Smoke rises near Riyadh airport after Houthi missile and drone attack Flames and a large plume of black smoke were seen rising above Riyadh airport on Saturday, after Yemen’s Houthis said they had attacked “sensitive” sites in the Saudi capital with missiles and drones. logo of the Saudi oil company Aramco near King Khalid International Airport, with explosions heard throughout the city. “In the direction of the airport, we saw black smoke and fire,” one resident told Agence France-Presse. The military coalition fighting the Houthis said its air defenses had destroyed a missile fired toward Riyadh. Shortly afterwards the go-ahead was given.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 07:50 Oil falls as crude flows from the Middle East remain “surprisingly strong.” Oil prices fell today as traders wait for a more complete recovery of Saudi Arabian shipments after attacks by the Iranian-backed Houthis with missiles and drones on Saturday. US West Texas Intermediate futures for October fell 2.23 percent to $98.06 a barrel. “Middle East oil flows remain surprisingly strong despite the disruption of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline,” JPMorgan analysts said in a Sept. 18 note, adding that total oil flows had averaged 17.1 million barrels per day over the past 10 days, just 6.1 million bpd below the 2025 level. Saudi crude exports have recovered to more than 4 million barrels per day so far in September, down from a low of 2.4 million bpd in August, the weakest level since at least 2013, according to provisional data from analysis firm Kpler. A dozen cargo ships transited the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, up from 35 the previous weekend, shipping data showed, as tension in the Gulf persisted with the United States and Iran at a stalemate. Before the US-Israel war with Iran began on February 28, about 125 large commercial vessels a day typically passed through the strait.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 07:30 Oil falls as Middle East crude flows remain “surprisingly strong.” delivery fell 2.22 per cent to $101.56 (£80) a barrel, while US October West Texas Intermediate futures fell 2.23 per cent to $98.06 (£77) a barrel. “Middle East oil flows remain surprisingly strong despite the disruption of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline,” JPMorgan analysts said in a Sept. 18 note, adding that total oil flows had averaged 17.1 million barrels per day. in the past 10 days, just 6.1 million bpd below the 2025 average. Saudi crude exports have recovered to more than 4 million barrels a day so far in September, up from a low of 2.4 million bpd in August, the weakest level since at least 2013, according to provisional data from analytics firm Kpler. as tension persisted in the Gulf with the United States and Iran at a stalemate. Before the US-Israel war with Iran began on February 28, about 125 large commercial ships a day typically passed through the strait. Stuti Mishra September 21, 2026 07:30 Iran says it has new targets and weapons ready if the United States launches a new attack. Iran would use new weapons and previously unattacked targets if the United States launched a new offensive against it, Revolutionary Guards. Spokesman Hossein Mohebbi just said, according to the Fars news agency: “If a new aggression occurs, we will certainly change the weaponry and the geography of the war,” Mohebbi said, adding that Tehran was prepared for a protracted conflict. Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 07:10IRGC says it shot down US MQ-1 drone over Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said today that its aerospace force had tracked and destroyed another US MQ-1 military drone over the Strait of Hormuz.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 06:49Strait of Hormuz crisis could delay QatarEnergy expansion projects, CEO saysCrisis over the Strait of Hormuz could delay some QatarEnergy expansion projects because critical equipment cannot reach Qatar, he said on Sunday its executive director, Saad al-Kaabi. He said QatarEnergy was currently producing only a “very tiny” volume of liquefied natural gas. Some LNG trains under QatarEnergy’s North Field East (NFE) expansion are due to start running in 2027, and the North Field South (NFS) expansion will start production in 2028, Kaabi said at the Qatar Economic Forum in New York.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 06:35Iran will ‘never’ get a nuclear weapon, door open to talks, says US envoy US is determined to ensure that Iran will never acquire a nuclear weapon and will continue to apply “maximum pressure to that end,” said Mike Waltz, the US envoy to the UN. In a post on X, Waltz said the door remained open for Iran to return to the “negotiating table if it does so in good faith.” Speaking at an event in New York hosted by Al-Monitor, whose images he shared in the publication, Mr. Waltz called the war between the United States and Israel against Iran the continuation of a 47-year conflict. MishraSeptember 21, 2026 06:05Trump administration preparing sanctions against International Criminal Court, report says The Trump administration has prepared sanctions against the entire International Criminal Court and plans to announce them soon, Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter. Both Reuters and the Wall Street Journal reported that the decision could be made as soon as this week, during the UN General Assembly meeting in New York. Washington has already sanctioned several ICC judges and prosecutors. But entity-level sanctions would prohibit U.S. citizens and companies from providing funds, goods or services to the court without a license from the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, limiting operations that include hiring investigators and paying dozens of U.S. employees. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in July a campaign to isolate the court and called on other countries to withdraw from it. Trump’s opposition to the court dates back to his first term and resurfaced after the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in November 2024.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 05:26France vows response after Iran closes French language centerFrance will summon Iran’s ambassador and take appropriate measures in response after Iranian authorities sealed a French language center affiliated with its embassy in Tehran, as reported by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs “This new attack against France’s cultural presence in Iran, following the assault on two members of the French embassy staff last July, is unjustifiable and unacceptable,” spokesman Pascal Confavreux said in a statement yesterday. Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported yesterday that authorities had closed the French language center following a court order from the Tehran prosecutor’s office. The center operated for years under the cover of foreign language teaching despite repeated warnings to obtain a license, authorities said, accusing them of activities against Iranian culture and national security, including identifying and building networks, as well as facilitating the departure of qualified Iranians from the country. France has previously rejected such accusations, saying there had been a pattern of intimidation in recent months as Paris sought to increase its support and contacts with Iran’s civil society following the crackdown on protests earlier this year. MishraSeptember 21, 2026 04:43 Big things are going to happen: Trump says he is in ‘decision mode’ over Iran war US President Donald Trump said he is in “decision mode” over the Iran war, warning that “big things are going to happen”. His comments come as both the United States and Iran trade threats again. Tehran also said it had shared its conditions with Washington, through mediators, for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Trump told Fox News that he was in “decisive mode” and warned that “very big things are going to happen in the not-too-distant future” if the Iranian regime does not “behave.” they rot economically”, or “make a deal”.Stuti MishraSeptember 21, 2026 04:16
