President Ahmed al-Sharaa said Syria is ‘shaking off a dark burden’ after the US removed it from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. Syria had been on the list since 1979, and its removal opens the country to outside investors.
An investigation by Amnesty International says the Indian government used lethal weapons, including pellet-firing shotguns, grenades, batons and electric shock devices against Cockroach Janta Party-led protesters. The Modi government has denied it used excessive force.
Andrei Fedorov, an adviser to the Kremlin, says there might be a “semi-military” response against UK drone factories by “unknown sources” over the sharing military blueprints with Russia.
His comments on BBC Newsnightcome as UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he plans to travel to the US next month with European leaders to lobby US President Trump on Ukraine’s defence needs.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Burnham said, “I’m looking forward to going to New York in September,” when the UN General Assembly will meet.
He said that while the details were not “fully confirmed”, it is “likely” he will go. The trip would be his first to the US since becoming prime minister in July.
“Leaving today, I’m quite clear what I need to do in the next few weeks,” he said following his official visit to Ukraine on Monday, during which he promised to continue pressuring Russia.
Fedorov, who is Russia’s former deputy foreign minister, said Putin was facing “serious” pressure “to undertake certain measures against UK”. Asked on BBC Newsnight where the pressure was coming from, Fedorov responded, “public opinion polls, it’s coming from journalists, from mass media”.
Asked what a “semi-military” response might look like, Fedorov said “it could take the form of something might happen with enterprises, with factories which are producing drones for Ukraine.”
“They could be attacked not by Russia, but by from unknown sources,” he said.
The comments are in line with those made by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Monday, when he criticised the UK’s decision to share the missile blueprints. Peskov said it prevented “even the slightest progress” towards achieving peace.
He told reporters on Monday that the Russian military was already gathering data to locate any missile production sites to destroy them.
“Britain is involved in this war on the side of the Kyiv regime. Britain methodically and regularly adds fuel to the fire,” he added.
In response, Burnham said: “Who started the fire? That’s the question, isn’t it?”
Burnham’s visit to Ukraine was his first official international visit. He met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv and chaired his first meeting of the “coalition of the willing”, set up by the UK and France under his predecessor Sir Keir Starmer.
Burnham has been reaffirming the UK’s support for Ukraine in the wake of escalating Russian strikes in recent weeks – including one last week on a shopping centre that killed at least 16 people.
Ukraine has been relying on American supplies of the Patriot interceptor missiles, which are used to combat Russia’s ballistic missiles, but stockpiles are running low due to the war in Iran, leaving Ukraine vulnerable to Russian attacks.
Zelensky has said he is hoping to secure 300 patriot missiles ahead of winter, when Russia is likely to increase its attacks on energy infrastructure, as it has done in past years.
In the interview with Bloomberg, Burnham said that he felt “really confident” that the issue was “fixable”. But he pointed out that it wasn’t only the US who could supply Ukraine with Patriots.
“There are other players who could help in the mix who we have influence with,” he said. “It’s probably going to be a solution that involves a lot of layers and a lot of negotiation.”
In July this year, three weeks after offering Ukraine the right to produce Patriots itself, Trump backtracked, saying, “We have not agreed to that. We’re talking about it. But it’s a hard thing to give away, that kind of technology.”
“These weapons are incredible. We have to be very careful about letting somebody build them,” Trump told a cabinet meeting.
In a joint statement after the meeting in Ukraine, Burnham and co-chairs French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the group would aim to strength Kyiv’s air defences “as a matter or urgent priority”.
They also condemned Moscow’s “systemic and escalating strikes against Ukraine’s cities, critical infrastructure and civilians” and pledged to “constrain Russia’s war chest through sanctions and actions against the “shadow fleet”.
In a statement ahead of the visit, Burnham said: “On Ukraine’s 35th anniversary of independence, the Ukrainian people should be in no doubt: the UK is behind you today and for as long as it takes.
“I am proud of the contribution our country has made to Ukraine and I want the Ukrainian people to hear it directly from me that our support will not waver. After all, Ukraine’s security is our security.”
He said the friendship Ukraine shared with the UK would “long outlast Russia’s illegal war”, adding: “Russia should be in no doubt of our resolve. We will not back down until there is a just and lasting peace.”
