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April 25, 2026

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A person walks past the closed Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center on Jan. 7, 2021, in New York City.

Why did the Met Opera lose its Saudi funding deal?

The deal, announced as a nonbinding memorandum of understanding last September, would have seen the PIF inject up to $200 million into the opera institution over the next eight years.

US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (R) holds a signed "Make America Great Again" hat while (L-R) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh Moawad listen to US President Donald Trump speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the US and Israel Ambassador to the US, at the White House in Washington, DC on April 23, 2026. US President Donald Trump met Lebanese and Israeli envoys at a new round of peace talks Thursday, with Beirut seeking a one-month extension of a

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

Some Israelis worry the US president might force them to accept an unsatisfactory agreement driven by his inability to secure a tangible achievement in Iran.

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

BAY ISMOYO / AFP via Getty Images

How are Iran-linked tankers still moving through Hormuz blockade?

At least 19 Iran-linked tankers have passed through the US blockade on the strait to exit the Gulf while at least 15 have entered, according to the cargo-tracking group Vortexa.

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Israel sees chance of US-Iran deal as almost 'non-existent,' readies for war

As US President Trump makes contradictory statements regarding his intentions toward Iran and the ongoing negotiations, Israel is preparing for the possibility of resuming military operations.

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

Latest News

US boards Iran-linked tanker in Indian Ocean, vows pursuit of 'ghost fleet'

TOWNSVILLE, AUSTRALIA - JULY 14: A US Navy Seahawk helicopter takes off from the deck of the USS Ronald Reagan on July 14, 2017 in Townsville, Australia. USS Ronald Reagan is a 1,092- foot aircraft carrier which carries a crew of 4,539 around 60 aircraft. Exercise Talisman Sabre is the largest combined military exercise undertaken in Australia. The biennial exercise is the principal Australian and U.S. military training activity. (Photo by Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images)

Interview

Olmert: Only Israel-Lebanon deal can curb Hezbollah, occupation 'unviable'

Olmert

Trump says Iran deal could happen 'quickly' as Pakistan readies talks: What to know

US Vice President JD Vance (C) walks with Pakistan's Chief of Defense Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshall Asim Munir (L), and Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar after arriving for talks with Iranian officials on April 11, 2026, in Islamabad, Pakistan.

Could UAE tap US currency swap line as Iran war strains Gulf economies?

Haruna Furuhashi /Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

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

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

Paul J. Saunders

In Washington, DC, reporting on Russia in the Middle East

Iran rejects EU invitation to talks with US on nuclear deal

Tehran's rejection may be posturing, but the clock is ticking on chances to limit its nuclear capabilities.

US President Joe Biden signs an executive order on securing critical supply chains, in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, February 24, 2021. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden approves airstrike on Iran-backed militias in Syria following Iraq attacks

Officials suggested the late-night precision bombing was designed to minimize casualties while avoiding backlash from the Iraqi government.

CENTCOM chief warns Iran over strikes on Erbil, Saudi Arabia

Gen. Kenneth "'Frank" McKenzie warned Iran in the boldest statement yet from the Biden administration over the attacks.

Russian soldiers examine the S-400 Triumph rocket systems in Elektrostal, 06 August 2007. Russia's long-delayed Triumph anti-aircraft missile system was activated around Moscow today in an upgrade of the capital's air defences, Russian military officials said. In mid-July Russia successfully tested the long-delayed S-400 missiles, also known by their NATO designation SA-21 Growler. The director of the Almaz plant that designed the rockets, Igor Ashurbeily, told the Interfax news agency that the company expe

As Erdogan finesses Turkey-US ties, Pentagon reiterates stance on S-400s

A Pentagon official urged Ankara to take action over its Russian-made S-400 missile acquisition after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed interest in restoring bilateral ties.

Intel: Blinken tells Egypt that human rights are 'central' to US relationship

Secretary of State Antony Blinken also expressed concern over Egypt’s planned procurement of Su-35 fighter aircraft from Russia.

A man inspects the damage on February 16, 2021 following a rocket attack the previous night in Arbil, the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region. - The United Nations warned Iraq could spin out of control after a rocket attack on the Kurdish regional capital Arbil killed a foreign contractor and wounded several Iraqis and foreigners. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED / AFP) (Photo by SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images)

Kataib Hezbollah denies role in recent Iraq rocket attacks

The high-profile, Iran-backed militia denied responsibility for attacks on US targets in Iraq.

Israeli Prime Minister and Defence Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a statement to the media on the Iranian nuclear issue at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem on September 9, 2019. - Netanyahu accused Iran of having a previously undisclosed site aimed at developing nuclear weapons that it destroyed. Iran itself destroyed the site located near the city of Abadeh, south of Tehran, in around July after realising that Israel had detected it, Netanyahu alleged. (Photo by Menahem KAHANA / AFP) (Photo c

Former Israeli security officials call on Netanyahu to dialogue with US on Iran deal

For many former senior security officials, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should work with the Biden administration, not against it, for a rapid nuclear deal with Iran.

Erik Prince, former Navy Seal and founder of private military contractor Blackwater USA, arrives to testify during a closed-door House Select Intelligence Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, November 30, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / SAUL LOEB (Photo credit should read SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Erik Prince violated Libya arms embargo, UN report alleges

The Blackwater founder and associates sought to buy helicopter gunships from Jordan to aid Libyan warlord Khalifa Hifter's assault on Tripoli, investigators believe.

Israel's Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan is seen as he receives Italy's interior minister at a hotel in Jerusalem on December 11, 2018. (Photo by Ahmad GHARABLI / AFP) (Photo credit should read AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)

Israeli ambassador demands Saturday Night Live apologize over vaccine joke

Israel's ambassador to the United States and United Nations is upset with the comedy show for joking that Israel is only vaccinating Jews.

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 04: White House Press National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan talks to reporters during the daily press conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House February 04, 2021 in Washington, DC. Sullivan previewed President Joe Biden’s agenda for his visit to the State Department later in the day. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Sullivan says US communicating with Iran on detained Americans

According to White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, the administration has "begun to communicate" with Iran over the handful of Americans held in the country.

WILMINGTON, DELAWARE - DECEMBER 09: U.S. Army (retired) General Lloyd Austin speaks after being formally nominated to be Secretary of the Department of Defense by U.S. President-elect Joe Biden at the Queen Theatre on December 09, 2020 in Wilmington, Delaware. The only African-American to have headed U.S. Central Command, Lloyd Austin, 67, is a four-star general who was in charge of American forces in Iraq from 2010 to late 2011. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Pentagon chief reaffirms defensive support for Saudi Arabia amid Houthi strikes

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin called Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to reaffirm strategic ties.

Former US Vice President Joe Biden speaks during the First State Democratic Dinner in Dover, Delaware, on March 16, 2019. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden’s cold shoulder serves Netanyahu on right

President Joe Biden’s iciness toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could benefit him ahead of the March elections.