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Politics & Security

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (R) and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi (L) give a statement at the Ritz Hotel as they meet on Jan. 30, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Araghchi visits Turkey as Ankara steps up diplomacy in Iran-US standoff

Talks between the top Turkish and Iranian diplomats further clarified red lines but fell short of de-escalation.

Vehicles pass by a large patriotic banner depicting the Iranian flag on Enghelab Square in Tehran on January 14, 2026.

Breaking | Last Updated: January 30, 2026, 11:37 am

US sanctions Iranian officials over protest crackdown, IRGC funding

The Treasury Department also blacklisted an investor accused of embezzling billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenue.

TOPSHOT - Cars drive past an anti-US billboard installed on a building at the Enqelab Square in Tehran on January 26, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Israel ups Iran intel sharing with US, expects Trump to strike within 'weeks'

Israel is making vast amounts of intelligence available to the United States in preparation for a potential attack on Iran.

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

Kurdish security forces patrol the street on Jan. 23, 2026 in Qamishli, Syria.

Analysis

Kurds, Damascus step back from brink as SDF signs fresh deal with Syrian government

After intense US-led diplomacy, Syria’s interim government and the Kurdish-led SDF agreed to a ceasefire and phased integration, averting all-out conflict.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

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

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.

Navy destroyer, aircraft join US armada amassing near Iran

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

Jared Szuba

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

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

MAXIM SHIPENKOV / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

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

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.

By Rosaleen Carroll

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

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

UN trucks Gaza

First fuel truck since Oct. 7 enters Gaza via Egypt

The fuel shortages have added to the desperation of more than 2 million people trapped inside the enclave, which the Israel offensive has ravaged for more than a month.

Iran Manoto

Iran hardliners celebrate imminent shutdown of UK-based Manoto TV

The independent Persian-language channel Manoto said it was about to shut down due to financial strains, as official Iranian media celebrated the news.

MAHMOUD ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

France's defense chief heads to Israel, Egypt, Gulf as Gaza war enters month 2

French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu is departing Tuesday for a visit to five countries in the region and the first by a French defense minister to Israel since 2000.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Iraqi Parliament Speaker Muhammad al-Halbousi addresses France's President Emmanuel Macron (unseen) during a meeting at the parliament in the capital Baghdad, on August 28, 2021. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP) (Photo by LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)

Resignations at Iraq's parliament after supreme court ends Halbusi’s term

The powerful Sunni politician has been mired in controversy amid political tensions in Iraq.

Palestinians injured in Israeli raids arrive at Nasser Medical Hospital on Nov. 14, 2023, in Khan Yunis, Gaza.

Israel raids al-Shifa hospital after US says Hamas command center inside

The IDF infiltrated Gaza Strip's largest hospital after the White House endorsed the Israeli military's allegation that Hamas maintained a command center at the facility, though Washington has not revealed any supporting evidence.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses the parliament.

Turkey’s parliament to debate Sweden’s NATO bid as Erdogan eyes Biden invite

The move, which comes as Turkish President Erdogan seeks a meeting with the US president, signals potential progress on the pending Turkish bid to buy new F-16 jets from the American side.

TOPSHOT - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the budget session at the parliament in Jerusalem on May 23, 2023. (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP) (Photo by GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Poll: Only 4% of Israeli Jews find Netanyahu reliable source on Gaza war

According to a recent survey, only 4% of Israeli Jews see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a reliable source of information for the Israel-Hamas war.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Palestinians injured in Israeli raids arrive at Nasser Medical Hospital on Nov. 14, 2023 in Khan Yunis, Gaza.

Israel’s attacks on Gaza hospitals could amount to war crimes, says HRW

Human Rights Watch says the ongoing Israeli targeting of hospitals across Gaza “should be investigated as war crimes.”

Elizabeth Tsurkov

Proof of life video of Russian-Israeli scholar suggests Iraqi captors want to negotiate

The first video appearance of kidnapped Russian-Israeli scholar Elizabeth Tsurkov could mean her Shiite militia captors are seeking a deal for her release.

Palestinian fighters of the al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, take part in a military parade to mark the anniversary of the 2014 war with Israel, near the border in the central Gaza Strip on July 19, 2023. (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS / AFP) (Photo by MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Hamas buys time in hostage talks as it ups psychological war against Israel

Israel estimates that the publishing by Hamas of another video of a hostage and the demand by the group for five days of cease-fire as part of a deal to release captives, are meant for it to buy more time against the IDF ground offensive.

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

People protest against executions and detentions in Iran, in front of the Iranian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York City on December 17, 2022. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran executed 114 people since Israel-Hamas war began: report

It seems Iran is taking advantage of the world focus on the Israel-Hamas war to carry out mass executions across its prisons.

AFP via Getty Images

Day 39 of Hamas-Israel war blog: Tuesday, Nov. 14