Netanyahu’s claim comes after US and Israel killed Iran’s supreme leader and four of his family members in a strike on Tehran.
Published On 25 Aug 202625 Aug 2026
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has claimed that Iran tried to kill one of his sons, but gave no details on when or where the alleged plot took place or which of his sons was targeted.
The war began with a joint US-Israeli strike on Tehran that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and four members of his family, including his daughter, Boshra, and his 14-month-old granddaughter, Zahra.
According to The Jerusalem Post, Netanyahu made the claim about the alleged Iranian plot against his son during a phone interview with Channel 14, a conservative Israeli outlet known for favourable coverage of the government.
“This is an unbelievable case. Iran targeted one of my sons. Iran tried to murder him, tried to murder one of my sons,” Netanyahu said.
He was responding to reports that one of Israel’s security agencies had declined to provide a security detail for Gadi Eisenkot, the former army chief who is running neck and neck with Netanyahu for the next prime minister ahead of elections.
Netanyahu voiced support for around-the-clock protection for Eisenkot, saying it was “not a luxury”.
“Without that, [the Iranians] will succeed,” he said.
Netanyahu has two sons and a daughter. Both of his sons and his wife were granted extended personal protection by Israeli authorities in July, according to The Jerusalem Post.
His elder son, Yair, 35, has spent extended periods in the US city of Miami since early 2024, drawing controversy in Israel over the cost to taxpayers of protecting him.
Iran, meanwhile, has promised revenge for the killings of Khamenei and his family.
Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, was named the new supreme leader a week after Ali Khamenei’s death.
Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public since his appointment, but in a message published on the occasion of funeral ceremonies for his father, he pledged to “avenge the blood” of the former supreme leader.
Natasha Carr was just one week old when she was abandoned in a toilet at St Thomas’s Hospital, Lambeth, in 1989. She turned to the ITV show for assistance in tracing her biological family in 2018, having no knowledge of her life prior to being fostered and ultimately adopted at the age of two.
While the show was unable to locate her biological parents, it uncovered, after three years of searching, that Natasha has a full sister named Lee-Ann, who is just 18 months older than she is.
Sharing 51 percent of Natasha’s DNA, Lee-Ann was also a foundling, having been left in the staff toilets at St James’s Hospital in Balham when she was just a few days old.
At the time of their reunion in 2022, Natasha told host Davina McCall: “It’s so lovely to have someone who has the same experience. No one will ever understand unless you’re in the exact same situation, and she literally was in the same situation,” reports MyLondon.
On Monday evening (August 24), the ITV show broadcast an update to Natasha and Lee-Ann’s story in Long Lost Family: What Happened Next, eight years after their initial search began.
While the team searched for further relatives of the sisters, they learned that their father had passed away only a few years earlier, following a battle with cancer. Natasha and Lee-Ann received the heartbreaking news away from the cameras.
“I’m on my way to give Natasha and Lee-Ann major information; sadly, their birth father has died, which we’ve told them away from the cameras,” Davina revealed.
Yet the sisters faced another stunning development as Davina confirmed their birth mother had been traced. “She’s still alive, and she would really like the chance to meet them and to start building a relationship,” she added.
Throughout Davina’s conversation with Natasha and Lee-Ann, she disclosed that their father was born and brought up in Jamaica until he was 14 years old.
“It’s really interesting to know our background and where we come from and who we are”, Lee-Ann shared, “That’s what started my journey, I wanted to know what flag.”
The siblings also learned their biological mother was alive and had additional children, leaving them both astounded.
Lee-Ann became visibly emotional and received support from Natasha as Davina confirmed their mum’s desire to reconnect with her two daughters.
Subsequently, in the episode, Natasha confirmed she had encountered her birth mum while Lee-Ann was still coming to terms with the revelation.
Long Lost Family: What Happened Next is available to stream on ITVX
Kinshasa, DR Congo – President Felix Tshisekedi is due to leave office in 2028 under the current Constitution of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Yet with more than two years to go, a battle over the rules governing what happens when his mandate ends is already reshaping Congolese politics.
In May, Tshisekedi said he had not sought a third term but would accept one if the Congolese people wanted him to continue. The remarks revived opposition fears that constitutional reform could eventually open a path beyond the existing two-term limit.
