Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi shakes hands with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Tehran, on Oct. 20, 2026 . Lavrov declared in Tehran that Iran’s fight is a “just cause,” condemned US and Israeli military actions as “unlawful aggression,” offered economic support to Iran during his visit
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- Iran’s foreign minister said Tuesday that Tehran’s ties with Russia had never been so close, after President Trump said Moscow was “doing very little, if anything, to help” Iran amid the war in the Middle East. Russia’s foreign minister, on his first visit to Tehran this week since the outbreak of the war, called U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran illegal.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shared a video Monday on social media of a phone call with Mr. Trump during which he suggests possible new joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, telling the American leader they have “a job to finish.”
- U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth met with Netanyahu on Monday during an unannounced visit to Israel, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
King Charles praises Omani peace efforts during sultan’s state visit to U.K.
King Charles III praised Oman’s peacemaking attempts in the Middle East Tuesday as Sultan Haitham bin Tariq began the first state visit by an Omani ruler to the U.K. in nearly half a century.
Hailing longstanding diplomatic, military and royal ties at a Windsor Castle banquet, the British monarch paid tribute to Muscat’s “noble efforts” to help reopen the choked Strait of Hormuz.
“I would especially like to recognize, at a time when conflict has returned so painfully to the region, Oman’s enduring commitment as a trusted interlocutor to all parties,” Charles told around 160 guests at the lavish dinner.
“Oman’s role across the Gulf and her ‘constructive neutrality’ — as you put it — matters far beyond Hormuz, and is worthy of our utmost respect,” Britain’s king added in a toast to the Omani sultan.
The first state visit to Britain by a sultan of Oman for 44 years comes amid severe turbulence in the Middle East prompted by the U.S.-Iran war.
Oman, a key U.K. military ally which borders the vital Hormuz waterway, has acted as a mediator in talks between the U.S. and Iran since the conflict flared in late February.
Hegseth says he met with Netanyahu in Israel
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Tuesday that he visited Israel on Monday and met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying he “was there visiting our troops” and “had a chance to talk to the prime minister.”
The unannounced visit came just over a week before Netanyahu’s party faces elections. It also comes after President Trump floated resuming military operations against Iran following next month’s U.S. midterm elections.
“Of course, the nature of our conversations is not something I would talk about but they’ve been good partners and I appreciate that,” Hegseth said of his meeting with Netanyahu.
U.S. ramps up warnings to Americans in Middle East after deadly Houthi strikes
U.S. diplomatic missions across the Middle East have issued a new round of security warnings to Americans amid escalating attacks by Iran-backed Houthi militants against Saudi Arabia, including an Oct. 10 strike on Riyadh’s international airport that killed an American citizen.
The alerts, issued Sunday by U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and several other countries, warned that hostilities could rapidly and without warning spread beyond areas already affected by the fighting. The advisories urged Americans to exercise vigilance and prepare for possible flight cancellations, airspace closures and other travel disruptions.
“We are actively warning U.S. citizens about the very real threat the Houthis pose and urging them to heed official guidance,” Edgar Vasquez, the State Department’s deputy assistant secretary for press, told CBS News.
“These alerts are part of a proactive effort by the Trump administration to ensure Americans are aware of potential risks,” Vasquez said, adding that the safety and security of American citizens remain the department’s “top priority.”
3rd tanker hits mines crossing Hormuz strait, IRGC says
Naval mines have halted three tankers attempting to travel the Strait of Hormuz via routes considered illegal by Tehran, Iranian Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday.
“Two violating oil tankers were set ablaze and halted due to the explosion of mines planted by the brave sailors of the IRGC Navy at an illegal crossing point in the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz,” the Guards said in an earlier statement on their official Sepah News website.
The Guards later said in a statement carried by state TV that a third oil tanker “exploded and caught fire after striking a naval mine south of the Strait of Hormuz.”
The tanker “carrying over 2 million barrels of crude oil, had deactivated all of its radar and navigation systems,” the statement added.
Iranian forces have, since the outbreak of the Middle East war, repeatedly targeted ships attempting to pass through Hormuz via a southern, U.S.-approved route close to the Omani coast.
President Trump has said on several occasions that the Strait of Hormuz has been cleared of all mines.
CBS
