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July 4, 2026

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Motorists drive past a billboard bearing a picture of Iran's slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei, ahead of his funeral in Tehran on July 3, 2026. Iranian leaders began paying their respects on July 3 before the coffin of the country's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed in the US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war, as Tehran prepared for a vast funeral. Khamenei's body arrived at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on July 3 ahead of ceremonies which are expected to draw millions. (Photo by AFP via Ge

Analysis

As US-Iran talks falter, Israel views war outcome as 'total strategic failure’

Israeli officials believe the US failure to attain the kind of agreement with Iran that it originally sought stems from the strategic mistakes made during and after the recent war.

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

Crude oil tankers, bulk carriers and vessels sit anchored around Qaboos Port on June 22, 2026, in Muscat, Oman.

Oil falls below $71 as US-Iran talks continue, Gulf exports rebound

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in an X post on Wednesday that Iran and the United States had made "positive progress."

Latest News

Who is Melat Kiros, the pro-Palestinian who unseated a longtime Democrat?

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

Explainer

Saudi FM concludes China visit amid Trump-MBS friction: What to know

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud before a family photo for the attendees of a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Muslim-majority nations at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on November 20, 2023. The international community must take urgent action to stop the "humanitarian disaster" unfolding in Gaza, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told visiting diplomats from Arab and Muslim-majority nations on Novembe

Analysis

For Israel, Lebanon deal 'historic' despite fears Hezbollah will rebuild

Shia Muslim devotees gather for a mourning ritual near the shrine of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain leader of the Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah who was killed in a 2024 Israeli-airstrike, in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 26, 2026 at the peak of Ashura, a 10-day period commemorating the seventh century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

Iran talks

US envoy: 'Other tools' available if Iran nuclear diplomacy fails

Robert Malley said the US and its allies feel a "shared impatience" with Iran's delay in returning to the bargaining table.

Former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and former Secretary of State Colin Powell arrives to pay his respects at the casket of the late former President George H.W. Bush as he lies in state at the U.S. Capitol, Dec. 4, 2018 in Washington, DC.

The Takeaway: Iraq shadowed Colin Powell, but his character showed through even then

Pinkwashing in Tunisia?; Russia, Iran, Turkey, Syria and the Caucasus; Breast reconstruction surgery still taboo in Gaza; Wheelchair basketball scores — all in less than 1,500 words!

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Erdogan says US, not Turkey, proposed F-16 sale

Turkey's president said the plan to sell dozens of F-16s to Ankara was Washington’s idea.

Former Gen. Colin Powell (Ret.) onstage at A Capitol Fourth concert at the U.S. Capitol, West Lawn, on July 4, 2016 in Washington, DC.

Colin Powell, top diplomat who argued for US invasion of Iraq, dies at 84

Powell would later call his now-infamous UN Security Council speech, which sought to build international consensus for the Iraq war in February 2003, a "blot" on his record.

Blinken Lapid

US envoy headed to Gulf to discuss ‘options’ on Iran’s nuclear program

With the Vienna talks stalled, US officials are warning that they have other ways to rein in Iran's nuclear enrichment.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Blinken warns Iran 'time is running short' on nuclear deal return

In a joint press conference with his counterparts from Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Blinken said the United States is prepared to pursue “other options” if Tehran doesn’t resume compliance under the nuclear deal.

An exterior view of the building of US Department of the Treasury is seen on March 27, 2020 in Washington, DC.

Intel: US lifts Iran-related sanctions, says no connection to nuclear deal

The US Treasury Department has delisted Iran-based entities sanctioned by the Trump administration for alleged involvement in Iran’s ballistic missile program.

A Syrian man walks past destruction in the northern city of Aleppo on March 22, 2013.

Syrian opposition chief: US sanctions a deterrent for Turkish proxy fighters

During an interview with Al-Monitor, Syrian National Coalition President Salem al-Meslet discussed recent US sanctions on Ahrar al-Sharqiya, the human rights situation in northern Syria and the US military presence in the war-torn country.

Iron dome

Republican Congressman, pro-Israel group spar over Iron Dome funding

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, a critic of foreign aid, was the only Republican to vote against funding for Israel's Iron Dome last week.

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.