Under the current constitution, the president is elected for five years, renewable once, while the number and length of presidential terms are protected from constitutional revision.
Tshisekedi’s camp says the country needs institutional reform. Opponents of the reform fear the process could ultimately be used to change the rules governing presidential succession.
The dispute is unfolding as the DRC fights a rebellion in the east led by M23, an armed group that operates within the broader Alliance Fleuve Congo (AFC), a political-military coalition that controls Goma and Bukavu, the capitals of North Kivu and South Kivu.
With an opposition mobilisation planned for September and Tshisekedi preparing to outline an inclusive national dialogue, the confrontation is entering a critical phase.
The referendum battle
The confrontation accelerated in June when the Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo passed legislation setting out conditions for organising a referendum.
The Constitutional Court ruled in July that the law complied with the constitution, while raising concerns about some of its provisions. On August 10, Tshisekedi formally asked the presidents of the National Assembly and Senate to reconsider the legislation in light of the court’s observations. The National Assembly said the fresh deliberation would be placed on the agenda for its September session.
The legislation provides for a constituent assembly followed by a referendum in the event of what it describes as a “major dysfunction” of state institutions.
Critics of the process say the mechanism could eventually be used to alter provisions that currently prevent Tshisekedi from seeking a third term. The government, meanwhile, has presented constitutional reform as a broader institutional issue rather than an explicit bid to extend the president’s tenure.
The main opposition group campaigning against the process is known as C64, or the Article 64 coalition. Its name refers to Article 64 of the DRC’s constitution, which calls on citizens to oppose anyone who takes power in violation of the constitutional order.
C64 says it will resist any attempt to use constitutional reform to extend Tshisekedi’s mandate beyond 2028. The coalition announced a nationwide mobilisation for September 15, with demonstrations in Kinshasa expected to converge on the Palais du Peuple, the seat of parliament.
Taking the fight to parliament
The dispute has already spilled onto the streets.
Thousands demonstrated in Goma and Bukavu on July 28 against proposed constitutional changes and any attempt to extend Tshisekedi’s time in office.
In Kinshasa, protesters are expected to converge on the Palais du Peuple.
People protest against constitutional reforms in Kinshasa, DRC on June 12, 2026 [Fiston Issemwami/Al Jazeera]
For C64, the destination is deliberate: the coalition wants to take its protest to the institution at the centre of the constitutional process.
Jean-Marc Kabund, a Congolese opposition politician, told Al Jazeera that no constitutional revision, referendum or legal manoeuvre should be allowed to circumvent the current constitution.
He warned that this happening while the country is at war could deepen divisions and threaten national cohesion.
A constitutional fight during a war
The constitutional dispute is unfolding alongside a conflict that has transformed eastern Congo.
M23 and the AFC have seized large areas of territory, including Goma and Bukavu. The Congolese government accuses Rwanda of supporting M23, a charge that Kigali denies.
The war is also raising questions about the 2028 elections.
Tshisekedi has warned that elections may not be possible if the fighting continues, arguing that it would be difficult to organise a credible vote while parts of the country remain outside government control.
Emmanuel Bugama, a Congolese political analyst based in Bunia, told Al Jazeera that national interests should come before political disputes.
“The nation’s best interests should take precedence over these political squabbles,” he said.
The view from Goma
In Goma, the argument is being watched from a city no longer under Kinshasa’s control.
Gentil Mulume, a civil society activist in Goma, told Al Jazeera that any constitutional change extending Tshisekedi’s mandate would not be recognised in territory controlled by M23 and the AFC.
“If Tshisekedi dares to amend this constitution to extend his term of office, it will not be recognised here,” he said.
Mulume said the dispute was part of a deeper divide between Kinshasa and the east. He argued that continued Tshisekedi rule could be viewed there as a form of domination and that self-determination should be part of the political debate.
His comments illustrate how a constitutional confrontation in Kinshasa is being interpreted in territory already beyond the government’s effective control.
What do ordinary Congolese know?
There is also a more basic question: how much do ordinary citizens understand about the proposed changes?
Kevin Kalala, a 30-year-old mobile-credit retailer in Kinshasa, told Al Jazeera that he does not know enough about the constitution to take a position.
