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Politics & Security

US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York, speaks during a press conference

Explainer

Who will lead Congress? Democrats weigh Schumer alternatives, Jeffries bid

A number of contenders have emerged as challengers to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, including strong critics of the Iran war and US support to Israel.

Tump

Can Trump turn midterm defeat into Iran breakthrough?

Although Iran may have contributed to Republican losses in midterms, the Trump administration still has a historic opportunity in the Middle East.

Manon Roca / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon files charges against 2 Hezbollah members as UNIFIL prepares to withdraw

The move comes amid growing security concerns in the south less than two months before the UNIFIL mandate expires.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses Turkish members of parliament during the opening of the parliamentary session at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on Oct. 1, 2026.

Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia

Turkey will now decide the scope of military support for Saudi Arabia amid ongoing Iran-backed Houthi attacks on the kingdom.

Latest News

Explainer

Arab parties' backing gives Eisenkot edge over Netanyahu for PM: What to know

Tomer Neuberg / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Massie renews Hegseth impeachment push as GOP blames Iran war for midterm losses

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth testifies during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill, on July 21, 2026, in Washington.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Can Erdogan’s Baku visit fix Turkey-Azerbaijan rift?

TOFIK BABAYEV/AFP via Getty Images

Russia to provide Iran with 90 missile launchers as military ties grow: Reports

Russian Mil Mi-8 military helicopters fly over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy, northeastern Hasakeh province, Syria, Feb. 4, 2021.

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

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

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

The Dubai office of Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya television, a leading pan-Arab satellite news channel, now located in Riyadh, Sept. 25, 2003.

Saudi media hosting more Israeli figures since Gaza war

Saudi television channels and newspapers have interviewed several Israeli officials since the Israel-Hamas war began in October.

This photograph shows the Israeli settlement of Efrata built on the land of the Palestinian town of Al-Khader in the Bethlehem governorate in the occupied West Bank on March 6, 2024.

US sanctions West Bank outposts linked to settler attacks on Palestinians

The sanctions are a response to an uptick in settler violence in the West Bank that the United Nations blames for the deaths of at least nine Palestinians since Oct. 7.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a news conference at the State Department Harry S. Truman headquarters on March 13, 2024, in Washington, DC.

Israel should ease 'unnecessary restrictions' on key Gaza goods, Blinken says

The top US diplomat acknowledged Israeli concerns about "dual-use" items ending up the hands of Hamas, but said "greater clarity" is needed for humanitarian groups whose work is hindered by "unnecessary restrictions."

Local dignitaries including Hackney MP Diane Abbott and Rabbi Herschel Gluck pose for a photograph in front of a Menorah that has been lit outside Hackney Town Hall to mark the arrival of Hanukkah on Dec. 7, 2023 in London, England.

Record wave of antisemitic attacks leaves Britain’s Jews on edge

In the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 assault on Israel, there has been a record number of anti-Semitic attacks targeting Britain’s estimated 271,000 Jews.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman , Jack Dutton

A Palestinian man walks through the rubble of a destroyed building due to Israeli bombardment in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on the second day of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan on March 12, 2024, amid ongoing battles between Israel and the militant group Hamas.

Will Biden offer Netanyahu off-ramp to Rafah invasion?

While President Joe Biden said an Israeli military push into Rafah without a plan to protect civilians is a "red line," he implied he would not restrict military aid to Israel if its leaders launch such an operation.

Turkey’s Defense Minister Yasar Guler, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Ibrahim Kalin, head of the Turkish National Intelligence Agency, met in Ankara on March 11, 2024.

Three top Turkey officials to visit Iraq as Erdogan threatens Kurdish militants

The officials’ visit signals a fresh drive to dial up pressure on the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, which Ankara accuses of collaborating with Kurdish militants.

Firefighters douse a burning car after it was hit in an Israeli strike in Lebanon's southern area of Tyre on March 13, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border tensions as fighting continues between Israel and Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli strike kills Hamas official in south Lebanon

As the border escalation between Hezbollah and Israel flares, another Hamas figure has been killed in an Israeli drone strike in south Lebanon.

Mother and son boarding to the plane before their Egypt flight.

Uproar in Turkey as mother, son flee to US after fatal hit-and-run

Turkey seeks the pair’s extradition from the United States amid public fury.

Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard boats attack a naval vessel during a three-day military drill in the Gulf on April 22, 2010.

Iran, Russia, China conduct new military drills, defying Western pressure

The exercise brought together the three countries' lead warships for the stated purpose of bolstering maritime security, while Tehran-backed Yemeni rebels continued to target international navigation in the wake of the Gaza war.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, (D-MD) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) participate in a press conference on Capitol Hill presenting the No War Against Iran Act on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020 in Washington, DC.

Senators to Biden: Curtail arms to Israel unless Gaza aid expanded

A group of Democratic senators said Israel's restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the Gaza Strip could violate foreign assistance law.

Tripoli

Switzerland charges Rifaat Assad with war crimes in Syria’s Hama massacre

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's brother, Rifaat al-Assad, has also been convicted of financial crimes in France.

AFP via Getty Images

Lebanon on edge: Hezbollah fires 100 rockets as Israel hits Baalbek

Israeli airstrikes pounded Lebanon’s northeast city of Baalbek after Hezbollah fired 100 rockets in Israel in the heaviest exchange of fire since October.