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August 7, 2026

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Analysis

As US rethinks regional presence, Israel shifts focus to destabilizing Iran

Uncertain how to interpret the American regional redeployment, Israel is focusing on efforts to destabilize the Iranian regime and stop its nuclear program.

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

Michigan Democratic Senate primary winner Abdul El-Sayed

AIPAC to oppose El-Sayed after major Michigan primary victory

The America Israel Public Affairs Committee said it will work to oppose Abdul El-Sayed’s “radical anti-Israel agenda” as his opponent seeks to paint him as extreme.

Latest News

Israel-Lebanon talks suspended amid escalation, set to resume Thursday

Israeli battle tanks deploy in the village of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah (Eastern Zawtar) in southern Lebanon as pictured from the nearby village of Zawtar al-Gharbiyah (Western Zawtar) on August 2, 2026. Under a US-sponsored agreement signed in June, Lebanon's army is to disarm Hezbollah and the Israeli military is to withdraw from "pilot zones" where Lebanese forces will subsequently deploy. The deal came more than three months after Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East with rocket fire at Israel in suppo

US lifts sanctions on Iraqi airline linked to Iran's IRGC: What to know

A memorial depicting Qassem Soleimani, the slain commander of the "Quds Force" of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), who was killed by a US airstrike in Iraq in 2020, is pictured at Valiasr Square in Tehran on April 6, 2026. Israeli strikes killed the intelligence chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, as the Islamic republic on April 6 defied threats from the US President to devastate civilian infrastructure if it does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Ima

Abdul el-Sayed becomes first Muslim-American to win Michigan Senate primary

DETROIT, MICHIGAN - AUGUST 01: Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed speaks after a radio appearance on Dr. Horace Sheffield's GOTV Community Rally on August 01, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. El-Sayed currently holds a 15-point lead against Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) according to a recent poll. (Photo by Finn Gomez/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. President Donald Trump, surrounded by empty chairs marked for U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who chose not to meet with Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), speaks with reporters at the White House in Washington, U.S. November 28, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC1B1D35A940

Congress pushes Tunisia aid compact to counter Trump cuts

The fledgling North African democracy is dispatching dignitaries to argue for a multi-year memorandum of understanding to help combat terrorism and social unrest.

Iran’s president: both diplomacy, military power needed in face of threats

Iran’s president said his country doesn’t seek confrontation with Saudi Arabia.

A Kurdish fighter from the People's Protection Units (YPG) looks out of a window in Raqqa, Syria June 18, 2017. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC14F5DB6150

US faces uphill battle recouping arms from Syrian Kurds

As the fight against the Islamic State winds down, the Donald Trump administration says it plans to get back the weapons it loaned to Kurdish troops opposed by Turkey.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani together with his counterparts, Russia's Vladimir Putin and Turkey's Tayyip Erdogan, attend a joint news conference following their meeting in Sochi, Russia November 22, 2017. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1D16F4FF70

Sochi summit leaves Turkey facing unsavory possibilities

It's unknown how far Moscow will go to appease Ankara with regard to the Syrian Kurds.

A fighter of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) carries a weapon as he stands near a military vehicle in Raqqa, Syria, October 16, 2017. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC1A33A0C9A0

Trump promises to end 'nonsense' of arming Syrian Kurds, Turkey says

Turkish officials say the US president promised Turkey’s leader that arms shipments to Kurds fighting the Islamic State would stop, but observers worry such a move will cost Washington a key partner and undermine stabilization efforts in Syria.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures during a joint press conference with Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic (not in the picture) after their meeting in Belgrade, Serbia, October 10, 2017. REUTERS/Marko Djurica - RC11B290C400

Turkey's creative schemes aim to discredit Zarrab case in US

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his team failed to convince the United States to agree to a “diplomatic solution” in the financial crime case involving Reza Zarrab and Turkey’s top bankers and former ministers. Now, Erdogan claims the case is a conspiracy against Turkey between the United States and the Gulen movement.

Why Netanyahu actually supports Palestinian reconciliation

Israel has yet to decide whether Palestinian reconciliation is good or bad for its national strategic interests.

Rift between Israel, US Jews deepens

Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely's scandalous words, belittling the attachment of American Jewry to Israel, finally brought the drama of the Israel-US Jewry rift onto the Israeli public agenda.

Shi'ite Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) celebrate on the outskirts of Kirkuk, Iraq October 17, 2017. REUTERS/Alaa Al-Marjani TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC14D2FF7B50

Proposed US sanctions on PMU put Iraq in tough spot

Proposed sanctions against factions of the Shiite-dominated Popular Mobilization Units would place the Iraqi government squarely in the middle of a tug of war between Iran and the United States.

A woman walks past the Palestine Liberation Organization office in Washington, U.S., November 19, 2017. U.S. State Department official said that under legislation passed by Congress, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson could not renew a certification that expired this month for the PLO office. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1862073780

PLO office closure threat could be last straw for Palestinians

Though it was reversed just a week later, the US decision to close the PLO office in Washington led to increased calls for the Palestinians to move ahead with more unilateral actions.

NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 20: In this handout provided by the Palestinian Press Office (PPO), U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly September 20, 2017 in New York City. World leaders are gathered for the General Assembly. (Photo by Thaer Ghanaim/PPO via Getty Images)

Abbas under pressure to accept Trump's 'ultimate' deal

The United States is making efforts to push US President Donald Trump's vision for the Palestinian-Israeli peace process using Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman as a pressure point.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wave after Trump's address at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem May 23, 2017. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun - RC178796AE40

Is Israel shifting stance on Trump's peace initiative?

With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu troubled by internal affairs, he might agree to the launching of US President Donald Trump's Middle East peace initiative.