The drone strike on Riyadh’s oil supply is a strategic turning point that has wider implications for the Middle East.

Rep. Ilhan Omar responded to criticism from a 9/11 victim’s son, who, during a memorial reading of victims’ names at Ground Zero last week, called out the freshman congresswoman for past remarks she made about the terrorist attacks.

Spain's National Court on Monday rejected the extradition to the United States of a former Venezuelan military spy chief accused of drug smuggling and other charges. The court released retired Maj. Gen. Hugo Carvajal, who denies the charges and says that they were politically motivated. María Dolores Argüelles, a lawyer for Carvajal, said she had no immediate details of the ruling beyond that a release order had been issued for the retired general.

California added an eleventh state to its travel blacklist on Friday, banning state-sponsored travel to Iowa over that state's refusal to cover gender-transition surgeries under its Medicaid program.California attorney general Xavier Becerra announced the decision to add Iowa to the travel-ban list, which takes effect October 4 and means public employees and college students will not be able to travel to Iowa on the taxpayer's dime.In May, Iowa governor Kim Reynolds signed a law blocking Medicaid from paying for gender-reassignment surgeries despite the state Supreme Court's ruling earlier this year in favor of charging taxpayers for the procedures. Gender identity is a protected characteristic under Iowa's Civil Rights Act."The Iowa Legislature has reversed course on what was settled law under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, repealing protections for those seeking gender-affirming healthcare," Becerra said in a statement. "California has taken an unambiguous stand against discrimination and government actions that would enable it."California's travel blacklist stems from a 2016 law allowing the Golden State to ban state travel to other U.S. states that roll back protections for LGBT citizens. Texas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Mississippi, and Kentucky are also on the list.

Who launched the attack? The Houthi militia in Yemen - who are backed and supplied by Iran - initially claimed the attack. But experts and officials are not convinced the grpup has the organisational or operational capability. The US and Saudi Arabia claim they have evidence that Iranian weapons were used and satellite images released by the US reportedly suggested the attack had come from the northwest direction. Why would Iran launch an attack now? As talks with EU members over the ailing nuclear deal stall, Iran needs to show the world the consequences of returning it to its pariah status. While Tehran may be suffering under sanctions, Saturday’s attack shows it still has the capability to cause a great deal of damage to its foes in the region.  The strikes hit the Saudi kingdom where it hurt the most - its lucrative oil industry, with the knock-on effect on global crude prices. Strikes against Saudi oil plants What will happen to global oil supply? The consequences of the attack are likely to be short lived but depend on the capacity - and willingness - of other producers to pick up the slack.  Venezuela and Libya are unable to do so and Iran is constrained by US sanctions. Other Opec members and Russia are not rushing to turn on the taps, happy to enjoy higher prices while they can.  Neither can the US - now the world's biggest oil producer due to the shale boom - quickly ramp up supplies as export facilities are not up to scratch.  What might a retaliatory attack look like? Riyadh may decide it needs to respond in some limited way to save face considering the gravity of the attack on its soil. If it does, that would probably mean a tit-for-tat, proportionate strike on Iranian energy facilities such as oil refineries. And, that, in turn, would lead to an Iranian response. In a phone call with the US president, the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman made clear the kingdom was "willing and able to confront and deal with this terrorist aggression."     What does this mean for the possibility of US talks with Iran?  Donald Trump had previously indicated a willingness to meet with Iranian leaders with "no preconditions". That had led to anticipation of a meeting with Hassan Rouhani, the Iranian president, on the sidelines of the UN general assembly next week. The recent departure of Iran hawk John Bolton as Mr Trump's national security adviser had also seemed to make a meeting more possible. However, following the Saudi oil attack, Iran's foreign ministry said: "This meeting will not happen." And Mr Trump said it was now "incorrect" that he was willing to meet with "no conditions."