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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

U.S. Army soldiers keep watch on the U.S. embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraq January 1, 2020. DoD/Lt. Col. Adrian Weale/Handout via REUTERS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC217E9GTDSL

Foreign troops' future in Iraq uncertain as clashes continue

Tension between Tehran and Washington has some Iraqis worried about foreign troops withdrawing from Iraq, although the United States had said it has no intention of leaving the country in Iranian hands.

Protests break out in Iran after admission of accidental plane downing

Protests erupted in Iran after the government admitted, after three days of denial, that it had mistakenly shot down a Ukrainian passenger plane; some of the demonstrations arose out of vigils for the victims.

Israeli spyware company accused of hacking activists hires lobby firm

Q Cyber Technologies has been sued by Facebook and WhatsApp and is accused of helping Saudi Arabia spy on murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi attends the funeral of the Iranian Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards, and the Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who were killed in an air strike at Baghdad airport, in Baghdad, Iraq, January 4, 2020. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani - RC209E9U6CIS

Iraqi PM quietly working to keep US troops in country

Iraq’s caretaker prime minister privately does not want US troops to withdraw, several American and Iraqi sources familiar with the situation told Al-Monitor.

U.S. President Donald Trump holds a bilateral meeting with Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan on the sidelines of the annual United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York City, New York, U.S., September 23, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC166DE0F040

Pakistan seeks to mitigate US-Iran tensions

Pakistan, wary in part of tensions between Washington and Tehran negatively affecting the reconciliation process in Afghanistan, has offered to mediate between the United States and Iran after the recent round of violence between them.

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 09: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, (D-CA) walks on the House floor to a reception on Capitol Hill on January 9, 2020 in Washington, DC. The House voted Thursday to restrict President Trumps military actions against Iran. (Photo by Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images)

Intel: Democrats wade into legal gray area with Iran war powers vote

The House passed a resolution 224-194 seeking to limit President Donald Trump’s ability to conduct future offensive military actions against Iran.

Palestinian Hamas militants take part in an anti-Israel military show in the southern Gaza Strip November 11, 2019. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa - RC2Z8D99U0S8

Can Israel, Hamas keep it calm after US killing of Soleimani?

For Israel, the return of deterrence is tainted with the possibility of a nightmare scenario.

Rescue team works among debris of a plane belonging to Ukraine International Airlines, that crashed after take-off from Iran's Imam Khomeini airport, on the outskirts of Tehran, Iran January 8, 2020. Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY - RC2MBE9I2565

Rouhani adviser says US claims on plane crash ‘media war'

Iranian officials claim they are working with Ukrainian authorities to investigate the plane crash in Tehran but claim US accusations that they shot the plane down themselves is a “media war.”

Iraqi demonstrators shout slogans during ongoing anti-government protests in Baghdad, Iraq January 10, 2020. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani - RC21DE9KUU0Y

Iraqi protesters decry Iranian and US interference

Over three months since anti-government protests began in Iraq, attention has shifted to geopolitical fears of regional war.

Trump's threat to Iran's antiquities sets off global uproar

With 24 recognized sites, Iran is most heavily represented Middle Eastern country on UNESCO's list of world heritage sites.

Lebanon reacts following Nasrallah speech

Supporters of Lebanon’s Hezbollah were divided over its leader’s speech following the killing of top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani, with some saying Hezbollah must react and others saying the Iranian strikes at the military bases in Iraq were enough.

Deputy Hamas chief Moussa Abu Marzouk gestures during an interview with Reuters in Gaza City December 17, 2014. The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas should be removed from the European Union's terrorist list, an EU court ruled on Wednesday, saying the decision to include it was based on media reports not considered analysis. Hamas welcomed Wednesday's verdict. "The decision is a correction of a historical mistake the European Union had made," Abu Marzouk told Reuters. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem (GAZA - Tags: P

Hamas intensifies Western dialogues to break political isolation

Hamas has stepped up its meetings with US and EU officials in an attempt to break its isolation and emerge on the international diplomatic scene.