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August 20, 2026

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Houthis claim new strikes on Saudi Arabia after IRGC warning: What to know

A senior Iranian commander said Saudi Arabia will be unable to the defeat the Yemeni group as the conflict intensifies.

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.

Iranians drive past an anti-US billboard at Enghelab Square in central Tehran, Aug. 3, 2026.

Trump’s Iran ‘economic D-Day’ threat sends oil prices above $94

In a Truth Social post, the president threatened that any country that provides a financial lifeline to Iran will face "tremendous economic consequences."

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Iraq seeks special Hormuz access from Iran in scramble to keep oil flowing

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s Ghalibaf makes high-level visit to Iraq ahead of disarmament deadline

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks during a press conference at the site where Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by a US airstrike in 2020 near the airport upon his arrival in Baghdad, on Aug. 19, 2026.

With talks stalled, Iran ups threats against Gulf, Europe: What to know

Pedestrians walk past a billboard depicting Iran's late Supreme Leaders Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2026.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

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

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

Could Israel’s strike on Hezbollah in Syria spark Iran nuclear talks?

The latest Israel-Hezbollah confrontation might be a catalyst for a nuclear deal between the P5+1 and Iran; Iran can ease Saudi Arabia’s security predicament; Netanyahu sees electoral gain in snubbing Obama.

United States Senator Bob Corker (R-TN) chairs his first Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington January 21, 2015. Top U.S. Treasury and State Department officials said on Wednesday that, despite reports, Russia had not entered into oil-for-goods deals with Iran in violation of international sanctions. REUTERS/Gary Cameron (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4MCDJ

Finally, Senate action on Iran sanctions?

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of Jan. 26

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses a joint meeting of Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, May 24, 2011. Netanyahu's vision for ending conflict with Palestinians put "more obstacles" in front of the Middle East peace process, the spokesman for the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said. REUTERS/Molly Riley (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2MUAQ

Congress torn between Europe, Israel on Iran

Lawmakers are forced to pick sides after key allies publicly come down on opposite sides of sanctions push.

U.S. President Barack Obama (R) meets with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington October 1, 2014. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR48IZD

Obama, Kerry freeze out Bibi over impromptu Hill visit

The upcoming meeting to reach an Iran nuclear deal raises tensions between the Obama administration and Israel.

Zarif defends walk with Kerry

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is under fire in Iran for his public walk in Geneva with US Secretary of State John Kerry.

A security personnel stands in front of the Mahshahr petrochemical plant in Khuzestan province,1032 km (641 miles) southwest of Tehran, September 28, 2011. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN - Tags: BUSINESS ENERGY INDUSTRIAL) - RTR2RYWC

Iran holds trump card on oil: petrochemicals

To offset the drop in oil revenues, Iran can look to its petrochemical industry.

Houthi fighters secure an entrance to the presidential palace in Sanaa January 22, 2015. A senior official of Yemen's Houthi movement said on Thursday that a statement by President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi aimed at defusing a political crisis was acceptable because it confirmed the terms of a power-sharing agreement signed in September. Witnesses said Houthi fighters remained in position outside the presidential palace and Hadi's private residence, where the head of state actually lives. Hadi in his statement

US maintains intelligence relationship with Houthis

Despite alarmist news reports, the Barack Obama administration appears to have adjusted to the rise of the Houthis in Yemen and is continuing attacks on al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken (R) and Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David Cohen (L) testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington January 21, 2015. Top U.S. Treasury and State Department officials said on Wednesday that, despite reports, Russia had not entered into oil-for-goods deals with Iran in violation of international sanctions. REUTERS/Gary Cameron (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR4MCBJ

Congress unmoved by Obama's call to back off Iran legislation

The Senate kicked off legislative debate while the House invited Israel's Netanyahu to weigh in.

Lebanon's Hezbollah members carry the coffin of Jihad Moughniyah during his funeral in Beirut's suburbs January 19, 2015. The son of Hezbollah's late military leader Imad Moughniyah was killed in an Israeli helicopter strike in Syria on Sunday, a statement from the group said. The man (bottom C, wearing glasses) is the head of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc Mohamed Raad. REUTERS/Aziz Taher (LEBANON - Tags: OBITUARY MILITARY POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR4M0GK

IRGC vows revenge after Israeli attack

Iranian military commanders say that the Israeli strike against a Hezbollah convoy in Syria will not deter them.

An Israeli soldier looks through binoculars towards the border with Lebanon from above the Israeli town of Metula January 20, 2015. Hezbollah supporters turned out in force on Monday to bury the son of the group's late commander, one of six fighters who died in an Israeli air strike in neighbouring Syria that also killed an Iranian general. Israel has not officially commented on the hit, but an Israeli security source confirmed to Reuters that Israel had carried it out. An Israeli defence official said esca

Hezbollah's three options on Israel

The Lebanese Shiite group has only a few options for responding to the Israeli strike against it in Syria and wants to be careful not to cause an expansion of the conflict onto Lebanese territory.

Awash in the golden light of sunset, the U.S. Capitol casts its image upon the Reflecting Pool in Washington January 20, 2015. U.S. President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the Capitol this evening.
REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4M7V7

GOP delays Iran sanctions vote for State of the Union

The Senate Banking Committee will hold its markup next week after Democrats cry foul.

An Israeli soldier from the Golani brigade takes part in training near the city of Katzrin in the Golan Heights January 19, 2015. An Israeli helicopter strike in Syria killed a commander from Lebanon's Hezbollah and the son of the group's late military leader Imad Moughniyah, Hezbollah said, in a major blow that could lead to reprisal attacks.The strike hit a convoy carrying Jihad Moughniyah and commander Mohamad Issa, known as Abu Issa, in the province of Quneitra, near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights,

Israel anticipates Hezbollah's reaction

Israeli security experts estimate that although Hezbollah is not interested in raising tensions with Israel, it will respond to the Jan. 18 attack on its convoy, either in the Golan Heights or against Israeli targets abroad.