Aug. 14, 2026 - Daily News Digest
On this day: in 2015, The U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba re-opens after 54 years of being closed when Cuba–United States relations were broken off.
QOTD: “We’re preparing for the worst-case scenario,” regional Governor Yevgeny Solntsev said Thursday, adding that Orenburg will need fuel supplies from other areas of Russia.
UAE/IRAN/MIL/SHIPPING - 2 UAE tankers attacked while transiting Strait of Hormuz, and other news from the Middle East
https://apnews.com/article/iran-uae-us-strait-hormuz-august-14-2026-e8565c608ac5283ec8103c85df924b13
The United Arab Emirates blamed Iran for firing drones at two tankers operated by a state-owned oil company as they sailed through the Strait of Hormuz, saying Friday that the attacks were acts of piracy.
The attacks caused no casualties but underlined the dangers faced by vessels moving cargo through the critical waterway that connects the Persian Gulf to the open oceans, as Iran keeps a firm grip on the passage.
Here’s a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider Middle East. Full coverage can be found here.
2 oil tankers hit by drones as they transited Strait of Hormuz
Two tankers owned by Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil and gas company ADNOC were attacked Thursday evening while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the company said. It added that the attack caused no injuries and that “the situation has been brought under control.”
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center said two vessels were reported to have suffered minor damage when attacked by drones while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. It did not identify them as the ADNOC ships, but it appeared to be the same incident.
ITALY/LATVIA/NATO/MIL/RUSSIA? - Italian NATO fighter jet shoots down drone in Latvian airspace
https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/latvia-shoots-down-drone-its-airspace-finland-restricts-parts-baltic-sea-2026-08-14/
An Italian fighter jet, part of a NATO mission, shot down a drone of unknown origin that entered the airspace of NATO and EU member Latvia on Friday during Ukrainian attacks on Russian ports, the defence pact and Latvian authorities said.
Latvian soldiers were searching for debris from the drone around midday in a wooded area near the village of Rugaji — around 35 km (22 miles) from the Baltic nation's border with Russia — which was identified as a potential crash site.
"We can't give information about the origin of the drone as the area is not yet searched," Latvian military spokesperson Iveta Berzina told public broadcaster LSM.
Ukrainian military drones have strayed into the Baltic nations' airspace several times this year.
Before Friday's incident, Ukraine had been attacking Russian ports overnight near St Petersburg, which is located close to Finland and the Baltic countries. Local regional governor Alexander Drozdenko said on Telegram that Russian forces had shot down 15 Ukrainian drones during the strikes.
Two Italian Eurofighter jets took off from Lithuania and two Turkish F-16s were scrambled from a base in Estonia in response to the detection of the drone over Latvian airspace, NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said.
JAPAN/RAIN - Record-breaking rain floods Chiba east of Tokyo, killing at least 5 people
https://apnews.com/article/japan-chiba-rain-floods-d37730f09557f9cce4948754fcef673c
Record-breaking rainfall flooded cities east of Tokyo overnight, killing at least five people, injuring over two dozen others and stranding thousands, authorities said Friday.
As the deluge subsided, the Japan Meteorological Agency downgraded its most severe heavy-rain warning in more than a dozen municipalities in the prefecture of Chiba while forecasting more rain later Friday.
The prefecture saw unprecedented rainfall levels Thursday, with 1.5 centimeters (4.5 inches) in just one hour in Chiba City and 9.7 centimeters (3.8 inches) fell in one hour in the city of Sakura, JMA said.
Photos and television footage showed widespread damage, with homes, cars and parts of railway tracks filled with muddy water. Roads and dozens of homes were also flooded and some areas remained without power.
Chiba prefecture officials said the five deaths included a man found floating on a flooded road in Ichikawa city and a woman who had been stuck in a flooded car in Sakura. Two others were presumed dead after being pulled from flooded cars in the cities of Kashiwa and Chiba.
US/ISRAEL/INT - US could not verify Israeli warnings of Iran plots against Trump, sources say
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-could-not-verify-israeli-warnings-iran-plots-against-trump-sources-say-2026-08-13/
The U.S. has received several warnings from Israel over the past year that Iran intended to assassinate President Donald Trump, including before a secret Air Force One ruse in Turkey, that U.S. intelligence officials could not independently verify, according to a current U.S. official and two former officials.
