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Politics & Security

Saudi Arabian Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pose for a photo opportunity ahead of a meeting in the US State Department Building on Feb. 25, 2025, in Washington, DC.

Saudi defense chief visits White House as Riyadh pushes against Iran strike

The visit is occurring as the Pentagon amasses an armada off Iran and the United States continues to threaten to strike the Islamic Republic militarily.

A view of the guided missile destroyer USS Delbert D. Black in the Mediterranean Sea, on Dec. 31, 2023.

Navy destroyer, aircraft join US armada amassing near Iran

The US is rapidly massing warships and strike aircraft around Iran as President Donald Trump openly threatens military action in an apparent bid to coerce its leaders to surrender their nuclear program.

Jared Szuba

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

MAXIM SHIPENKOV / AFP via Getty Images

UAE President meets Putin in Russia to discuss nuclear energy, trade, Iran

The visit of Emirati President Sheikh Mohammed comes a day after the Kremlin hosted President Ahmed al-Sharaa to discuss the future of Russian military bases in Syria.

In this handout provided by the US Navy, The USS Gerald R. Ford, and Italian navy offshore Patrol Vessel ITS Paolo Thaon di Revel operate in the Mediterranean Sea, Oct. 2, 2025.

Analysis

Why Trump’s Venezuela playbook could face hard reality in Iran

On Wednesday, Trump said an armada larger than the one sent to Venezuela is heading toward Iran and “like with Venezuela,” it is ready to employ force if necessary.

By Rosaleen Carroll

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Latest News

Lebanon army chief to visit US Tuesday to shore up support: What to know

This photograph taken during a press tour organised by the Lebanese army shows Lebanese soldiers standing atop military vehicles in Alma Al-Shaab, near the border with Israel in southern Lebanon, on November 28, 2025. It was the first guided tour the army gave journalists since a November 2024 ceasefire sought to end over a year of hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (Photo by Anwar AMRO / AFP via Getty Images)

Iran FM heads to Turkey in last-ditch effort to avoid US escalation

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi attends a joint press conference with his Russian counterpart following their talks in Moscow on December 17, 2025. (Photo by Ramil Sitdikov / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

European Union adds IRGC to terror list, expands sanctions

SIMON WOHLFAHRT / AFP via Getty Images

Iranian officials vow 'harsh' response as Trump threatens action: What to know

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addresses foreign ambassadors to Iran, in Tehran on Oct. 5, 2025.

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Ben Caspit

Israel Columnist

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

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

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

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps speedboats cruise past an oil tanker off the port of Bandar Abbas, southern Iran, on July 2, 2012.

Iran says it seized ships in Gulf for alleged fuel smuggling

The seizure and arrest of the foreign crew members occurred south of the disputed Abu Musa island, according to Iranian state media.

This image grab taken from AFPTV video footage on April 20, 2023, shows an aerial view of black smoke rising above the Khartoum International Airport amid ongoing battles between the forces of two rival generals.

Breaking | Last Updated: December 6, 2023, 4:28 pm

US says Sudanese armed forces, RSF rebels committed war crimes

The State Department's announcement represents an escalation in US rhetoric over the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan attend a welcoming ceremony ahead of their talks in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 6, 2023.

UAE rolls out red carpet for Russia’s Putin as West ups sanctions

President Putin's trip to the UAE and Saudi Arabia coincided with a new series of sanctions announced by the UK against individuals and entities accused of funding the war machine in Ukraine.

The Soloturk aerobatic demonstration team of the Turkish Air Force flies an F-16 aircraft over Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Turkish Republic's Founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, during celebrations to mark the 100th anniversary of the Republic of Turkey in Ankara, on October 29, 2023. Turkey marked its centenary as a post-Ottoman republic on October 29, 2023, with somewhat muted celebrations held in the shadow of Israel's escalating war with Hamas militants in Gaza. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALT

In shift, Erdogan links Sweden’s NATO accession to Turkey's F-16 acquisition

On eve of his Greece visit, and after insisting for months that Sweden's pending NATO membership and Turkey's purchase of F-16s should be separate, Erdogan is now linking the two outcomes.

TOPSHOT - Protesters hold pictures of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani, during a demonstration outside the US consulate in Istanbul, on January 5, 2020, two days after top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani was killed by a US drone strike. - A US drone strike killed top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani at Baghdad's international airport on January 3, dramatically heightening regional tensions and prompting arch enemy Tehran to vow "revenge". (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty

Iran court orders US to pay $49 billion over Soleimani assassination

Qasem Soleimani led Iran’s elite Quds Force until he was assassinated by the United States in Baghdad in 2020 in response to attacks on US forces in Iraq.

A Bahraini protester holds his national flag during clashes with riot police following the funeral of 20-year-old prisoner Fadel Abbas Musalem in the village of Diraz, west of the capital Manama, on January 26, 2014. The Gulf kingdom's main Shiite political opposition group said Musalem died the previous day as a result of torture during his detention. AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH (Photo by MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED AL-SHAIKH/AFP via Getty Images)

Rights groups denounce Bahrain's trial of 13 political prisoners

Human Rights Watch and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy said a Bahraini court that convicted 13 people in September failed to look into allegations of torture against the defendants.

Guterres Netanyahu

Analysis

Shin Bet chief calls on UN to side with Israel in 'war between good and evil'

In a letter to the UN secretary-general, the head of Israel's domestic security agency called on the international community to support efforts to end Hamas' rule of the Gaza Strip and recognize the crimes committed against Israelis, especially women.

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

helicopter

Day 61 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Wednesday, Dec. 6

Erdogan warns Israel will 'pay the price' if it targets Hamas in Turkey

The Turkish President warned Israel would pay a heavy price if it dared to hunt down Hamas members in Turkish territory.

TOPSHOT - A man stands by as a fire rages in a livestock market area in al-Fasher, the capital of Sudan's North Darfur state, on September 1, 2023, in the aftermath of bombardment by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The conflict between Sudan's army under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the RSF commanded by Mohamed Hamdan Daglo spread in late August 2023 to North Darfur state, with at least 27 localities burned down by the RSF and allied Arab militias, according to the Humanitarian Research L

Senior US official welcomes pressure on UAE over alleged Sudan arms transfers

US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Phee addressed questions from Congress on the issue and the Biden administration’s response to the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

President Miguel Diaz-Canel of Cuba, left, and President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran reviewing the honor guard during a welcoming ceremony in Havana on June 15, 2023.

Cuba, Iran ink economic agreements as Khamenei hosts Diaz-Canel

In its revolutionary foreign policy, Iran has for decades gone out of its way to unite like-minded nations — with a special focus on leftist nations — for an idealistic global campaign to weaken the American hegemony.

Yahya Sinwar

After Yahya Sinwar sanctions, France looks to deepen EU's anti-Hamas push

France announced Tuesday it was freezing the assets of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for six months, a move it says is a prerequisite for enforcement of European Union sanctions on Hamas leaders.