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September 3, 2026

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Israel to release 5 Lebanese prisoners ahead of next talks: What to know

Israel said the detainees are "civilians who are not members of a terrorist organization" and "were not involved in terrorism," concluding, "There is no reason to continue holding them in Israel."

ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

US airstrikes target Iran's Bandar Abbas, Qeshm Island

American military forces launched their first strikes on the Iranian mainland in more than a month just days after the top US commander for the region said Iranian mines have been cleared from Hormuz shipping lanes.

missile

Analysis

Israel favors status quo as tensions in Iran's leadership fuel escalation risk

Israel would prefer to preserve the current balance of pressure — with US naval blockades and economic measures continuing without a return to active fighting — per a senior Israeli security source.

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

CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images

Pentagon inks 7-year missile-production deal amid Iran war shortage

The Defense Department has been hammering out new agreements with top defense manufacturers as the Iran war has rapidly depleted Washington's interceptor stockpiles.

Latest News

Analysis

Israel’s Lebanon dilemma: Confront Hezbollah without angering Trump, triggering Iran

Ammar Ammar / AFP via Getty Images

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

Analysis

How Iran is readying for economic protests as Trump escalates pressure

Demonstrations in Tehran, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Trump says Hormuz mine-free as Iran, Oman agree to clear them

US President Donald Trump arrives at Myrtle Beach International Airport on Aug. 21, 2026, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

China warns US not to interfere with Iran trade: What to know

BAY ISMOYO / AFP via 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

Stefani Reynolds/Getty Images

Blinken visits Middle East to bolster Israel-Hamas cease-fire

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Jerusalem, Ramallah, Cairo and Amman this week for discussions on maintaining the fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

Yemeni tribesmen attend a rally denouncing the United States and the outgoing Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement, in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa, Yemen, Feb. 4, 2021.

Senate Democrats urge Biden to pressure Saudi Arabia over Yemen blockade tactics

The Senate letter called on President Joe Biden to use diplomatic and economic leverage to compel the Saudi-led coalition to lift restrictions on imports into Yemen.

Joe Biden

Biden pledges to rebuild Gaza, resupply Israel’s Iron Dome

Biden praises US role in bringing about the cease-fire.

Jim Risch

Top Republicans ask Biden to stand by recent US weapons sale to Israel.

Sen. Bernie Sanders introduced a resolution to block the Biden administration's sale of precision weapons to Israel, prompting the top Republicans on the House and Senate foreign relations committees to respond.

Four 250-pound class GBU-39/B guided weapons are seen mounted on a USAF F-15E on Aug. 14, 2003, at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida. GBU-39s are part of an arms package for Israel that some progressive Democrats are opposing.

House Democrats move to block Israel arms sale amid Gaza conflict

The gesture underscores a groundswell of opposition to Israel's policies among progressive lawmakers.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gestures as he shows a slideshow during a briefing to ambassadors to Israel at the Hakirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel on May 19, 2021. Netanyahu said today that Israel's aerial bombing campaign on the Gaza Strip was aimed at deterring Hamas, but he did not rule out conquering the enclave's Islamist rulers.

US expects 'significant de-escalation today,' Biden tells Netanyahu

As President Joe Biden appealed for calm, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday there was no timeframe for ending the conflict with Hamas.

Israeli security forces deploy to disperse Palestinian protesters amid clashes near the settlement of Beit El and Ramallah in the occupied West Bank on May 18, 2021.

House Democrats back away from delaying Israel arms sale amid Gaza conflict

The Biden administration will brief lawmakers on the proposed $735 million sale of JDAM guidance conversion kits and other weapons equipment.

Israel's Iron Dome aerial defense system is launched to intercept a rocket launched from the Gaza Strip, above the southern Israeli city of Ashdod, on May 17, 2021.

Senate unlikely to block arms sale to Israel amid Gaza conflict

The Biden administration aims to provide Israel with additional bomb guidance systems.

Israeli soldiers fire a 155 mm self-propelled Howitzer toward targets in the Gaza Strip from their position near the southern Israeli city of Sderot on May 12, 2021. Israel's Defense Minister Benny Gantz vowed more attacks on Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups in Gaza to bring "total, long-term quiet" before considering a cease-fire.

Senate Democrats, one Republican call for Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire

The Biden administration has yet to explicitly call for a cease-fire in Israel and the Palestinian territories, resulting in criticism from his own party.

Palestinian journalists stand in shock following the destruction of Jala Tower, which was housing international press offices, by an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip on May 15, 2021. The Israeli airstrike demolished the 13-floor building housing Qatar-based Al Jazeera television and American news agency The Associated Press in the Gaza Strip.

Intel: Blinken hasn't personally seen evidence that Hamas used the building housing AP, Al Jazeera

Israel says the building was used by the Palestinian militant group, but it has not publicly provided any evidence to back up that claim.

Smoke billows following an Israeli air strike in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on May 13, 2021.

Intel: Hady Amr back on front lines of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations

Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Hady Amr's trip to the embattled region comes as President Joe Biden faces pressure for more active US engagement on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

NYC mayoral candidate Andrew Yang speaks at a press conference at Tweed Courthouse in Manhattan on May 11, 2021 in New York City.

New York City politicians spar over Israel, Palestine

The leaders in New York City’s mayoral election both defended Israel over the recent conflict with the Palestinians, though other politicians more to the left spoke in favor of the Palestinian cause.