

US sanctions China-Iran network aiding Tehran missile program

The Trump administration is stepping up sanctions on Iran as it conducts talks over its rapidly expanding nuclear program.

People wave the flag of Palestine and the new flag of Syria as Syrians gather in a protest dubbed "Syrians Against the Occupation" to denounce Israel's continued war on Gaza as well as its occupation of parts of Syria and Palestine in Damascus, Syria, on April 7, 2025.

First Syria delegation under Sharaa visits US, will attend IMF meetings: What to know

Syria's new government faces the daunting task of rebuilding an economy shattered by war and burdened with debt, ongoing sanctions and reconstruction costs.

A woman walks along Karim Khan Zand Avenue in Tehran, on April 8, 2025.

From 2008 to today: Expectations and timeline of US-Iran talks

The upcoming talks will be the most significant since negotiations broke down in 2022 and come in the wake of President Donald Trump threatening to bomb Iran if it does not agree to a new deal on its nuclear program.

A February 6, 2025 photo shows the US Treasury in Washington, DC. Opponents to US President Donald Trump say he allowed Elon Musk -- the world's richest man and a major government contractor -- to break the law by accessing US Treasury payment systems that send out trillions of dollars and hold a welter of sensitive personal data. (Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

US sanctions Russia-based network for aiding Houthis as strikes continue

The sanctions target several individuals based in Russia accused of assisting Houthi official Sa’id al-Jamal, who has been under US sanctions since 2021.

A mockup of Iran-made Mohajer-10 drone is on exhibition during a rally that marks the 46th anniversary of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution in Tehran, Iran, on February 10, 2025. (Photo by Hossein Beris / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by HOSSEIN BERIS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

US sanctions UAE, China firms in crackdown on Iranian drone supplies

The Justice Department also announced criminal charges against two Iranian nationals and an Iranian company over their alleged roles in the drone-procurement network.

Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa delivers a speech in Damascus on March 29, 2025. Sharaa on March 29 announced a new transitional government dominated by close allies and including one woman, replacing caretaker authorities in place since the ouster of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad. (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR / AFP) (Photo by OMAR HAJ KADOUR/AFP via Getty Images)

US says Syria's transitional government a possible step forward

The State Department voiced cautious optimism over the new cabinet, which includes members of Syria’s Christian, Alawite, Druze and Kurdish minorities.

Iranian rials are displayed in Tehran, on July 31, 2019.

Iran’s currency drops to more than 1 million rials to US dollar: What to know

This is yet another record low for Iran’s currency, as the country navigates intense sanctions and US pressure.

The Iranian-flagged oil tanker Fortune is docked at the El Palito refinery after its arrival to Puerto Cabello in the northern state of Carabobo, Venezuela, on May 25, 2020.

US slaps sanctions on Iran's oil tankers, targets China 'teapot' refinery

Targets of the sanctions include a refinery allegedly purchasing Iranian oil from a vessel linked to Yemen's Houthi militant group.

People gather to celebrate an iftar meal organized by a humanitarian organization, as they break their fast on March 4, 2025, amid the ruins of the Qaboun neighborhood of Damascus, Syria.

Feature

Syria’s post-Assad economy falters as US stalls on sanctions relief

Three months after Syria's rebel takeover, all eyes are on Ahmed al-Sharaa and whether he can stabilize the economy as promised.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

US President Donald Trump shows an executive order withdrawing his country from a number of United Nations bodies in the Oval Office of the White House on February 4, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order withdrawing his country from a number of United Nations bodies, including its Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and setting up a broader review of US funding for the multilateral organization. The executive order said it withdrew Washington from UNHRC and the main UN relief agency

US formally rebrands Yemen's Houthis as foreign terrorist organization

Critics say the Houthis' blacklisting will hamper aid delivery in the war-torn country.