United States - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

White House, Washington DC, United States of America

United States

September 16, 2026

Washington D.C. 3:16 am

17°C

US Republican Representative Wesley Hunt of Texas gestures after speaking during the first day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 15, 2024.

Meet Wesley Hunt, Trump's pick for ambassador to Saudi Arabia

The Texas Republican previously served for two years in the kingdom as a diplomatic liaison officer.

VTB Bank in Moscow

US hits major Russian bank VTB with Iran-linked sanctions

State-controlled VTB becomes one of the most prominent global names yet caught up in Washington’s ongoing effort to squeeze Iran's economy.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

CENTCOM chief meets Saudi Arabia's MBS amid Houthi gains in Yemen

The low-profile meeting between the Pentagon's commander in the Middle East and Saudi crown prince comes as Yemen's Houthis seized the high ground overlooking a vital economic waterway.

US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman

Analysis

Why Trump is in no rush to join Yemen war as Houthis seize Bab al-Mandeb

The Houthis' capture of Mokha and Perim Island has dealt a major credibility blow to Yemen's Saudi-backed forces while granting the rebels a clear line-of-sight to launch missiles into one of the Middle East's most important shipping lanes. As long as they don't interfere with international commerce, Washington is likely to withhold its fire.

Jared Szuba

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

Latest News

CENTCOM chief in Saudi Arabia as Yemen's Houthis seize Bab al-Mandeb

Admiral Charles Bradford "Brad" Cooper II, Commander of US Central Command speaks during a joint press conference with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, at US Central Command (CENTCOM) headquarters at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, on March 5, 2026. (Photo by Octavio JONES / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran’s Pickaxe mountain tests limits of Trump’s military options

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Australia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Richard Marles at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)

Jared Szuba

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

Netanyahu threatens to sue Haaretz for reporting UAE warned Israel of Oct. 7 attack

Chaim Goldberg / AFP via Getty Images

Brent crude sails past $100 as Middle East war intensifies

AFPTV / AFP via Getty Images

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

Newly confirmed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives for a welcome ceremony at the State Department in Washington,DC on January 27, 2021. (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Blinken walks back State Department ambiguity over Turkish hostages killed in Iraq

After an earlier statement suggesting Washington didn't necessarily buy Ankara's narrative on the killings, the State Department today said that "PKK terrorists bear responsibility."

Pentagon ‘comfortable’ with troop levels in Middle East ahead of review

Whether the United States pulls forces from the Middle East to counter China may well depend on the success of Biden's diplomacy with Iran

Displaced Yemenis receive food aid donated by a British organisation in Yemen's western province of Hodeida on February 9, 2021. - Since 2014, Yemen has been engulfed in a war between the internationally recognised government -- supported by a Saudi-led military coalition -- and the Iran-backed Huthi rebels that has triggered a devastating humanitarian crisis. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP) (Photo by KHALED ZIAD/AFP via Getty Images)

US to revoke terror designation for Yemen's Houthis

Washington officials continue to condemn the Iran-linked rebels' activities, saying the terror revocation stems from humanitarian concerns.

Newly confirmed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken removes his face mask to speak during a welcome ceremony at the State Department in Washington,DC on January 27, 2021. - (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA / POOL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS BARRIA/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel campaigns against the US rushing to negotiate with Iran

A report issued by the Israel Defense Forces about Iran two years away from a nuclear bomb was designed first and foremost to calm the American sense of urgency over negotiating with Tehran.

US stands firm as Turkey proposes to ‘find solution’ over S-400

The State Department urged ally Ankara to get rid of the Russian air defense system

A picture taken on March 12, 2019 shows Iranian Minister of Intelligence Seyyed Mahmoud Alavi (C-R) attending a session of Iran's Assembly of Experts in the capital Tehran. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran could seek nuclear weapon if cornered, threatens intelligence minister

The rare statement from Intelligence Minister Mahmoud Alavi comes as the US administration vows to lift sanctions only if Iran resumes full compliance with the nuclear deal.

Memebers of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) stand near an old Israeli tank as they look toward the Syrian governorate of Quneitra from the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, on February 4, 2021. (Photo by JALAA MAREY / AFP) (Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images)

Golan 'forever' part of Israel, Netanyahu says after Blinken comments

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken appeared to question the previous administration's controversial decision to recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

US to continue defensive intelligence support to Saudi Arabia on Yemen

'We are not a party to Yemen's civil war,' CENTCOM commander says

Turkish President and leader of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during his party's group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara on November 11, 2020. - Turkish President promised on November 11, 2020 to adopt painful reforms and threw his full support behind a new economic team installed after his powerful son-in-law resigned. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

New page for US, Turkey reads like fantasy

Hope for a reset in Turkish-American ties under the Biden administration will remain unrealistic until Ankara addresses its democratic issues and human rights record.

A member of security forces loyal to Yemen's Huthi rebels stands guard as supporters attend a rally denouncing the United States and the outgoing Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement, in the Huthi-held capital Sanaa on January 25, 2021. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

US calls on Yemen's Houthis to halt attacks on Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia said it intercepted four armed drones launched toward the kingdom by the Yemeni rebels.

A handout picture provided by the office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on October 24, 2020, shows him wearing a protective face mask as he gives a speech in the capital Tehran during a meeting of the national staff to discuss the issue of the novel coronavirus pandemic crisis. (Photo by - / KHAMENEI.IR / AFP) / XGTY / === RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / HO / KHAMENEI.IR" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS === (Photo by

Iran, US spar over nuclear deal return

Iran and the United States are clashing over which country will return to its commitments under the nuclear deal first.

French President Emmanuel Macron reacts after a German-French Security Council video conference with German Chancellor, at the Elysee Palace in Paris on February 5, 2021. (Photo by Thibault Camus / POOL / AFP) (Photo by THIBAULT CAMUS/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

France, not US, offers to involve Israel in talks with Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not react publicly to the statement by French President Emmanuel Macron over the need to involve Israel and Saudi Arabia in talks with Iran.