“We do not know what our constitution entails,” he said. “The Congolese state should start by teaching us about our constitution.”
Kalala said citizens should first be shown which provisions need changing, why they need changing, and what the benefits would be.
“I am neither for nor against amending the constitution,” he said.
An offer of dialogue
As tensions rise, Tshisekedi has proposed an inclusive national dialogue involving political parties, civil society and religious groups.
While in Libreville, Gabon, on August 16, he said he would soon address the nation to set out his vision and the contours of the talks. The date and format of the dialogue have yet to be announced.
Tshisekedi has ruled out sitting with people he accuses of siding with Rwanda or the armed rebellion.
Martin Fayulu, who challenged Tshisekedi in the 2018 presidential election, has called for former President Joseph Kabila and Corneille Nangaa, the political leader of the AFC, to participate.
For now, the constitutional dispute is running alongside the war in the east and the uncertainty over the 2028 elections.
The question is no longer only whether the constitution will change. It is whether Congo’s political forces can agree on the rules for what happens when Tshisekedi’s current mandate ends.
“We are certainly heading towards one of the most decisive periods in our recent history,” Bugama told Al Jazeera. “The country is under the control of an armed group, whilst the government in Kinshasa is posturing over constitutional reform instead of tackling what matters most.”
If the action happens, it will be the largest single mass revocation of visas in US history, AP reports.
Published On 25 Aug 202625 Aug 2026
The United States is preparing to cancel business and tourism visas of up to 200,000 foreigners who have applied for or are seeking asylum in the country, according to the Associated Press news agency.
The AP, citing State Department documents and interviews with two US officials, reported on Monday that if the plan goes ahead, it would be the “largest single mass revocation of visas” in the country’s history.
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It said the State Department is expected to announce the action within the coming weeks, working in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
It would target so-called B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026, whose holders have sought asylum or are now seeking asylum.
“We are coordinating with DHS to identify and revoke the nonimmigrant visas of foreigners who have come to the United States claiming to be short-term visitors, but then file for asylum to stay here permanently,” said State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott.
Officials cited by the AP said the revocations would not automatically trigger deportations.
Instead, most people with pending asylum cases would be shifted into a different immigration category, effectively stripping their business or tourist designation while their cases proceed.
In a social media post on Monday, Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau called out people who he said try to use tourist and business visas to get into the US and then apply for asylum.
“People in the US and all over the world are fed up with bogus asylum claims,” Landau wrote on X. “Asylum isn’t supposed to be a loophole to circumvent immigration law.”
Since President Donald Trump took office for his second term last year, his administration has steadily ramped up restrictions on visa applicants – demanding more information about their social media histories, requiring the posting of expensive bonds for the processing of visas, and outright banning the issuance of visas to citizens of certain countries.
In the past 18 months, the State Department has also revoked about 175,000 visas for people who have been convicted or accused of crimes ranging from drunk driving to rape and robbery, as well as for people who have spoken out publicly against US policies, particularly in the Middle East.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announces new sanctions on Tehran to sever financial support for the regime, urging US allies to support the measures.
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
There is a report of a new ship attack in the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting the difficulty of ending hostilities with Iran. The strike came hours after the Trump administration on Monday unleashed the threat of harsh new sanctions to further isolate the Islamic Republic. Though details were sparse, and no deadlines were issued, the goal was to compel the Iranians to return to negotiations by inducing additional economic pain instead of through bombardment. Originally touting the announcement as an “economic D-Day” against Iran, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s lack of firm timelines presented Monday doesn’t seem to match that initial rhetoric.
Monday evening, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center (UKMTO) said it “received a report of an incident 9NM northeast of Ash Shishah, Oman.”
“The Master of an oil tanker reports the vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile causing damage to the engine room and disabling the vessel,” UKMTO reported on X. “Crew are reported safe. Environmental impact is unknown at time of report. Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO. Authorities are investigating.”
UKMTO didn’t assign blame, but it’s obviously extremely likely the attack was carried out by Iran.
Hours before Bessent’s sanctions announcement, the Houthi rebels of Yemen also attacked another Saudi ship in the northern Red Sea. These strikes are a stark reminder that the war launched on Iran by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28 is still sending kinetic shockwaves around the region and roiling the global economy.