The warnings, passed to U.S. intelligence agencies and in some cases relayed directly by Israeli officials to senior White House officials, included possible plots to shoot Trump with a sniper or recruit someone to attack him with a knife at a large public event, the sources said. The tips began in the lead-up to the 12-day war in June 2025 and intensified prior to the U.S. decision to go to war in Iran in February, the sources said.
The most detailed warning came ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara in July, the U.S. official and the other person familiar with the matter said. Israeli officials briefed the White House about intelligence that indicated Iran may try to kill Trump, potentially with a shoulder-launched missile, while he traveled on Air Force One for the summit, the officials said.
The U.S. intelligence community has long assessed that Iran wants to retaliate for Trump’s killing of Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani in 2020. But the Central Intelligence Agency has not been able to corroborate some of the specific threats against Trump's life shared by Israeli intelligence since early last year, the officials said.
RUSSIA/UKRAINE/MIL/ENERGY - Russian Regions Face New Fuel Crunch As Kyiv Hits Refineries
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-14/russian-regions-report-new-fuel-crunch-as-kyiv-hits-refineries
Several regions of Russia are facing fuel shortages again after Ukraine resumed almost daily attacks on oil refineries in the country.
The Kaluga region neighboring Moscow will introduce a rationing system for cars from Saturday based on license plates, according to regional Governor Vladislav Shapsha. The Astrakhan region on the Caspian Sea coast plans to limit fuel sales to 40 liters per vehicle and temporarily restrict operations at a number of city gas stations, Governor Igor Babushkin said late Thursday.
Earlier this week, the Orenburg region in Russia’s Urals introduced a rationing system that allows sales based on vehicle license plates, limits gasoline and diesel sales per driver at the pump and bans the filling of fuel canisters.
That came after Ukraine’s drone strike on the Orsk refinery in the region that’s some 1,500 kilometers (932 miles) southeast of Moscow. Officials said repairs could take as long as six months.
US/CHINA/TECH/TRADE - Trump’s 100% Tariff on Drones Deepens US-China Tech Decoupling
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-13/trump-imposes-100-tariffs-on-certain-drones-countering-china
The Trump administration is imposing tariffs of as much as 100% on imported drones and their components, escalating efforts to reduce US reliance on foreign suppliers and potentially accelerating a decoupling of drone supply chains with China.
The top rate will apply to heavier drones — weighing more than 25 kilograms — or those that possess certain capabilities, the White House said Thursday. Smaller drones will be taxed at 25%, while lower rates apply to some trading partners such as the European Union and Japan.
The statement didn’t mention China, but the tariffs risk reinforcing a two-way separation with the world’s dominant drone manufacturer already under way. They also add to a drumbeat of tit-for-tat measures just weeks before Chinese leader Xi Jinping is expected to meet with President Donald Trump in the US.
“In the long term, we’re probably slipping towards an outcome of a hard decoupling for at least certain types of drones,” said Christopher Beddor, deputy China research director at Gavekal Dragonomics. “I think this is part of a broader pattern in which both the US and China uphold their basic trade agreement but continue to take relatively low-grade actions against each other.”
US restrictions on new foreign-made models last year have curbed Chinese access to the American market, while Beijing has tightened scrutiny of drone-related exports to the US. Chinese drone exports to the US fell to about $50 million in the first half of this year, roughly half the level recorded a year earlier, according to Chinese customs data.
ROMANIA/POWER - Romania shuts nuclear plant, Hungary dams dry Danube River
https://www.dw.com/en/romania-shuts-nuclear-plant-hungary-dams-dry-danube-river/a-78359581
Romania shut down its lone nuclear power plant on Thursday, a rare move amid the drought that has caused record lows on the Danube River and other major waterways in Europe.
The Danube is the sole source of cooling water for the Cernavoda plant, which usually generates around one-fifth of Romania's electricity.
The power station has only been shut down once before, in 2023, again as a result of drought and a hot summer.
Meanwhile, Hungary was scrambling to dam the Danube, as it tries to keep its Paks nuclear power plant at least running at the minimal levels that it has maintained in recent days, which are far below capacity.
Romania's Nuclearelectrica company had already shut one of the two reactors at Cernavoda last month.
On Thursday, it said it needed to shut the second "because of the significant and ongoing drop in the water level of the Danube River."
