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September 12, 2026

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Admiral Charles Bradford "Brad" Cooper II, Commander of US Central Command speaks during a joint press conference with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, at US Central Command (CENTCOM) headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, on March 5, 2026. (Photo by Octavio JONES / AFP via Getty Images)

CENTCOM chief in Saudi Arabia as Yemen's Houthis seize Bab al-Mandeb

The Houthis' seizure of Mocha and Perim Island effectively puts them in a position to close the Bab al-Mandeb.

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Australia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Richard Marles at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran’s Pickaxe mountain tests limits of Trump’s military options

A secretive Pentagon innovation agency has hastened to test munitions that may penetrate deeper than the GBU-57 bombs dropped on Iran’s two main enrichment facilities.

Jared Szuba

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

Chaim Goldberg / AFP via Getty Images

Netanyahu threatens to sue Haaretz for reporting UAE warned Israel of Oct. 7 attack

The Emirati president reportedly warned that a planned attack could cause bloodshed, destabilize the region and threaten the Abraham Accords.

AFPTV / AFP via Getty Images

Brent crude sails past $100 as Middle East war intensifies

The Iran war escalated this week as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked four southern Saudi Arabian cities and oil facilities.

Latest News

Analysis

Israel braces for Iran attack as Trump’s economic squeeze on Tehran intensifies

TOPSHOT - Explosions from projectile interceptions by Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system are pictured over Tel Aviv on February 28, 2026. The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, with Israel's public broadcaster reporting that the Iranian supreme leader had been targeted, as the Islamic republic retaliated with barrages of missiles at Gulf states and Israel. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Lebanon says at least 12 killed in Israeli strikes as tensions rise in south

An excavator digs as rescuers search for survivors amid the rubble following an overnight Israeli airstrike on the village of Kfar Roummane, southern Lebanon, Sept. 7, 2026.

Analysis

Could Trump’s oil push in Venezuela upend OPEC’s energy order?

A man walks past a mural depicting oil pumps and the Venezuelan flag, with portraits of Venezuelan independence leader Simon Bolivar (L) and former late President Hugo Chavez (R), in Caracas, Venezuela, on Sept. 3, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Who is Amir Yaryab, IRGC’s cyber commander in US crosshairs?

Amir Yaryab

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

Members of the Iranian revolutionary guard march during a parade to commemorate the anniversary of the Iran-Iraq war (1980-88), in Tehran September 22, 2011. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo - RTX2O26E

Citing US threat, Iran parliament looks to boost IRGC budget

Iran’s parliament seeks to increase the military budget for the IRGC in response to the new policies of the Trump administration.

Kurdish Peshmerga forces celebrate Newroz Day, a festival marking spring and the new year, in Kirkuk March 20, 2017. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed - RTX31W8R

Congress threatens to cut payments to Iraqi Kurds if they break with Baghdad

The House defense bill makes continued peshmerga funding contingent on participation in a “unified Iraq.”

Reporters wait outside the U.S. Supreme Court before it granted parts of the Trump administration's emergency request to put his travel ban into effect immediately while the legal battle continues, in Washington, U.S., June 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RTS18PDP

Revival of 'Muslim ban' stirs outrage in Iran

The US Supreme Court’s partial revival of President Donald Trump’s ban on citizens of six Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, triggers harsh condemnation by Tehran.

U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) conducts strike operations while in the Mediterranean Sea which U.S. Defense Department said was a part of cruise missile strike against Syria on April 7, 2017. Ford Williams/Courtesy U.S. Navy/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTX34HHI

White House warning meant to deter Syria chemical attack

The Donald Trump administration made it clear to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces that it will not allow another gas attack.

Saudi foreign policy pushes Iran, Turkey closer

Saudi Arabia’s blockade of Qatar appears to open space for Iranian efforts to engage in regional diplomacy and cooperation.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu touches the stones of the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City March 18, 2015. Netanyahu won a come-from-behind victory in Israel's election after tacking hard to the right in the final days of campaigning, including abandoning a commitment to negotiate a Palestinian state. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS RELIGION) - RTR4TV5K

Netanyahu’s unexpected confrontation with US Jews

It is unclear why Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided now of all times to confront US Jews.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Saudi Deputy Crown Prince and Minister of Defense Mohammed bin Salman meet at the White House in Washington, U.S., March 14, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX30ZV3

Abbas looks to new Saudi crown prince for Mideast initiative

The Palestinians are hoping to engage Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to help in making their case to the Donald Trump administration.

An ultra-Orthodox Jewish man stands at a view-point overlooking a wooden ramp (C) leading up from Judaism's Western Wall to the sacred compound known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, where the al-Aqsa mosque and the Dome of the Rock shrine stand, in Jerusalem's Old City December 12, 2011. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/File Photo - RTSS5BJ

Israel's center-left needs the ultra-Orthodox

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to suspend the plan for a Western Wall pluralistic prayer space must be condemned, but harnessing the ultra-Orthodox into efforts to topple Netanyahu is more important.

An Iranian woman walks past a Bank Pasargad in the capital Tehran on January 19, 2016.
Iran will receive $32 billion of unfrozen assets after sanctions were lifted in a deal with world powers over its nuclear programme, Iranian central bank chief Valiollah Seif said. / AFP / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Trump administration welcomes financial watchdog’s Iran sanctions reprieve

Treasury Department experts prevail as the United States endorses the Financial Action Task Force’s decision to indefinitely suspend countermeasures on Iran.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani during the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Istanbul Summit in Istanbul, Turkey April 14, 2016. REUTERS/Berk Ozkan/Pool TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX29X07

Saudi-led Qatar blockade brings Iran, Turkey together

Rather than forcing Doha to bow to its demands, the Saudi-led blockade of Qatar has split the region in two, bringing together the kingdom’s rivals.

Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad take positions in the Badia, in the southeast Syrian desert, in this handout picture provided by SANA on June 13, 2017, Syria. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS PICTURE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, CONTENT, LOCATION OR DATE OF THIS IMAGE. - RTS16TU2

Iran draws line in the sand in Syrian desert

Iran stakes claim in eastern Syria; Saudi move against Hamas; Qatar risks confrontation in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas meets with White House senior advisor Jared Kushner in the West Bank City of Ramallah June 21, 2017. Thaer Ghanaim/PPO/Handout via REUTERS - RTS183ES

Kushner's first foray into Mideast peace reveals challenges ahead

Palestinians accuse the US negotiating team that met with President Mahmoud Abbas June 22 of taking Israel's side, by not discussing the two-state solution or Israeli settlement activities.