At a press conference in Washington, Bessent formally announced the broad outlines of a new list of measures to cut Iran off from global trade. The move comes as the Iranian economy, which was reeling even before the war broke out, continues to suffer after months of war and an ongoing U.S. naval blockade of its ports.
“We are level-setting with every country to tell them our expectations. We know who they are. They know who they are,” Bessent told reporters. “So when the hammer of U.S. Treasury actions falls upon them, they will have no one to blame but themselves.”
Dubbed “Operation Economic Outcast,” the plan calls for every country to “be given a defined timeline to shut down its Iran-related business activity,” Axios noted. “If it fails to do so, the U.S. will impose secondary sanctions.”
As part of this effort, the Treasury Department “issued determinations against five critical sectors––digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping––that the Iranian regime uses to try to prop up its failing economy,” it explained. In addition, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) “sanctioned nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels in multiple jurisdictions that enable the Iranian regime’s recklessness, including illicit nuclear and missile technology procurement, cyber operations, and oil‑revenue generation networks.”
OFAC also “suspended several general licenses that previously authorized certain remittance payments to Iran and Iranian access to the U.S. cultural and academic system,” Treasury noted. “OFAC issued additional guidance on the sanctions risks of bowing to Iranian demands related to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Asked by a reporter what actions the U.S. might take against China, Bessent hinted that Beijing is not exempt. China has been a major importer of Iranian oil and its banks have helped support Tehran’s economy.
“We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions,” Bessent responded. “That if they facilitate transactions and are part of the ecosystem that turns Iranian oil into money, into repression, they will be targeted.”
BIG: Bessent on China and Iran:
We want to make clear here today that no one is above the reach of U.S. sanctions.
That if they facilitate transactions and are part of the ecosystem that turns Iranian oil into money, into repression, they will be targeted. pic.twitter.com/hVuFLlgaZa
Bessent did not offer any further specifics. He was equally vague about any timelines for this effort.
“We are giving everyone the opportunity to remedy bad behavior,” Bessent told reporters. “Why would I want to blow up the global financial system?”
For their part, the Iranians dismissed Bessent’s plan and promised their own harsh response to the new sanctions.
“Americans know that no one buys their bombast; the United States is not in an economic position to further restrict its relations with other countries,” Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian parliament, stated on X. “Iran’s trading partners, both in the media and through messages sent to us, have made it clear that they don’t take these statements into account anywhere.”
آمریکاییها میدانند که کسی گُندهلافیهای آنها را باور نمیکند؛ آمریکا از لحاظ اقتصادی در شرایطی نیست که بخواهد روابط خود با دیگر کشورها را محدودتر از این کند. شرکای تجاری ایران، هم در رسانهها و هم با ارسال پیام به ما اعلام کردهاند که این اظهارات را به هیچ جا حساب نمیکنند.
— محمدباقر قالیباف | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) August 24, 2026
Baghaei did not offer specifics, but Iran still possesses missiles and drones that it can use to strike U.S. and allied interests in the region. In addition, Tehran still maintains a large degree of control over shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Even the threat of additional attacks could affect the flow of oil through the strategic chokepoint.
In addition, on Saturday, Mohsen Rezaei, the head of Iran’s national security council, threatened to attack U.S. businesses, The Telegraph reported. He also warned allies of the U.S. that they would be considered enemies, and their interests harmed if they joined Trump’s economic warfare. Cyberattacks on U.S. water systems that officials suspect may be linked to Iran-backed hackers have been reported in at least a dozen states, CBS News reported earlier this month. Iranian-linked hackers are also suspected of forcing a small British power generator offline for four days last month. Aside from that, there are still many U.S. business interests in the Middle East, and especially energy firms, with major facilities right across the Persian Gulf.
While the U.S. and Iran trade threats, the Houthis carried out a fresh strike on Saudi shipping as we noted earlier in this piece.
The Iranian-backed group claimed it hit the oil tanker Amzan off the coast of Yanbu. That’s the kingdom’s key port on the northern Red Sea, about 600 miles north of Houthi territory.
🔺Ansarallah says it struck the Saudi oil tanker Amzan with a ballistic missile off Yanbu in the northern Red Sea, declaring the attack part of its maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia and its “blockade for blockade” campaign.
