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Politics & Security

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

President Donald Trump was openly critical of previous nominee Nouri al-Maliki, who was seen as 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 intensifies, Trump must choose between military escalation, a limited diplomatic deal, or continuing a pressure campaign against Iran.

AFP via Getty Images

In defiant message, Iran’s Khamenei threatens US but appeals to Gulf

The address was Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s third since coming to power and included a pledge to rid the Gulf of the US.

Latest News

Turkey warns France over Cyprus troop deployment: What to know

Members of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), from the British Army's 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards, No. 2 Company, patrol along the buffer zone separating the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus and the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the divided capital Nicosia on Feb. 17, 2026.

US blockade tests Iran's limits, but will global pain force Trump’s hand?

QESHM ISLAND, IRAN - APRIL 28: Boats navigate the sea on April 28, 2026 on Qeshm Island, Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's latest proposal for ending its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz calls on the United States to end its naval blockade of Iran's ports, and sets aside questions about what to do with Iran's nuclear program. The United States has not formally responded to the latest proposal, which was delivered by Iran's foreign minister to Pakistan two days ago. (Photo by Asghar Besharati/Getty Images

Iran-linked group claims stabbing in Jewish area in London: What to know

Local residents look on from outside a cordoned off area in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on April 29, 2026, following the stabbing to two people nearby.

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

Iraqi police are pictured standing guard at the closed gate of the government headquarters.

Iraq issues arrest warrants for Sadrist leaders after judiciary storming

The Iraqi judiciary issued arrest warrants and travel bans against key Sadrist movement leaders amid violent political conflicts, but their enforcement could be a sensitive task.

A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carries bullet casings and a spent shotgun shell.

US: No plans to evacuate embassy in Baghdad, monitoring clashes

White House official calls for calm in Iraq following Muqtada al-Sadr's resignation from politics.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi sits near a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

As US awaits Iran deal response, new Vienna round unlikely

A European Union source said negotiators would only return to the Austrian capital to ink a final agreement.

A supporter of Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carries the Iraqi flag.

Kuwait asks citizens to leave Iraq amid Baghdad unrest

Protests are happening throughout Iraq following cleric Muqtada al-Sadr's announcement declaring he has given up on politics.

Israeli Likud party leader and former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Netanyahu orchestrates merger between far-right Israeli parties

In an effort to guarantee a 61-seat majority at the Nov. 1 elections, opposition head Benjamin Netanyahu mediated and pushed far-right Religious Zionism and ultranationalist Itamar Ben-Gvir to run on one ticket.

The photos by Bernd and Hilla Becher at Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art.

Iranian museum closes temporarily after bugs infest famous artwork

The Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art issued a formal apology and vowed to address the problem after paper-eating insects were spotted in its highly popular exhibition of minimalism and conceptual art.

DEPO PHOTOS/AFP via Getty Images

Turkish pop star jailed over joke placed under house arrest

Turkish pop singer Gulsen is under house arrest after spending the weekend behind bars for a four-month-old quip about religious school alumni.

AFP via Getty Images

Iran wants IAEA probe closed before nuclear agreement implemented

Iran’s president says Tehran wants the IAEA probe closed in what could be a sign of inching closer to a new deal.

French President Emmanuel Macron (L) and Algeria's President Abdelmadjid Tebboune attend a signing ceremony in the pavilion of honor at Algiers airport, Algiers, Algeria, Aug. 27, 2022.

On visit to Algeria, France’s Macron advances post-colonial reconciliation

The presidents of France and Algeria signed Aug. 27 a pact for a new partnership between the two countries, announcing the setting up of a joint historian commission to explore the colonial period, alleged French crimes and the bloody eight-year independence war.

EBRAHIM HAMID/AFP via Getty Images

Severe flooding kills scores in Sudan

Flooding in Sudanese cities has claimed around 100 lives and displaced thousands, and many angry citizens blame the political class for its failure to act.

Syria harvest

Idlib farmers harvest figs amid shelling, landmines

Farmers in the Jabal al-Zawiya area that has recently witnessed escalating bombardment by Syrian government and Russian forces, are braving dangers to harvest their fig crops.

An aerial view of Warraq Island on the Nile River on the northern outskirts of Cairo, Egypt, May 14, 2021.

Cairo evicts Nile island residents for development project

Egyptian security forces and residents of the Nile River's Warraq Island are clashing as the government tries to evict them as part of a development plan.