Iran war drives wedge between US and Saudi Arabia — as America considers drastic change in Middle East
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Iran war drives wedge between US and Saudi Arabia — as America considers drastic change in Middle East
By Ronny Reyes Published July 1, 2026, 5:05 p.m. ETSee more of our coverage in your search results.
Add The New York Post on GoogleThe war in Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have caused a rift between the US and Saudi Arabia — leaving America to consider possibly reducing its military footprint in the kingdom, officials said.
Disputes over President Trump’s handling of the war and economic threats to Saudi Arabia have caused the partnership to sour, with both Washington and Riyadh allegedly snubbing each other and cutting back on the mutual military alliance, officials familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.
The fallout has led the US to reconsider its presence in the kingdom and focus its forces on nations that support the war with Iran, including Israel and Jordan, sources told the outlet.
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The already shaky alliance with Saudi Arabia began to fall apart after Trump launched a joint war with Israel against Iran in February, which Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbors had been lobbying against for months.
The war risked retaliatory attacks across the region and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which Saudi Arabia depended on for the bulk of its oil exports.
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Both fears manifested during the war, with Saudi Arabia becoming a target of Iran despite the kingdom’s initial refusal to let the US use its bases and airspace for the attacks.
The Trump administration would also go on to ignore the Saudis push to end the war early and drop the American blockade on Iranian ports, with Riyadh urging diplomacy over warfare, the WSJ reported.
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The situation reached a boiling point when Trump suddenly announced the launch of Project Freedom, which was meant to be a full military effort to shield oil tankers and cargo ships crossing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Fearing further retaliation from Iran and the closure of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, where Saudi Arabia’s exports had been moved to, Riyadh blocked access to its bases and airspaces.
The result led to Project Freedom being abruptly shelved less than two days after its inception, with the mission only ever guiding two American vessels through the strait in a blow to the Trump administration.
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Since then, things have remained rocky between the US and Saudi Arabia, with Riyadh only ending its restriction on its basing and airspace after American officials reportedly warned that it would drop the kingdom from its priority list for receiving defense weapons, Arab officials told the WSJ.
Last month, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman notably turned down an invitation to attend the G7 summit in France as a direct protest of the US handling of the war in Iran, sources told the Journal.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio skipped Saudi Arabia during his Middle East tour last week when he visited countries hit by Iran during the war.
While the US and Gulf Cooperation Council, which Saudi Arabia is a part of, reaffirmed a “strong commitment” to the partnership, Riyadh still saw Rubio’s lack of visit as a calculated snub, sources told the WSJ.
It remains unclear how big the rift between Washington and Riyadh has become as the relationship helps fuel the petrodollar, critical mineral supply chains and allows for major trade of American arms.
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Dad Notices A Strange Shadow On Skylight — Then Saves An Entire Fluffy Family
Dad Notices A Strange Shadow On Skylight — Then Saves An Entire Fluffy Family
“We couldn’t believe it.”
By Ashley OrtizPublished on July 1, 2026 at 5:48 PMA somber hush fell across Charlene Jackson’s house on the morning of April 26, as her family quietly showered their 12-year-old dog, Caddie, with love. It was Caddie's final day with them, and they were all filled with grief over having to say goodbye to her the following morning.
The family was gathered around their beloved dog when Charlene’s husband suddenly entered the room, urging them to follow him into the office. He’d spotted a large, dark figure on the skylight and realized an adorable fluffy family had come to visit.
“He was working in his home office when he heard noise above him,” Charlene told The Dodo. “He looked up, and there they were! We couldn’t believe it.”

The Jacksons ran into the office and were shocked to find a mama cat curled up on the skylight with a handful of kittens, especially with the weather they’d recently had.
“It had been raining for a few days before, and it was chilly,” Charlene said. “The sun was finally out, so they must have been on the skylight to get warm.”

Without skipping a beat, the entire Jackson family rushed to help the mama cat and her babies. They initially carried a kennel, food and water onto the roof and planned to let the cats rest for a little while. But after watching one of the kittens stumble into a drainage opening, they rescued him and quickly decided to bring the feral family down to safer ground.
Thankfully, the little fluffy family didn’t put up much of a fight when being relocated.
“Mama was very friendly and allowed us to pick her up and pet her,” Charlene said. “The kittens were very frightened, but we managed to get them all, so we thought, and bring them down.”

The Jacksons made a small enclosure for the cats outside, where Mama cat could come and go as she pleased, while her kittens rested safely. But shortly after moving the little family into the enclosure, Charlene and her husband realized one tiny kitten had been left behind.
“We had Mama and 4 kittens but realized after watching the videos there were 5 kittens,” Charlene said. “We couldn’t find the 5th one anywhere. We thought it was lost for good.”
Sadly, the Jacksons didn’t find the missing kitten that night, but they promised to keep searching. The following morning, they said a heart-wrenching goodbye to their ailing dog, Caddie, then sought comfort in cuddles with their remaining senior pup, Lulu, and the little cat family.
“It felt like the kittens and mama were sent to us to help us heal,” Charlene said.
You can watch more of their rescue here:
Thankfully, less than 24 hours later, they found the missing kitten alive after surviving two days on her own in a roof gutter.
The Jacksons breathed a sigh of relief as they reunited her with the rest of the little family, convinced the cats' stressful rescue journey was finally over. But the next morning, the mama cat came racing toward Charlene and Lulu outside in a panic, proving it wasn't over just yet.

At first, Charlene thought the mama cat was hungry, so she set out a fresh bowl of food. But the mama cat ignored the food and kept scratching the Jacksons’ patio door.
“I thought it was strange, so I went out to see what she wanted,” Charlene said. “ I looked into the pen and found only 2 kitties. 3 had escaped.”

Charlene’s heart dropped. Panicked, she and her husband searched everywhere for the escaped kittens but couldn’t find them anywhere. And it seemed that the mama cat was just as desperate for their help.
“Every time we stopped or came inside to take a break, Mama scratched at the door,” Charlene said. “She was insisting we find them. She even led us up a pathway several times. It was very deliberate.”
The Jacksons followed the mama cat up the pathway, continuing to search for hours, but kept coming up empty-handed. They decided to follow Mama one last time, and she suddenly leaped from the path onto a covered pile of wood and stared at them.
“We were quiet and heard rustling,” Charlene said. “All 3 kitties were together and had fallen down to the bottom of the wood pile and were stuck. They were about 4 feet down.”

Charlene and her family took apart the wood pile until each kitten was out safely, eventually deciding to move everyone inside.

The kittens spent the next few weeks growing and playing inside the Jackson home, while Mama relaxed on one of her many new beds. Eventually, the kittens were old enough to be adopted, and two quickly found amazing homes.
At first, the Jacksons decided not to keep any of the cats, as they already had two senior dogs with deteriorating health conditions. But after losing Caddie the day after the cats’ rescue, and then their beloved Lulu a little over a month later, they realized they couldn’t part ways with the remaining cats. So, they adopted Mama and the last three kittens, whom they named Spicy, Stevie and Nicksy.

Now that Mama and her babies are officially part of the family, the Jacksons’ days couldn’t be brighter. Still healing from the heartbreak of losing their soul dogs, the Jacksons turn to the little cat family for comfort every day — and they can’t imagine life without them now.
“This family of kitties and mama have really helped us heal,” Charlene said.
