United States - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

White House, Washington DC, United States of America

United States

May 7, 2026

Washington D.C. 6:09 am

13°C

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Lebanon, Israel eye third round of talks, but no Netanyahu-Aoun meeting in sight

The US appears to be pushing for a meeting between Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but the Lebanese government says it won't happen while Israel continues to launch attacks on Lebanon.

Lionel BONAVENTURE / AFP via Getty Images)

EU says energy costs tied to Hormuz crisis have surged past $35B

Global energy price increases tied to the Hormuz disruption are driving higher import costs in Europe, despite limited reliance on gas flowing through the strait.

Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Israel fears Trump seeking Hormuz win while sidestepping Iran nuclear issue

While President Donald Trump keeps pressuring Iran on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, Israel fears the American leader will decide to cut his losses and sideline the nuclear threat.

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

Latest News

Pentagon says Iran ceasefire continues despite UAE attack

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on April 24, 2026.

Macron casts doubt on Trump’s Hormuz operation as France-US gap grows

WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 18: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (R), French President Emmanuel Macron (L), and European leaders at the White House on August 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosted President Zelensky at the White House for a bilateral meeting and an expanded meeting with European leaders to discuss a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

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

A drone and armored vehicles serve as a backdrop as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence delivers remarks to U.S. troops at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq November 23, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC29HD9HDU3K

Pentagon: US not considering doubling counter-Iran deployment

The Pentagon is sending mixed messages on whether the United States will deploy more troops to the Middle East to counter perceived threats from Iran.

Turkish flag flutters at Turkey's border gate, as pictured on Syria side, overlooking the ruins of buildings destroyed during fightings with the Islamic State militants in Kobani, Syria October 11, 2017. Picture taken October 11, 2017. REUTERS/Erik De Castro - RC1E48BC4870

US pushes to reintegrate militants after Islamic State fight

A senior State Department official told Al-Monitor the administration is working to help Middle Eastern and African countries reintegrate thousands of fighters who joined the Islamic State and its affiliates.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo holds a news conference at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium November 20, 2019. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir - RC26FD9RQLKO

Intel: How Israel — and Netanyahu — stand to gain from Pompeo's Morocco visit

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has arrived in Morocco for a one-day trip aimed boosting ties with a country that the State Department deems a "critical partner" across a range of issues ahead of the visit.

A convoy of U.S. vehicles is seen after withdrawing from northern Syria, in Erbil, Iraq October 21, 2019. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari - RC1AB61E8440

Intel: Here’s how many US troops Trump wants to keep in Syria

After months of uncertainty and ambiguity surrounding US troop levels in Syria as part of President Donald Trump’s mission to secure the war-torn country’s northeast oil fields, the Pentagon is finally disclosing a number.

Why is delivery of S-400 missiles to Turkey delayed?

The testing of the battle management and multimode engagement for the Russian-built S-400 air defense missile system in Ankara was both a technical necessity as well as an expression of diplomatic determination for full activation of the S-400s.

Syria’s Kurdish parties do not see eye to eye

While Syria's Kurds call for a unified political project to manage Kurdish territories, they remain confused about the differences between the Kurdish National Council and the Syrian Democratic Forces.

U.S. Democratic Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard greets supporters after filing her declaration of candidacy papers to appear on the 2020 New Hampshire primary election ballot at the State House in Concord, New Hampshire, U.S., November 5, 2019. REUTERS/Mike Segar - RC1696ABFE70

Democratic leader pours cold water on Tulsi Gabbard’s bid to force Syria withdrawal

The House’s No. 2 Democrat dealt a major blow to Tulsi Gabbard’s effort to force President Donald Trump to pull the remaining US troops out of Syria.

A man reads a newspaper story about Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump as people gather to protest against Trump on the sidewalk, outside the grand opening of his new Trump International Hotel in Washington, U.S. October 26, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - S1AEUJFELYAA

Middle East lobbyists pay op-ed writers to sell their message

A Kuwaiti firm and an armed Iranian opposition group are some of the latest examples of lobbyists paying for positive press coverage.

Mazloum Kobani, Syrian Democratic Forces' (SDF) commander in chief, talks as he announces the destruction of Islamic State's control of land in eastern Syria, at al-Omar oil field in Deir Al Zor, Syria March 23, 2019. - RC1F71152EF0

SDF woos Syrian Kurdish rivals in wake of Turkish assault

Could the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Iraqi Kurdish-backed Kurdish National Council, long at loggerheads, come to an accord in the wake of Turkey's invasion of Kurdish-administered areas of Syria?

U.S. President Donald Trump and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose for a family photo at the NATO leaders summit in Watford, Britain December 4, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman - RC2BOD97VB0U

Erdogan drops block on NATO defense plan as trust issues linger

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dropped his threat to block a defense plan for the Baltic states and Poland, though disagreements persist among NATO allies.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani attends a news conference at the Chancellery in Vienna, Austria July 4, 2018. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner - RC1981F1CC40

Iran's Rouhani open for Trump meeting if sanctions lifted

The Iranian president has signaled readiness for talks with his US counterpart if the latter removes economic sanctions he reimposed on the Islamic Republic.

Turkey seeks to refresh NATO ties to balance Russia

Turkey seems to have failed to get all it wanted from the NATO summit in London, but even an incomplete outcome meets its purpose of balancing ties with Russia by refreshing ties with NATO.