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"Officials say a future military response hasn’t been ruled out."

"Each side has so far refrained from escalation, but Trump administration officials had not ruled out the prospect of a response."

"President Donald Trump declared Thursday that 'Iran made a very big mistake' in shooting down a U.S. surveillance drone near the Persian Gulf but suggested it was a foolish error rather than an intentional escalation of the tensions that have led to fears of open conflict."

"The Senate on Thursday passed three measures to block President Trump from using his emergency authority to complete several arms sales benefiting Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, but fell short of the support needed to overcome a pledged veto."

Unveiling new data indicating that global displacement numbers are at “the highest level” that the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, has seen in its almost 70-year existence, Mr. Grandi noted that these were “conservative” estimates.

"Iran shot down a U.S. naval surveillance drone near the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian and U.S. officials said Thursday, adding to weeks of tensions in the Persian Gulf region amid growing concerns of a wider military confrontation."

"Loopholes in U.N. Security Council sanctions procedures are allowing blacklisted al Qaeda and Islamic State terrorists and their supporters to tap their bank accounts despite a U.N. asset freeze, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and people familiar with the matter."

"Key takeaways from the United Nations report on the killing of Jamal Khashoggi."

"Senior U.S. officials called back to White House after desalination facility in kingdom hit."

"Last winter, the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro seemed a sure bet to President Trump, a quick foreign policy win at a time when other initiatives in Asia and the Middle East appeared stalled or headed in the wrong direction."

Continue on for an update on the latest news concerning the U.S.-Iran crisis from the Associated Press and Voice of America.

The U.S. envoy seeking a peace deal with the Afghan Taliban has said Washington is seeking a “comprehensive peace agreement, not a withdrawal agreement” in its talks with the Taliban.

The use of “fake Overseas Contingency Operations” funds is a product of the arbitrary Budget Control Act spending caps and will not disappear until the caps do. The only honest solution is to eliminate those caps and begin budgeting based on real needs with real money in real accounts.

"Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has privately delivered warnings intended for Iranian leaders that any attack by Tehran or its proxies resulting in the death of even one American service member will generate a military counterattack, U.S. officials said."

"The president was named Reagan, and Iran and Iraq were locked in a horrific war with each other over control of land and the Persian Gulf."

The United States explicitly stated Tuesday it is seeking a comprehensive peace agreement with the Taliban that would cover counterterrorism assurances, withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, intra-Afghan talks to find a political settlement to the war and a permanent cease-fire.

"For the second time in six months, President Donald Trump is searching for his next defense secretary."

"As the U.S. seeks an exit from the Afghan war, Central Asia is on the cusp of a new era, with Russia and China vying for influence in a region that will no longer be dominated by America’s post-9/11 undertaking to bring peace and stability to Afghanistan."

"President Donald Trump said acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan will not move forward with the confirmation process so that he can devote more time to his family."

"The trial of a senior operative reveals the extent of the terrorist organization’s reach in the United States and Canada."

"The Chinese military is guilty of “irresponsible actions” toward American forces stationed at Djibouti’s Camp Lemonnier on the Horn of Africa, a senior U.S. military intelligence officer said."

Continue on for updates on the developments in the US-Iran crisis, from the NYT, WaPo, AP and BBC News.

"President Trump said in a tweet Monday night that U.S. immigration agents are planning to make mass arrests starting “next week,” an apparent reference to a plan in preparation for months that aims to round up thousands of migrant parents and children in a blitz operation across major U.S. cities."

"The United States is reopening its permanent U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in Somalia, 28 years since its closing on January 5, 1991. Although the U.S. never formally severed diplomatic relations with Somalia, the U.S. Embassy in Somalia was closed in 1991, when the civil war in the 1980s led to the collapse of the country's central government in 1991."

At the conclusion of another successful Mad Scientist Science Fiction Writing Contest, we had received over 75 highly imaginative short stories. In addition to listing and linking you to the contest’s winning submission (as well as those of our finalists), today’s post reports back on the major cross-cutting themes we were able to distill from your collective creativity and provides effective writing tips from Dr. David Brin, our contest’s senior judge and multiple award-winning science fiction author. Enjoy!