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

White House, Washington DC, United States of America

United States

September 19, 2026

Washington D.C. 4:57 pm

26°C

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on as he attends a trade agreement signature ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris on August 24, 2026. (Photo by LOU BENOIST / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How Netanyahu is leveraging Houthi threat in secret Saudi normalization push

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to capitalize on Riyadh's need for intelligence assistance to make normalization headway ahead of the October elections.

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

Mario Tama/Getty Images

Former Assad official sentenced to 60 years in US for torture

Samir Ousman Alsheikh was convicted by a jury in March of three counts of torture, one count of conspiracy to commit torture, visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud.

A US Air Force F-35 fifth-generation jet fighter takes off during the NATO's Ramsteign Flag 2025 exercise at Leeuwarden Air Base on April 8, 2025.

Trump administration approves $24B sale of F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia

Trump first announced the planned sale in November 2025, ahead of hosting Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.

UN peacekeepers stand next to an armored vehicle during a patrol in southern Lebanon, Feb. 22, 2026.

Explainer

Why France is pushing to keep UNIFIL in Lebanon beyond 2026

Showing its support for Lebanon, Paris is backing Beirut’s request at the UN for a short-term extension of UNIFIL’s mandate, although French sources acknowledge that the chances of the request being approved are slim.

Latest News

Exclusive

Lacking deterrence, Israel’s security establishment opposes attacks on Houthis

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities, brandish their weapons during a rally to recruit more fighters, in Sanaa on September 10, 2026. The country relapsed into war in July after years of calm, drawn into the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli offensive against Iran that began at the end of February. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

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.

US hits major Russian bank VTB with Iran-linked sanctions

VTB Bank in Moscow

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

Win McNamee/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

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin walks from a meeting during negotiations on a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) relief package on Capitol in Washington, U.S., March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC2QPF9GZ5DS

US issues fresh Iran sanctions targeting IRGC’s ‘web of front companies’

The US Treasury Department places sanctions on more companies, officials and individuals affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Quds Force and Iran-backed militias in Iraq.

Intel: Timeline of CIA contractor Robert Levinson missing for 13 years in Iran

The family of Robert Levinson, a CIA contractor who disappeared on Iran’s Kish Island in 2007, confirmed Thursday that the US government informed them that the former FBI agent had died at some point prior to the coronavirus pandemic.

US coalition transfers another base to Iraqi security forces

The US-led coalition against the Islamic State has announced the transfer of another military base to Iraqi security forces as a temporary precaution against the coronavirus outbreak.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo takes part in a meeting with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, September 18, 2019. Mandel Ngan/Pool via REUTERS - RC114A0F4CE0

Intel: How the US is relying on Riyadh to reassure global markets

In a phone call with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Saudi Arabia to “rise to the occasion” as the escalating coronavirus crisis and the kingdom’s standoff with Russia continue to hammer global markets.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks during a news conference at the State Department in Washington, DC, U.S., March 25, 2020. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS - RC24RF9D1JQJ

Intel: Pompeo urges Europe to join Iran pressure campaign in G-7 teleconference

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo used a teleconference of leading industrialized nations' foreign ministers to urge tougher international action on Iran and its regional proxies in line with the US maximum pressure campaign.

Intel: US provides aid to help Iraq fight coronavirus

The US Embassy in Baghdad announced today that is providing $670,000 to help Iraq fight the novel coronavirus pandemic.

French State Secretary for European Affairs Harlem Desir arrives for a meeting in Rome, Italy, December 13, 2015. The U.S. and Italy on Sunday led the international diplomatic push to get Libya's warring factions to sign a deal to form a unity government, hoping it will stop the spread of Islamic State militancy in the North African country. REUTERS/Remo Casilli - GF10000264368

Trans-Atlantic official slams US for forcing Turkish broadcaster to register as foreign agent

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's media freedom representative said TRT's registration under a Nazi-era anti-propaganda law had a “restrictive & negative impact on media freedom.”

Iran expert says corruption 'No. 1 national security threat in Iran'

Al-Monitor contributor Bijan Khajehpour discusses impact of coronavirus on Iran’s economy.

Intel: US conducts separate military drills with UAE, Israel despite coronavirus

United Arab Emirates

Iraqi security forces patrol a street, during a curfew imposed to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Baghdad, Iraq March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani - RC2CMF94NO5Z

Intel: Coronavirus forces partial US troop drawdown in Iraq

The US-led global coalition to defeat the Islamic State announced today that the coronavirus pandemic has forced “temporary adjustments” in the mission against the terrorist group.

Impacts of US withdrawal from Qaim base in Iraqi border with Syria

US forces pulled out of the strategic Qaim area on the Iraqi-Syrian border in mid-March, citing success in preventing IS resurgence; locals agree that the Islamic State presence has been significantly weakened but warn the move may lead to nonstate actors gaining more power over official Iraqi security forces.

20 August 2019, Iraq, Bagdad: A soldier of the German Armed Forces is standing at dusk with his weapon on the verge of the German Defence Minister's visit to the international military camp Camp Taji. The minister and CDU leader is conducting political talks in the capital Baghdad and is meeting German soldiers who are involved in training local forces in the country. Photo: Michael Kappeler/dpa (Photo by Michael Kappeler/picture alliance via Getty Images)

US urges Iraq to step up protection of US, coalition personnel

The State Department said Iraq is not doing its part to protect US and coalition forces in the country.