Top World News

Mar 17, 2026 - World

President Donald Trump just got a "quiet but unmistakable" message from U.S. allies over his troubles in Iran. Trump has called on U.S. allies to help clear the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran effectively shut off to American and Israeli ships in retaliation for the bombing strikes the two countries have carried out since late February. The Strait accounts for 20% of global oil trade, and the blockade is part of the reason why energy prices in the U.S. have reached levels not seen since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.Not a single U.S. ally has stepped up to help the Trump administration, according to reports. Swaran Singh, professor of diplomacy and disarmament at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, wrote in a new op-ed for Asia Times that Trump has created a "coalition of the unwilling" with his move to bomb Iran, and that could leave the U.S. more isolated in the future. "This explains the emerging consensus — quiet but unmistakable — in favor of an early ceasefire and against further militarization of this crisis," Singh wrote, noting that 135 countries at the U.N. voted on a resolution to support ending the war in Iran. "Understandably, most nations are not ready to confront Trump, but neither have they endorsed his approach. It is a delicate balancing act: strategic ambiguity as a form of dissent. This silent ambiguity can translate into American isolation.""A U.S. capable of launching strikes is unable to rally allies; it’s a superpower that commands attention, but not alignment," he added. "Trump’s continued escalation, despite the lack of broad international support, risks deepening this isolation further."Read the entire op-ed by clicking here.

Mar 17, 2026 - World

An analyst described how President Donald Trump's recent attacks on NATO allies and reversed requests for assistance to reopen the vital oil channel, the Strait of Hormuz, have revealed how the president views war. MS NOW host Nicolle Wallace was talking to Tom Nichols, staff writer at The Atlantic, about why Trump's comments have isolated the United States from its European allies in his war against Iran. "There's such an erratic nature to his comments about what he wants and needs, both from our allies and in terms of the Strait of Hormuz," Wallace said. "You know, in a way, he's not erratic. He's very constant," Nichols said. "He's like an angry little boy. You know when people say they're not coming to his birthday party, he says, 'Well, I didn't want you there anyway.'""It's childlike," Nichols added. "He kind of approaches the world as sort of a resentful, arrested development small child. Because, for one thing, he doesn't understand that other countries have agency. They are not simply wholly owned subsidiaries of the United States. They are not part of Trump enterprises. You know, Keir Starmer is not the executive vice president for, you know, British relations in the Trump organization. These people answer to their voters, their countries have interests. And the tragedy is for decades they have identified their interests with ours and we with theirs. "The reality is different from what Trump thinks, Nichols explained. "And now Donald Trump says, 'Look, an alliance means that you do what's good for me when I tell you to do it, and when I snap my fingers, and then the rest of the time I insult you and I talk you down, because of course, I'm the most powerful and we have the best, and we don't need anyone,'" Nichols said. "And then he's shocked when all the other kids won't come to his party. Well, you know, that's international diplomacy. People don't like to jump into a war that they didn't have any part in starting. This could have been avoided with just a modicum of competent diplomacy, of just talking to some of these governments ahead of time, not just to make the case, but to say, 'Look, we understand you might have heartburn about this. We're going to do what we can to keep you in the loop.'"But since Trump didn't take the diplomatic approach, he doesn't have the diplomatic results. "And instead, every single day, Trump vacillates between, 'We don't need you and you're stupid and weak. And how come you stupid, weak people that we don't need aren't showing up and putting your sons and daughters on the line and putting them in harm's way?'" Nichols said. "He's not capable of grasping the paradox in that, because the whole world is about Donald Trump, and everyone else is just, you know, a prop or a bit player."

Mar 17, 2026 - World

High-profile attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz have epitomized Iran's hit-and-run response to superior American and Israeli firepower, but analysts warn that Tehran's asymmetric strategy isn't limited to guns, bombs or the physical geography of the battlefield.

Mar 17, 2026 - World

Larijani was killed by an Israeli airstrike and is the most senior Iranian fatality since Ali Khamenei on first day of warMiddle East crisis – live updatesIran’s supreme national security council has confirmed the death of its chief, Ali Larijani, after Israel said it had killed him in an airstrike.“The pure souls of the martyrs embraced the purified soul of God’s righteous servant, Martyr Dr Ali Larijani,” the council said on Tuesday evening, adding that his son and his bodyguards had died with him. Continue reading...

Mar 17, 2026 - World

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reversed her tune on Tuesday after previously saying there was "no imminent threat" from Iran — then five days later saying the complete opposite.Leavitt wrote a lengthy response on X to Joe Kent, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, the first administration official to speak out against the war and exit his role. Kent was a longtime MAGA ally of President Donald Trump, who appointed him to the job, and early Tuesday shared his decision on X. He described why he would not support the ongoing conflict, saying, "I cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.""There are many false claims in this letter but let me address one specifically: that 'Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation,'" Leavitt wrote in rebuttal. "This is the same false claim that Democrats and some in the liberal media have been repeating over and over."MeidasTouch podcaster Adam Mockler pointed out Leavitt's words and how they had changed from days ago in an X post on Tuesday."You literally just said there was no threat," Mockler wrote, highlighting Leavitt's own words from March 12.Last week, Leavitt was critical of an ABC News report in a separate post on X, blaming the outlet for "providing false information to intentionally alarm the American people.""TO BE CLEAR: No such threat from Iran to our homeland exists, and it never did," she wrote.