August 16, 2026 · Foreign Policy, War & National Security

Well supported

Gabbard Called a Kurdish Leader to Open a Secret Back Channel Around Iran’s Own Negotiators, Axios Reports

Around May 10, then-Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard telephoned Nechirvan Barzani, president of the Kurdistan region of Iraq, and asked him to reach the commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard...

July 29, 2026 · Foreign Policy, War & National Security

Confirmed

Treasury Sanctions Two Iranian Firms Over a Strait of Hormuz 'Insurance' Scheme That Charges Ships to Pass

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control designated two firms on July 29, 2026 that it says are integral to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-backed scheme forcing commercial vessels to buy mandatory...