Gizem Nisa Demir
21 September 2026•Update: 21 September 2026
Here’s a rundown of all the news you need to start your Monday, including US President Donald Trump warning of major developments in the Iran war as he weighs his next move, Germany’s AfD emerging as the strongest party in state elections in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, and powerful explosions being reported at a military site in the southern countryside of Syria’s Aleppo province.
TOP STORIES
- Trump warns he has entered 'deciding mode' on Iran, says 'big things' are in store
US President Donald Trump warned that he has entered a critical decision phase on the ongoing Iran war, cautioning that major developments will occur if Tehran fails to change its conduct.
"My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up? They had better behave," Trump told US network Fox News, detailing his approach to the war.
He described his current options as wiping the country out, allowing it to "rot" economically, or negotiating a deal, adding that "very big things are going to be happening in the not-so-distant future."
- AfD wins in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as Left Party tops Berlin vote
Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) emerged as the strongest party in a state election in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, while the Left Party finished first in Berlin's state election, according to preliminary results.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the AfD won 38.2% of the vote, ahead of the governing Social Democratic Party (SPD) with 35.5%, according to the state election commission.
The Left Party received 6.5% and the Greens 5.7%, giving them five seats each in the 71-seat parliament. The AfD is set to hold 32 seats and the SPD 29.
- Powerful explosions reported in Syria's Aleppo countryside: State media
Powerful explosions were heard in the town of Al-Eis in the southern countryside of Syria's Aleppo province, according to the Syrian state-run Al-Ikhbariya channel.
The nature of the blasts was being investigated, the broadcaster reported.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) later reported that a blast occurred at a military site in the vicinity of Al-Eis, adding that a continuous series of secondary explosions followed the initial explosion, citing local civil defense officials.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- Israeli authorities closed several major roads in occupied Jerusalem and most checkpoints linking the West Bank to the city as Yom Kippur began, witnesses told Anadolu.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed to stay in office and press ahead with reforms after his conservative CDU suffered a crushing defeat in the eastern state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
- Germany’s socialist Left Party was on track for a historic first-place finish in Berlin’s state election, with lead candidate Elif Eralp hailing a result that could make her the capital’s first governing mayor from a migrant background.
- Iran's military said it has received information suggesting that the US decided to resume strikes against the Islamic Republic.
- A Yemeni governmental body said that nearly 147,000 people have been displaced this month amid an ongoing military escalation in the war-torn country.
- The Kuwait Specialty Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip announced the suspension of operations in all departments except for emergency care due to a halt in fuel supplies amid an Israeli blockade.
- Around 100 Israeli occupiers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem under the protection of Israeli forces, the Jerusalem Governorate said.
- The US, Japan and South Korea held phone consultations to share information and discuss responses after North Korea’s latest ballistic missile launches, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said.
- Egypt said the Suez Canal remains “safe,” with maritime traffic operating normally along one of the world’s most important shipping routes.
- Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani called for a regional security framework bringing Gulf countries and Iran together, saying the recent war should serve as a "wake-up call" for the region.
- Israeli forces conducted raids across the occupied West Bank, arresting two Palestinians, including a child, while Palestinian state media reported separate attacks by Israeli occupiers.
- A US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer shot and wounded a person in North Austin, Texas, local broadcaster KVUE News reported, citing three state and local officials.
- Four civilians were killed and three injured in airstrikes targeting telecommunications towers in Khabb wa ash Sha'af district of Yemen's Al-Jawf governorate, the Houthi-run Yemen News Agency (SABA) reported.
- Yemen’s government-affiliated Giants Brigades said they destroyed five Houthi military vehicles on the Kahbub front overlooking the Bab al-Mandab Strait, killing all those inside.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in New York to attend the 81st session of the UN General Assembly high-level week.
- Qatar said its mediation team has been discussing proposals for nearly two weeks aimed at restarting talks between the US and Iran.
- Gaza’s Government Media Office announced the launch of an “urgent emergency plan” led by the Ministry of Public Works and Housing in cooperation with various government ministries, institutions and international and UN bodies to evacuate and demolish 255 buildings damaged during Israel’s genocide on the enclave and considered at risk of collapse.
- The Israeli army set olive groves and citrus orchards in southern Lebanon ablaze with phosphorus munitions amid artillery shelling and a ground incursion involving three tanks, according to Lebanese state media.
- Atletico Madrid beat a 10-man Real Madrid 2-1 at home in the seventh week of LaLiga.
- US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed during a phone call to meet during this week’s UN General Assembly meetings in New York, according to the Ukrainian leader.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
- US, China hold economic talks in New York ahead of White House summit
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in New York for high-level negotiations covering artificial intelligence (AI) security, critical minerals and trade friction.
"These talks help lay the groundwork for (US) President (Donald) Trump to advance America's economic interests and deliver results for the American people," Bessent wrote on the US social media platform X, noting that the engagement continues dialogue on the economic relationship before Trump hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington.
Arriving at the JPMorgan Chase headquarters in Manhattan, Bessent told reporters that he anticipated "focused, fulsome and constructive talks" alongside US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
- Macron and Carney agree to deepen transatlantic cooperation during historic summit in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon
French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed to deepen transatlantic ties and advance cooperation across defense, energy and strategic sectors during a historic working summit in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.
"Today, to be sovereign goes beyond being able to feed, fuel and defend ourselves," Carney said, adding that contemporary sovereignty "requires secure access to artificial intelligence, to space, semiconductors, critical minerals (and) clean energy."
The bilateral meeting in the French overseas archipelago, located 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) off the coast of Newfoundland, marked the first official visit by a Canadian prime minister to the territory.
