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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

Rescue teams attend to the scene of devastation after an Iranian military plane crashed into a residential building in a heavily built-up suburb on December 6, 2005 in Tehran, Iran. A huge explosion was reported as the plane, carrying 94 people, crashed into a 10-storey block killing all on board. Many deaths are also feared on the ground after the C-130 plane encountered a technical problem shortly after take-off from Mehrabad airport. (Photo by Hossein/Getty Images)

Mysterious fire at Iran's Defense Ministry site north of Tehran

The second such fire in less than a week comes amid high tensions between the United States and Iran, though details surrounding the incident remain unclear.

US Army helicopter crew from the 101st Airborne Division prepares the Apache attack helicopter at the the Camp Udairi airfield in preparation for a mission to Iraq 20 March 2003.

US accuses Iran’s IRGC of harassing helicopter over the Gulf

The first reported tense interaction between the US Navy and Iran's naval forces comes just days after Bahraini soldiers were killed in a drone attack attributed to Yemen's Houthi rebels, who receive arms from Iran.

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 19: Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Daniel Werfel (L) greets Senate Finance Committee members Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) (R) and Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) before a hearing about the Biden Administration's proposed budget request for FY2024 and the 2023 tax filing season in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on April 19, 2023 in Washington, DC. Confirmed by the Senate in March of this year, Werfel is tasked with overseeing the IRS's $80 billion overhaul to modernize i

Sen. Cardin 'looking at options' as calls grow to block US military aid to Egypt

Sen. Ben Cardin told reporters on Thursday he expects to make a decision soon on whether to use his new authority as Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman to hold up a fraction of Egypt's annual military assistance.

China's sole aircraft carrier, the Liaoning (R), arrives in Hong Kong waters on July 7, 2017.

Saudi Arabia and China to hold joint naval training as ties deepen

With energy and business ties rapidly improving between Saudi Arabia and China, the two countries have agreed to a second joint naval exercise.

Israel, Germany sign $3.5B Arrow 3 deal

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signed a letter of commitment in Berlin for the sale of the advanced Arrow 3 air defense system, signaling a strengthening of ties between Israel and Germany.

Refugees sit in a bus near a Red Cross registration centre in Goris, on Sept. 27, 2023.

Turkey’s Fidan holds call with Armenia’s FM amid exodus from Nagorno-Karabakh

The phone call marks the first high-level contact between Ankara and Yerevan following the Azerbaijani offensive in the Nagorno-Karabakh region last week.

General Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Khalifa Hifter (L).

Why is Libya's commander Hifter visiting Russia?

The visit comes amid the aftermath of the Wagner Group’s ill-fated mutiny and the death of its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, in Russia.

Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Five Israelis, Palestinians charged in Iran spy plot, Shin Bet says

Israel's security service said it had foiled a plot by five Israelis and Palestinians recruited for Iran to spy on Israeli politicians, including the far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 78th United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York City on September 22, 2023. Netanyahu called for arch-enemy Iran to face a "credible" threat of nuclear attack to stop the clerical state from obtaining an atom bomb. "Above all -- above all -- Iran must face a credible nuclear threat. As long as I'm prime minister of Israel, I will do everything in my power to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons," Netanyahu told the assembly (Ph

Analysis

As Netanyahu bends on Saudi nuclear bid, Israeli experts sound alarm

Israeli nuclear experts and security seniors object to the path Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seems to be taking toward allowing Saudi Arabia to establish a nuclear program on its soil.

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

Passport of Israel citizen - stock photo

US admits Israel to visa waiver program, deal includes Gaza Americans

As part of the negotiations, Israel eased travel restrictions for Palestinian-Americans from both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

A view of an Azerbaijani checkpoint.

Erdogan: Iran 'views positively' a land corridor linking Turkey to Azerbaijan

Turkish President Erdogan said Iran, which has opposed a land corridor linking Turkey to Azerbaijan, is now changing its tune.

Biden

Iran indicts Biden, Trump over support for exiled group

The current US president and three of his predecessors have been indicted in Iran for their alleged backing of a California-based Iranian pro-monarchy group that Tehran has designated as a terrorist organization.