ABU DHABI, 14th August, 2026 (WAM) -- The United Arab Emirates has strongly condemned and denounced the hostile Iranian attack that targeted two vessels affiliated with ADNOC as they transited the Strait of Hormuz, with no injuries reported.
US could not verify Israeli warnings of Iran plots against Trump, sources say The US has received several warnings from Israel over the past year that Iran intended to assassinate President Donald Trump, including before a secret Air Force One ruse in Turkey, that US intelligence officials could not independently verify, Reuters reported, citing a current US official and two former officials. The warnings, passed to US intelligence agencies and in some cases relayed directly by Israeli officials to senior White House officials, included possible plots to shoot Trump with a sniper or recruit someone to attack him with a knife at a large public event, the sources said. The tips began in June 2025 and intensified before the US decision to launch a war on Iran in February, the sources said.
Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s latest appointments to Iran’s top security and paramilitary institutions are not routine personnel changes but a reflection of his priorities for tighter control over the institutions directing war and domestic repression.
How the Mecca Agreement aims to manage US separation from Middle East Submitted by Ilya Roubanis on Thu, 08/13/2026 - 19:28 The pact is looking to sieze ownership of a status quo that revisionist powers want to upend Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shakes hands with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif as Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman looks on after signing a joint defence agreement in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on 7 August 2026 (Handout/Turkish presidency's press office/AFP) Off The Mecca Joint Defence Agreement between Saudi Arabia , Pakistan , and Turkey was unexpected but hardly surprising. Some have framed it as a Sunni alliance, with the role of the House of Saud as custodians of the two holy cities (Mecca and Medina), Pakistan as a nuclear-armed South Asian Islamic Republic, and Turkey’s Europe-adjacent muscular strand of political Islam. However, this agreement has little to do with religious sectarianism.
The intelligence on the alleged threat reportedly originated from Israel and was met with skepticism by American spies The US intelligence community doubted reports of an Iranian plot to kill President Donald Trump by shooting down Air Force One as it departed a NATO summit in Trkiye, the Washington Post has reported.
The intelligence on the alleged threat reportedly originated from Israel and was met with skepticism by American spies The US intelligence community doubted reports of an Iranian plot to kill President Donald Trump by shooting down Air Force One as it departed a NATO summit in Türkiye, the Washington Post has reported.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council brings together the country’s most powerful officials, but its workings are less straightforward than its name suggests, as even its secretary, often dubbed Iran’s security chief, does not automatically have a vote.
Israeli army confirms killing Gaza’s police director The Israeli army confirmed killing the chief police officer, Jamal Abu Kamil, in Gaza, on Thursday. The army said that he was a Hamas commander who “infiltrated” Israeli territory during the 7 October 2-23 attack but did not provide proof.
Houthi missiles target Yemen’s Bab al-Mandab strait Yemen’s Houthi group has targeted the Bab al-Mandab strait area in the western part of the country with two missiles, the Houthi-affiliated Saba TV channel is reporting, citing a local source.
Iranian air defenses have proven the long-range UAVs obsolete The US military lost 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones, or a quarter of its entire supply of the reconnaissance craft, during its war on Iran, the Washington Post has reported. The loss cost the US taxpayer an estimated $1. 3 billion.
Iranian air defenses have proven the long-range UAVs obsolete The US military lost 45 MQ-9 Reaper drones, or a quarter of its entire supply of the reconnaissance craft, during its war on Iran, the Washington Post has reported. The loss cost the US taxpayer an estimated $1. 3 billion.
Security forces used cultural venues and medical clinics as firing positions, ammunition stores and sites for holding bodies during Iran's January 2026 protest crackdown in Alborz province, according to material reviewed by Iran International.
Saudi defence minister calls Iraq 'cherished neighbour' after strikes Saudi Arabia's defence minister called Iraq a "cherished neighbour" in talks with a senior Iraqi army official on Thursday, despite last month's deadly US-Saudi strikes on targets in the country. The Riyadh visit was the first announced by an Iraqi security official to Saudi Arabia since Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi's trip to the kingdom was cancelled after the strikes on 29 July. Officials from the Hashed al-Shaabi, an armed Iraqi alliance also known as the Popular Mobilisation Forces, which includes pro-Iran groups, said the US-Saudi strikes killed 20 militants, including five Iranians.
Tehran [Iran], August 13 (ANI): A senior Iranian official on Thursday dismissed assertions by US President Donald Trump regarding American authority over the Strait of Hormuz, maintaining that the crucial maritime corridor remains firmly under Tehran's jurisdiction.
Hamas denounces Israel's killing of top Gaza police official Hamas condemned Israel’s killing of Colonel Jamal Abu Kamil, director of the civil police force in the Gaza governorate, calling it “a continuation of the brutal crimes committed by the occupation against our Palestinian people", according to Al Jazeera. The group said the killing was part of Israel’s “pathetic and failed attempts to spread chaos and lawlessness in the Gaza Strip". Israel has killed more than 1,250 Palestinians in near-daily strikes since the ceasefire took effect on 10 October 2025, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
New Delhi [India], August 13 (ANI): Noting that the Congress and other opposition parties have now started 'expressing themselves and it is unstoppable now', Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday hit out at the BJP-led government, saying the opposition parties will keep Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah 'awake' till they step down and 'the battle is for the country's ethos and culture'.
Israel killed head of police force, Gaza’s ministry of interior says An Israeli drone strike on a vehicle in western Gaza City killed Gaza City police chief Colonel Jamal Abu Kamil, 43, and critically wounded two others on Thursday, Al Jazeera reported, citing Gaza’s interior ministry. Abu Kamil was one of two Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes on Thursday, according to Reuters. An earlier Israeli strike on a motorbike in western Khan Younis killed one person and wounded another.
The Ukrainian leaders latest request to Washington falls apart when measured against Moscows current rate of ballistic attacks Vladimir Zelensky has made an unusually specific claim about what Ukraine needs to defend itself against Russian ballistic missiles.
The Ukrainian leaders latest request to Washington falls apart when measured against Moscows current rate of ballistic attacks Vladimir Zelensky has made an unusually specific claim about what Ukraine needs to defend itself against Russian ballistic missiles.
Exclusive: UK Charity Commission criticises synagogue for hosting Great Israeli Real Estate Event The UK 's Charity Commission has criticised trustees of the Edgware United Synagogue in London for hosting a real estate event that promoted properties in illegal Israeli settlements in June, Middle East Eye can reveal. The charity regulator has also decided to review a recent decision to close a compliance case on the charity. The commission told MEE that "should any further concerns about the charity arise we will consider escalating our regulatory engagement".