The company tried earlier this month, with help from the Navy, to improve the plant's chances of staying operational.
Most memorably, it blew up a rocky outcrop exposed by the low water levels and strategically deposited the rocks on the riverbed in a bid to direct more water to Cernavoda.
But ultimately, continued dry weather and sinking water levels prompted the total shutdown.
"We do not foresee a restart within the next 10 days," the plant director, Romeo Urjan, told the AFP news agency.
Romania's Energy Ministry said it was procuring alternative power sources, including from wind power but also from energy imports, to try to ensure adequate supplies. Still it appealed to the public to consume responsibly.
It warned that as a last resort, large industrial users would have to face restrictions in the evening hours to save electricity. Carmakers Ford and Dacia had already committed to pausing production until August 19 to save power.
UKRAINE/RUSSIA/FOOD - Ukraine offers Russia truce in Black Sea as food supply fears mount, source says
https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-offers-russia-truce-black-sea-food-supply-fears-mount-source-says-2026-08-13/
Ukraine has sent Russia an offer suggesting they both halt attacks on civilian targets in the Black Sea, a source said, after mounting strikes on vessels and ports there raised fears over global food supplies.
The offer to suspend attacks was transmitted by Kyiv via a third party, and Ukraine was still waiting for a response, the source who is familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Both Russia and Ukraine, major players in the world agriculture market, have accused each other of intensified attacks on vessels used for exports.
EU WHEAT PARES GAINS AFTER REPORT
Kyiv was forced to turn to alternative shipment routes when many shipowners halted stops at ports in late July in the southern region of Odesa — a key hub for grain exports - wary after Russian strikes on dozens of ships.
For its part, Russia had to suspend operations at all three terminals at its Black Sea port of Novorossiysk on Wednesday and Thursday after a Ukrainian attack, and will have to cut its grain exports further.
The Kremlin and Russian foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report of Ukraine's offer.
Before the report, Deputy Russian Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said Moscow had received no formal Black Sea ceasefire proposal.
YEMEN/SEC - Iran-backed Houthis clash with Yemeni forces and other Mideast developments
https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-strait-hormuz-yemen-houthi-august-13-2026-42eb6af678a8f16d3a2cb14bd7918a12
Clashes between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and government forces in Yemen raged overnight and into Thursday, raising fears that the country’s civil war could reignite and open another front in the Middle East.
Here’s a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider Middle East. Full coverage can be found here.
Yemeni soldier killed in clashes with Houthis
At least one government soldier was killed and another critically wounded in clashes with the Houthis in the mountainous province of Taiz, Yemeni military officials told The Associated Press.
The fighting came as part of a spate of recent Houthi attacks on government-held areas across the country. Dozens of government troops have been killed since last week, the Yemeni military said.
The Houthis also said they launched another drone attack on an Aramco oil refinery in Saudi Arabia. Saudi officials did not immediately comment on the reported attack in the city of Jazan. Last weekend, the Houthis fired drones at the refinery, where the Saudi Energy Ministry reported a fire but no casualties.
Last month, the Houthis announced a blockade of Saudi shipping, threatening another key trade route in the region.
US/IRAN/MIL - U.S. Sending Fresh Aircraft Carrier to Middle East Amid Iran War Strain
https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/u-s-sending-fresh-aircraft-carrier-to-middle-east-amid-iran-war-strain-d0d6e98d?mod=world_feat1_middle-east_pos1
The U.S. military is preparing to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln with the USS George Washington as part of a scheduled Middle East deployment, U.S. officials said, amid growing concerns over living conditions aboard the Lincoln and the strain on troops during the Iran war.
Several lawmakers say they are concerned about reports of a lack of food and personal supplies aboard the carrier, as well as plumbing backups, as the carrier’s deployment stretches into its ninth month.
A U.S. official confirmed Thursday that a person went overboard the Lincoln in early August but was quickly rescued.
The Lincoln has been deployed for more than 250 days and it hasn’t made a port call in 200 days, setting a record for consecutive days at sea, according to Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D., Conn.), who wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao.
“There have been widespread reports of shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing issues, deteriorating mental health, deck safety concerns, and disruptions in the mail system, which have caused many care packages in route to the ship to be lost in transit for months,” Blumenthal wrote.