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Politics & Security

The Liberia-flagged container vessel MSC Tasman VI and the Singapore-flagged container vessel Wan Hai 353 are docked along a pier at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on June 19, 2026.

Iran attacks cargo ship off Oman, testing Trump’s Hormuz Strait deal

The first Iranian attack on a cargo vessel since the ceasefire comes as top US diplomat Marco Rubio huddled with Gulf Cooperation Council ministers in Manama to reject Iran's claims to control the Strait of Hormuz.

Jared Szuba

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

One of the first three US-made F-35 aircraft in Polish Air Force colors taxis along the runway at the 32nd Tactical Air Base in Lask, central Poland, while fire-fighting vehicles perform a water salute on May 22, 2026.

Trump hints at F-35 breakthrough with Turkey ahead of NATO summit

The administration is moving ahead with planned jet engine sales to Ankara ahead of next month’s NATO summit despite congressionally mandated sanctions on Turkey's defense industry.

Responders arrive to a demolished building at San Bernardino after a magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck Venezuela and other regions in the Caribbean on June 24, 2026 in Caracas, Venezuela.

Israel, Turkey, Iran offer aid as Venezuela’s 2 quakes kill at least 188

Iran, Turkey and Israel were among the first countries to offer assistance to earthquake-hit Venezuela despite their varying diplomatic relationships with Caracas.

Latest News

Explainer

Bombed sites, missing uranium: How Trump’s Iran deal hinges on inspector access

Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

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

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

Lebanon cancels national high school exams due to war: What to know

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

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

AFP via Getty Images

Iran rounds up teachers as protests gain momentum

Iranian teachers are joining in the protest movement against President Raisi's administration, but security forces are responding quickly to stop them.

AFP via Getty Images

US imposes sanctions on Iranian petrochemical network

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Biden administration “will continue to use our sanctions authorities” if there's no nuclear deal with Iran.

SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images

Silence from Baghdad as Turkish drone kills Yazidi child in Sinjar

The Iraqi government has yet to comment after a 12-year-old was killed in the latest Turkish strike on northern Iraq's Sinjar region.

Tourists pass through a police checkpoint in Istanbul.

IDF allows Israeli athletes to go to Turkey despite travel warning

Five Israeli fencers who still serve in the army were allowed this morning to travel to Turkey for the European Championships despite the severe travel warning issued by Israeli authorities on Monday.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi received at Ittihadia Palace the head of the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council, President Rashad Al-Alimi, on June 11, 2022.

Egypt fears for Red Sea security as Yemen cease-fire teeters

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi received Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council President Rashad al-Alimi as part of his first foreign tour since his inauguration, amid efforts to consolidate the cease-fire and reach a solution that ends the crisis in the war-torn country.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu builds next electoral platform on new podcast

With a new podcast and headquarters and renewed enthusiasm, opposition head Benjamin Netanyahu is already campaigning for the next election.

Turkey map

Turkey struggles with name rebrand

Turkey’s rollout this month of its new official name, Türkiye, is already facing difficulties.

An aerial picture shows Syrian locals near a destroyed truck at the spot where Abu Hassan al-Muhajir, Islamic State spokesman, was reportedly killed in a raid in the village of Ayn al-Bayda near Jarablus, Syria, Oct. 28, 2019.

Breaking | Last Updated: June 17, 2022, 3:34 pm

Senior Islamic State leader detained in US raid in Syria

A senior IS leader was detained by US-led forces during a pre-dawn raid in northern Syria on Thursday.

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/AFP via Getty Images

Desperate residents flee Syrian refugee camp as supplies run out

The Syrian regime's siege on the Rukban camp near the Jordanian border has tightened over the past two months, prompting many of the camp’s residents to risk arrest by leaving.

Head of the Sudan Liberation Movement and governor of Darfur Mini Minawi (L).

US, Saudi Arabia broker talks to break Sudan's coup deadlock

Thanks to US and Saudi mediation, Sudan's coup leaders held talks for the first time with the government they deposed last year.

Golani Druze meeting

Syrian jihadi leader courts Druze community in Idlib

The leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, continues to market himself as a moderate leader.

Biden

The Takeaway: Biden, Arab leaders to discuss 'innovative' approaches to regional cooperation at Saudi summit

Also: Israeli tourists leave Turkey over Iran threat; Sadr withdraws from Iraqi parliament; Lebanon’s water crisis impacts electricity; Syria’s wheat shortage; Al-Azhar slams Disney’s gay characters; all in less than 1,400 words.