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May 2, 2026

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 22, 2026 in Washington, DC.

US sanctions Iran’s shadow banking channels moving oil proceeds from China

The latest sanctions come as the Trump administration weighs Iran's latest proposal to end the war.

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Without exit strategy, Israel faces emboldened Hezbollah, limited options on Iran

While President Donald Trump remains undecided on striking Iran again, the Israeli military is sinking deeper into its Lebanon quagmire with a reinforced Hezbollah.

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

Iraq's prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, at Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani's office on April 28, 2026.

Trump congratulates Iraq PM-designate Zaidi in call: What to know

The US President was openly critical of previous nominee Nouri al-Maliki, seen as too close to Iran, but is now welcoming the new candidate put forward by Iraq’s leading Shiite bloc.

This photo obtained by AFP from the Iranian news agency Tasnim shows an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) boat allegedly taking part in an operation to seize ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, on April 21, 2026.

Trump faces three paths ahead in Iran war as Hormuz standoff intensifies

As the Hormuz standoff threatens a global economic chill, Trump must choose between military escalation, seeking a partial deal with Iran, or waiting out the pressure campaign.

Latest News

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

President Donald Trump gives a speech during the State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn on April 28, 2026, in Washington.

US seeks to train Lebanon army units to disarm Hezbollah: What to know

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (C), alongside US State Department Counselor Michael Needham (2L) and US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (2R), speaks during a meeting.

Analysis

Despite Trump pressure to limit Israel's Lebanon attacks, Aoun-Netanyahu meeting still unlikely

ANWAR AMRO/AFP via Getty Images

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

Why US, Israel are freezing France out of Lebanon talks

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks to journalists as he arrives for an informal meeting of the European Council in Nicosia, Cyprus, April 24, 2026.

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

KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP via Getty Images

Syrian Kurds, opposition take cases to Washington

Delegations from Kurdish-held northeast Syria and the Turkey-backed Syrian National Coalition will meet separately with US officials this week.

Yemeni supporters of the Shiite Huthi movement take part in a ceremony commemorating the seventh anniversary of the Huthi takeover of the capital Sanaa on Sept. 21, 2021. The conflict in Yemen flared in 2014 when the Huthis seized the capital, prompting Saudi-led intervention to prop up the internationally recognized government the following year.

US House passes measure to end maintenance for Saudi aircraft targeting Yemen

Progressives' bid to get Riyadh to stop bombing Yemen may test Biden's commitment to Gulf allies.

Israel rocket

US House passes funding for Israel’s Iron Dome after fiery debate

One Republican congressman accused the Democratic Party of being under the “bizarre influence of a group of anti-Semites” as a few Democratic lawmakers opposed US support for Israel’s air defense system.

This picture taken on Sept. 20, 2021 shows a view of vehicle destroyed by what is believed to be a drone strike, on the northeastern outskirts of Syria's rebel-held northwestern city of Idlib.

Pentagon says drone strike near Syria's Idlib targeted al-Qaeda official

CENTCOM fired a drone missile at at least one jihadi official near Idlib today in the first such strike in recent months.

President Sisi

The Takeaway: Business As Usual: US-Egypt alliance finds its center

Also: Bennett meets Sisi; Egypt announces vaccine factory; Saudi Arabia mulls Taliban ties; Syrian jihadi group announces "moral police" in Idlib; NGOs slam Palestinian Authority on human rights; a new Al-Monitor podcast; and more … all in about 1,500 words.

Afghan refugees, fleeing the Afghan capital Kabul, exit an US air force plane upon their arrival at Pristina International airport near Pristina on Aug. 29, 2021.

After Afghanistan pullout, US pursues long-distance diplomacy from Qatar

Without a diplomatic presence on the ground in Kabul, the United States will engage with the Taliban from a remote mission in Doha.

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Islamic State 'Beatles' member pleads guilty in US hostage-taking case

British-born Alexanda Kotey was part of an Islamic State cell that the US government has linked to the hostage-taking and deaths of Americans James Foley, Steven Sotloff, Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller.

US Attorney G. Zachary Terwilliger speaks to the press after a hearing for former British Islamic State fighters Alexanda Kotey and El Shafee Elsheikh, dubbed the "Beatles," at the US District Court in Alexandria, Virginia, Oct. 9, 2020.

Member of IS 'Beatles' expected to plead guilty in US courtroom

Alexanda Kotey, a member of the brutal Islamic State cell linked to the kidnapping and killing of Westerners, is expected to plead guilty to one or more of the charges against him.

In this handout provided by U.S. Central Command Public Affairs, U.S. Air Force loadmasters and pilots assigned to the 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron, load passengers aboard a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III in support of the Afghanistan evacuation at Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) on Aug. 24, 2021 in Kabul, Afghanistan.

How many Americans are left in Afghanistan?

As the United States facilitates the transfer of thousands of Afghanistan evacuees to Qatar and other US military installations, the State Department said Thursday that a majority of the remaining Americans have taken steps to leave.

WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images

Afghans, US troops killed in blasts targeting Kabul airport evacuations

US officials feared the local faction called the Islamic State-Khorasan could attack the beleaguered airfield in the Afghan capital.

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett chairs the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on Aug. 22, 2021.

The Takeaway: Bennett has opening to sway Biden administration on Iran nuclear deal

Also: Iran’s new foreign minister and Nasrallah; Syrian Islamist group cracks down in Idlib; TikTok finds audiences in Egypt, Gaza; Israel’s chocolate confiscation; and more … in about 1,500 words!

XVIII Airborne Corps assists with Kabul airport evacuation

Sources: Taliban move helped US keep Afghans off Kabul airfield last week

The original plan to secure Kabul airport took the presence of Afghan security forces for granted, a US official said.