Turkey finally acknowledges Saudi Arabia may need help with the Houthis

Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan said on Saturday that Saudi Arabia may have some military needs due to the ongoing attacks by Yemen's Houthis and that Turkey would look into them as part of a trilateral defence pact signed with Pakistan.

Speaking on broadcaster NTV, Fidan said it was unacceptable for Saudi Arabia to be made a part of the US-Iran war as it had no desire to join the conflict, and added without elaborating, that proposals have been conveyed to all sides to end the fighting.

Why it matters:

James Reynolds21 September 2026 21:00

Top story: Iran informed that US plans to resume action

Iran received information that the United States, with the backing of some regional countries, was preparing to resume actions against Iran, the country's central military command said in a statement on Sunday, according to state media.

The military said that any U.S. attack would trigger sustained strikes on U.S. bases and interests in the region, the report added, warning that regional countries supporting U.S. aggression against Iran would be considered parties to the conflict.

James Reynolds21 September 2026 20:00

Watch: Trump threatens to ‘blow entire nation up’ after Iran warns of ‘painful strikes’

James Reynolds21 September 2026 19:00

ICYMI: Saudi Arabia says Yemen's Houthi rebels tried to attack its capital with a ballistic missile

Saudi Arabia said on Saturday that Yemen’s Houthi rebels tried to attack its capital with a ballistic missile in what would be the first targeting of Riyadh since the escalation in fighting with the rebels.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said the attack was intercepted. Some residents in Riyadh heard an explosion. Later, some saw a plume of smoke near the airport. There were no reports of casualties or damage.

The statement also said the Houthis tried to attack civilian infrastructure in the Red Sea port city of Yanbu — where a key Saudi pipeline ends — and in Taif, Baysh and Farasan but they were thwarted, giving no further details.

The Houthis had earlier claimed, without providing evidence, that they had targeted “sensitive sites” in Riyadh and facilities of Saudi oil giant Aramco in Yanbu.

James Reynolds21 September 2026 18:00

Trump planning sanctions against International Criminal Court over Netanyahu arrest warrant: report

Donald Trump is reportedly preparing sanctions against the International Criminal Court after the global tribunal issued an arrest warrant for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Sweeping sanctions could prohibit the court from carrying out transactions in dollars, cutting it off from the global financial system and drastically undermining its work, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Trump administration has made no secret of its disdain for the court, which prosecutes war crimes and genocide worldwide. U.S. officials want the court to drop its arrest warrants against Israeli leaders as well as a past probe into American troops in Afghanistan.

James Reynolds21 September 2026 17:20

Minister dismisses Burnham’s past Trump criticism as ‘politics’ as PM and president set to meet this week

A government minister has dismissed Andy Burnham’s previous comments about Donald Trump as “politics” ahead of the prime minister’s expected meeting with the US president.

The prime minister is set to travel to New York for the UN general assembly, in one of his most important trips abroad since taking over from Sir Keir Starmer.

Labour chair Bridget Phillipson, asked whether the encounter could prove awkward in light of past remarks, told Sky News: “Look, I think what you’ve just described there is politics, and the president knows that.”

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James Reynolds21 September 2026 16:40

What happened to the Islamabad Memorandum to end the war?

Iran and the US have remained at odds on several prickly issues since the signing of the ‘Islamabad Memorandum’ to end the war in June.

The agreement, which was primarily brokered by Pakistan, was supposed to immediately stop the fighting in the Middle East and facilitate more talks aimed at resolving the conflict.

But four months on, the region continues to live under fear of re-escalation. Both sides continue to contest the status of the Strait of Hormuz. And diplomatic efforts appear to have stopped entirely.

What were the terms?

The agreement was focused on an end to the war and a US naval blockade, in exchange for Tehran taking steps to ensure safe transit in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei.

Senior Iranian diplomat Hossein Nooshabadi told ISNA news agency that the possible framework deal included the end of the war on all fronts including Lebanon, the release of blocked Iranian assets, the lifting of the US naval blockade and the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, the withdrawal of US forces from the region and freedom to sell Iranian oil. He said Iran’s draft contained no commitments on Iran’s nuclear programme.

The Americans said the nuclear issue must be resolved as part of any deal. A senior US official told Reuters that Iran had agreed “in principle” to reopen the Strait in exchange for the US lifting its naval blockade, and to dispose of Tehran’s highly enriched uranium.

What happened?

Israel was left out of the signing and fighting continues with Hezbollah in Lebanon. The US continues to maintain its presence in the region and has struck Iranian sites.

Maintaining its hold on the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran has tried to show its neighbours that they cannot depend on Washington for security and should accept a new status quo, whereby they are responsible for transit through the Gulf with Oman.

With neither side backing down, the Iran-aligned Houthis have entered the fray, attacking Saudi ships in the Red Sea and seizing land near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait to squeeze those trying to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.

Talks are apparently suspended, while Iran and its proxies continue to exert more and more pressure on its neighbours and on the global economy.

James Reynolds21 September 2026 16:00

Another tanker hit by debris from unknown projectiles - UKMTO

Another LPG tanker has been hit by debris from unknown projectiles while transiting out of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the UKMTO.

The monitor, citing a Master, reported that all crew are safe and that there is no impact to the environment. Authorities are investigating, they say.

It follows an earlier report of an incident involving a vessel transiting the Strait.

A tanker coming into the waterway was struck by an unknown projectile, the UKMTO reported earlier on Monday.

James Reynolds21 September 2026 15:32

Trump says 250-foot arch will now be a military complex for attack drones, snipers and ammo

Donald Trump made another push on Sunday to redefine one of his Washington, D.C. “beautification” projects that is likely aimed at securing funding for the project from a skeptical Congress.

The president posted on Truth Social that his planned 250-foot triumphal arch will now be loaded up with “large numbers of drones, plus Snipers,” and insisted that the commemorative structure on the grounds of one of America’s most sacred spaces — Arlington National Cemetery — would become a “top grade Military Complex.”

“At the strong request of the United States Military, and for National Security purposes, I have agreed to convert the magnificent Triumphal Arch, planned since the Civil War Era many years ago, at the Receptive Circle adjoining the Arlington Memorial Bridge, into a top grade Military Complex/Triumphal Arch, to house, store, and have the rapid ability to use large numbers of drones, plus Snipers, on both the roof and plaza areas, and additionally have and hold large quantities of sniper ammunition in storage,” wrote the president.

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James Reynolds21 September 2026 15:20

Donald Trump said on Monday that Russia has “lost control” of its diesel industry and again called for an end to Moscow's war with Ukraine.

The rising cost of diesel is hitting US farmers just as the president’s war with Iran weighs on global oil prices. Both risk souring Trump’s domestic approval rating ahead of the November midterms.

"Russia has unfortunately lost control of its Diesel Oil Industry due to its War with Ukraine. A large number of their Diesel refineries have been blown up and are, at least temporarily, out of commission," Trump said in a social media post a day before he was to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

"This ridiculous and never ending War with Ukraine must be ended."

James Reynolds21 September 2026 15:03