Month: August 2026

New poll found a majority of US citizens concerned about the US war on Iran.

The approval rating of United States President Donald Trump has fallen to the lowest level of his presidency, with an overwhelming majority of Americans concerned that the US-Israel war on Iran will last a long time.

Just 33 percent of respondents approved of Trump’s job performance, according to the Reuters/Ipsos poll. The approval rating is the lowest ever during this term and matches the lowest seen in December 2017 during his first term.

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The poll, conducted over the course of four days, found 64 percent of Americans disapproved of how he is handling his job.

The slide in polling figures comes as an overwhelming majority of Americans are concerned by the continuing war on Iran. Consumers have seen the price of fuels rise dramatically since the war began in February, with the cost of gasoline [petrol] up nearly a third compared to a year ago, according to the American Automobile Association.

Trump, who campaigned on promises to keep inflation in check and avoid long-lasting wars, initially pledged that the conflict with Iran would take a few weeks. He argued the war was the only way to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon that could threaten the world. But Iran has proved resilient and has kept the oil and gas export trade through the Strait of Hormuz largely bottled up even as the conflict has cooled.

On Friday, Trump told a rally of supporters that paying “a tiny little bit more for your gasoline” is worth the cost of ensuring “a very evil country,” meaning Iran, could not have a nuclear weapon.

Some 80 percent of Americans, including 87 percent of Democrats and 71 percent of Republicans, think US involvement in Iran “will go on for an extended period of time”, the Reuters/Ipsos poll found. Just 16 percent said the conflict would likely end in a few weeks.

A Politico poll recently showed just a third of self-identified Make America Great Again (MAGA) voters, typically the most unquestioning of Trump’s base, felt the economic costs of the war with Iran were worth it.

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A curated weekday guide to major news and developments over the last 24 hours. Here’s today’s news:

IRAN WAR 

President Trump told reporters yesterday that Iran is unlikely to agree to the deal he wants and called for its surrender, as he ruled out extending a temporary ceasefire agreement that expired yesterday. Trump also threatened to “bomb the shit out of [Oman]” if it obstructed efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz amid reports that Iran and Oman are close to reaching an agreement on managing the strait. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Iran will shift to a “fully offensive” military posture because efforts to negotiate a permanent end to the war have stalled, adding that Tehran would conduct a “timely and precise” military attack to break the U.S. naval blockade of the strait if diplomacy failed. Luke Broadwater reports for the New York Times; Trevor Hunnicutt and Katharine Jackson report for Reuters.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan urged Trump in a call to pursue talks with Iran to de-escalate tensions between the two countries and offered Ankara’s support for peace efforts, the Turkish presidency said today. Reuters reports.  

The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations received a report today that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, causing engine room damage and a crew casualty. Reuters reports.  

Two drones targeted the office of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s prime minister and the home of the region’s intelligence chief in northern Iraq yesterday, the KRG security agency said. The agency added that the attack was launched from Iranian territory, without clarifying whether the drones had hit their target. An Iranian news agency reported that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Iraqi counterpart in a phone call that there is no information indicating the attack originated in Iran. Reuters reports.  

Russia is shipping drone components, ammunition, and TNT to Iran through the Caspian Sea to help Tehran replenish stockpiles damaged during the war, according to a European government document obtained by NBC News. Dan De Luce reports. 

IRAN WAR – YEMEN 

Yemen’s Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree yesterday claimed that the Houthis attacked a Saudi military ship and four escort vessels in the Red Sea with missiles. Two sources from the Yemeni government told Reuters earlier in the day that the Houthis attacked an out-of-service ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait with six missiles. Reuters reports.  

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk yesterday called on “all parties to de-escalate tensions and spare the Yemeni people from further misery.” Türk warned against a return to full-scale conflict following the Houthis’ deadliest attack in years, which killed 58 government troops, according to a military source. Gavin Blackburn reports for Euronews.  

IRAN WAR – LEBANON 

Israeli flags planted on the main coastal highway in southern Lebanon are a violation of U.N. Security Council resolution 1701, which ended a 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, the U.N. peacekeeping force in Lebanon said yesterday. Reuters reports. 

IRAN WAR – OTHER DEVELOPMENTS 

Maj. Jason Watson, a U.S. airman arrested last month for calling for Trump’s removal over the Iran war, said in an interview yesterday that he was willing to accept military punishment for his dissent. During the interview, Watson characterized the war in Iran as an act of U.S. aggression and compared the U.S. military actions to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Watson could be punished for “disloyal statements” or “contemptuous words” against the commander in chief and high-ranking government officials. Minho Kim reports for the New York Times.  

ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR 

Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner met yesterday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which resulted in an agreement to establish two working groups for disarmament and public health in Gaza, according to the Board of Peace and Netanyahu’s office. Netanyahu’s office added that the talks were “deep and constructive,” while the Board of Peace said, “it was agreed that there will be no [Israeli military] redeployment from Gaza until Hamas is fully disarmed.” Asked if Israel had committed to the U.S. plan for Gaza, a spokesperson for the Board of Peace Director Nicolay Mladenov said it was a “work in progress.” Daniella Cheslow reports for POLITICO; Julia Frankel, Samy Magdy, and Wafaa Shurafa report for AP News.  

A U.S. official told Axios that much of the near 4-hour meeting between Kushner and Netanyahu focused on explaining the Board of Peace plan, clarifying misconceptions, and addressing Netanyahu’s concerns. The official said that Kushner also told Netanyahu that the United States does not expect Israel to refrain from taking action against imminent threats by Hamas. However, while Kushner and Netanyahu were meeting, Trump told Fox News that Israel should stop its airstrikes in Gaza, seeing as Hamas has agreed to disarm. Barak Ravid reports; Feliz Solomon and Summer Said report for the Wall Street Journal. 

RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR 

A Russian missile attack today killed 10 people in a village in Ukraine’s Kharkiv region, Ukrainian authorities said. Reuters reports.  

Ukraine launched 620 drones at Moscow and surrounding areas overnight, according to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin. Sobyanin added that Russian forces downed 180 drones and emergency services were working at crash sites, without going into detail on any casualties or damage. Reuters reports.  

Russia’s embassy in London warned Britain today that it would face consequences for supplying drones to Ukraine which are used to target Russian territory. The embassy was responding to a report in The Times over the weekend which said British-made drones had been used for long-range strikes against Russia for the first time. Reuters reports.

OTHER GLOBAL DEVELOPMENTS 

Zambia’s president, Hakainde Hichilema, was declared the winner of a second term early this morning. Hichilema won 60 percent of the vote, according to the Electoral Commission of Zambia. John Eligon reports for the New York Times.  

Eight Israeli airstrikes hit the Abu al-Duhur military airbase in northwestern Syria early this morning, targeting the runway and storage facilities, according to a military source. The Israeli military had not commented on the attacks at the time of writing. Reuters reports. 

Indian security agencies arrested more than 200 “terror operatives” linked to Pakistan, preventing potential “subversive attacks” around India’s Independence Day last week, Indian Home Minister Amit Shah said yesterday. Pakistan’s foreign affairs ministry said it “strongly” rejects the allegations made by Shah, and called them “propaganda.” Reuters reports.  

TECH DEVELOPMENTS 

Nvidia said yesterday that it had agreed to spend as much as $105 billion to back one of the world’s largest data centers, which is being built in Ohio and will be leased to OpenAI. Kalley Huang reports for the New York Times.  

Trump-backed World Liberty Financial is collaborating with Hong Kong-based venture, World Claw, which offers AI models developed by Chinese companies. A Reuters review found that 43 of the 90 models available through WorldClaw’s website were developed by Alibaba, Baidu, Z.ai and other Chinese technology companies the Trump administration says pose risks to national security and intellectual property. Lawrence Delevigne reports.

U.S. FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

A U.S. Navy destroyer lost power for four days in the South China Sea last month, according to a U.S. 7th Fleet statement. The crew lost access to drinkable water, running toilets, and air conditioning. The Navy did not explain why it had not disclosed the incident until now. Tara Copp reports for the Washington Post.

Trump yesterday defended his move to cut U.S.- South Korea military exercises, citing a lack of help with the Strait of Hormuz. South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said today that a solid alliance with the United States underpins national security, but also called for stronger independent defence capabilities in light of Trump’s recent statements. The U.S. Korea commander has begun discussions on scaling back joint South Korea drills. Cleve R. Wootson Jr. reports for the Washington Post; Hyung-Jin Kim reports for AP News; Joyce Lee and Kyu-Seok Shim report for Reuters.

U.S. IMMIGRATION DEVELOPMENTS  

Democratic members of Congress held a public forum yesterday on the fatal ICE shooting of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine last month. The Department of Homeland Security has said the inspector general would investigate an agent’s decision to open fire. Maia Spoto and Murray Carpenter report for the New York Times.

ICE looks to shield local police from financial consequences if they are accused of on-duty misconduct during immigration arrests. According to a DHS document published on Friday, the agency proposes to subsidise liability insurance for state and local officers who are trained and deputized to enforce federal immigration laws. Ryan J. Foley reports for AP News.

U.S. DOMESTIC DEVELOPMENTS 

Luigi Mangione’s state trial has been postponed following his guilty plea on federal charges. The Judge issued the order following requests from Mangione’s lawyers to dismiss state charges on grounds of double jeopardy. Torey Van Oot reports for Axios.

Palm Beach County voting records show Trump voted by mail in Florida’s Republican Primary this month, despite his efforts to limit the practice across the country. Gary Fineout reports for POLITICO.

The Justice Department plans to deploy a thousand monitors to the polls in the fall, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon. In an interview with Bloomberg yesterday, Dhillon said the deployment is “probably going to be a historic number for a Republican administration.” She also claimed that the DOJ is part of the executive branch and reports to the president. Patrick Marley reports for the Washington Post.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LITIGATION

On Monday, the Supreme Court again rejected Trump’s request to review his civil conviction for sexual abuse and defamation against E. Jean Carroll. Trump paid $5 million to Carroll following the court’s initial rejection of an appeal in July. Ann E. Marimow reports for the New York Times.

A federal appeals court yesterday rejected Trump’s strategy of picking U.S. Attorneys. The appointments aimed to circumvent congressional confirmation through the selection of interim prosecutors. The judgment states that the Attorney General cannot “create a de facto Acting U.S. Attorney by delegating all of the functions and duties of the U.S. Attorney to someone else.” Danny Hakim reports for the New York Times.

A federal judge yesterday blocked plans to move FBI headquarters to Washington. The ruling also found that Trump’s administration had illegally tossed out previously approved plans to build new facilities nearby in Maryland. Jonathan J. Cooper reports for AP News.

Did you miss this? Stay up-to-date with our Litigation Tracker: Legal Challenges to Trump Administration Actions.

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FEATURED IMAGE: WASHINGTON – JANUARY 23: Clouds move as the sun sets against the west front of the United States Capitol building January 23, 2007 in Washington, DC. U.S. President George W. Bush is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union speech before a joint meeting of Congress at 9:00 PM Eastern. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)