Both the UKMTO and the Ambrey maritime security company confirmed the attack, which took place about 64 nm west of Yanbu, Ambrey noted.
After the vessel was hit, “the Egyptian Navy was reported to have responded and was transiting to the area of interest to conduct a rescue operation,” Ambrey stated. “At the time of the attack, the vessel was not transmitting its AIS signal. Its previous AIS transmission was recorded at 02:33 UTC on 8 August.”
The ship attack was the latest Houthi strike against the Saudis. The Yemen-based group had already struck Saudi ships in the southern part of that body of water and refineries along the northern portion after imposing a blockade on the Bab al-Mandeb Strait (BAM), leading several oil tankers in the Red Sea to avoid that route in favor of the Suez Canal. The expansion of the Houthi campaign against Saudi shipping began earlier this month with an attack off the port of Yanbu on the NCC Wafa, a Saudi oil tanker.
Bab al-Mandeb Strait. (Google Earth)
Though both the Strait of Hormuz and the BAM remain under pressure, ship traffic ticked upwards in both chokepoints last week, according to the Kpler global trade intelligence firm. Those numbers alone, however, don’t paint the full picture, Kpler cautioned.
“Traffic edged higher through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb last week, but headline volumes obscure contrasting risk signals,” Kpler cautioned on X. “Hormuz crossings rose 2.5% to 121, while laden transits fell 27% and sanctioned crossings increased from 9 to 16. Use of Iran’s unilateral routing scheme also climbed to 46.3% of crossings.”
“Bab el-Mandeb traffic rose 3.1% to 269 crossings,” the firm added. “Dark transits declined, but sanctioned and shadow fleet crossings remained broadly flat at 74 combined. The data suggest commercial substance is weakening at Hormuz even as overall traffic holds up, while Bab el-Mandeb remains resilient despite an active threat environment.”
Hormuz traffic masks rising risk
Traffic edged higher through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb last week, but headline volumes obscure contrasting risk signals. Hormuz crossings rose 2.5% to 121, while laden transits fell 27% and sanctioned crossings increased from 9 to… pic.twitter.com/iHKsCigEJL
While the U.S. is threatening further moves to hurt the Iranian economy, doing so has inherent risks. For decades, Iran has weathered sanctions and isolation and yet the regime has persevered. It withstood mass protests against it earlier this year with bloody crackdowns that played a big role in moving U.S. President Donald Trump to take military action.
Iran continues to wield the cudgel of threatening the U.S. by resuming attacks on its assets in the region as well as against allies. In July, Tehran took rare initiative with a surprise attack on U.S. forces in Jordan, a contrast to its previous pattern of responding to strikes.
For the U.S., continued conflict risks further expenditure of its stocks of high-end offensive and defensive weapons and strain on its troops and equipment. It would also add new economic pressure. To help mitigate gasoline prices that shot up during the war, the Trump administration began releasing a large amount of oil from the strategic petroleum reserve. That move set off a cascade of downstream effects.
“Stocks of crude oil in the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) fell by about 3.7 million barrels to 289.7 million barrels last week, the lowest level since November 1982,” Reuters reported, citing data from the Department of Energy. “The drawdowns are part of a U.S. agreement to release 172 million barrels from the facility.”
Barchart, the global market data and technology firm, offered a stark assessment of the state of the SPR.
“The U.S. has just 41 days of crude oil inventory left, the lowest level in half a century,” Barchart noted on X.
While that doesn’t mean gas pumps in the U.S. are about to shut down, the alarm bells are ringing.
Earlier this month, the president said his new strategy was to be “low-keying it” in Iran, a suggestion wants to avoid further major military action. However, in addition to global and domestic economic pressure, there are other factors weighing on Trump as he decides what to do next with regard to Iran.
The war is unpopular and the midterm elections are fast approaching. The White House and Republican leadership remain keenly aware that the conflict dragging on until November won’t help the party’s bid to hold onto control of both the Senate and the House.
We will have to see if the Treasury’s plan is actually enacted and what Iran’s response will be. As it sits now, the administration is clearly hoping the threat of such economic isolation will press them to the negotiating table, but Iran has shown no signs yet that it will.
